Machine-assisted translation — the German original version is authoritative.
Growth Hormone System
Somatropin (HGH 191AA)
rhGH · Genotropin · Norditropin · Humatrope · 191-AA-Wachstumshormon
Somatropin is biotechnologically manufactured human growth hormone with the identical sequence of 191 amino acids as the body's own GH (hence "191AA"). It is approved as a medicine and prescription-only — for defined indications such as growth hormone deficiency, Turner or Prader-Willi syndrome, or HIV-associated wasting. Unlike GHRP or GHRH secretagogues, it is the growth hormone itself, not a trigger for the body's own production. In sport it has long been banned.
Regulatory status
Approved · prescription-only
An approved, prescription-only medicine; in sport (WADA S2.2) banned at all times.
Drug class
Recombinant human growth hormone (somatropin)
Half-life (informative)
Serum half-life short (in the range of hours); the biological effect via IGF-1 lasts longer.
Studied in the literature
Subcutaneously in the approved preparations, prescribed and monitored by a physician.
Mechanism of action
Somatropin binds the growth hormone receptor in the liver and periphery and triggers, among other things, the formation of IGF-1 — with anabolic, lipolytic, and growth-promoting effects. Because the hormone is supplied directly, it bypasses the hypothalamic-pituitary regulatory loop.
Therapeutic use requires establishing the indication, dose titration, and laboratory monitoring.
Research history
Recombinant GH has been available since the mid-1980s and replaced the growth hormone formerly obtained from cadaver pituitaries, which in isolated cases had transmitted Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Since then there has been a broad, clearly regulated medical use — and, in parallel, misuse in doping.
Regulatory status by region
Approved for defined endocrinological indications; dispensed only on a physician's prescription.
Approved, among others, for GH deficiency, Turner/Noonan/Prader-Willi syndrome, SHOX deficiency, chronic renal insufficiency, and HIV-associated wasting.
Growth hormone has been on the WADA list at all times since the first Prohibited List (2004).
Research areas
- Growth hormone deficiency (children and adults)
- Turner, Noonan, and Prader-Willi syndrome, SHOX deficiency
- Chronic renal insufficiency in childhood
- HIV-associated wasting
Documented effects (from the literature)
- Fluid retention and edema.
- Joint and muscle pain, carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Insulin resistance and elevated blood sugar.
Safety concerns & caution
- With misuse in high "anti-aging" or doping doses, acromegaly-like changes, glucose intolerance, and possible cardiac strain may occur.
- Contraindicated, among other things, in active tumor disease.
- The FDA conducted a safety review of a possible mortality signal.
Risks of gray-market purchase
- Counterfeit or underdosed "generic HGH" is widespread — often non-sterile and of unknown content.
- False concentration assumptions lead to dosing errors.
- Use without an indication and follow-up monitoring is dangerous.
Frequently asked questions
Is HGH 191AA the same as GHRP or sermorelin?
No. 191AA is the growth hormone itself — a replacement that is supplied directly. GHRP and GHRH peptides (e.g. sermorelin), by contrast, stimulate the body's own GH release.
Why is it prescription-only and banned in sport?
Because of substantial metabolic and tissue effects and the associated risks. WADA lists growth hormone under S2.2 — it is banned at all times.
Sources
Primary and reference sources for your own reading.
Related substances
Unfamiliar terms? Look them up in the glossary or read the fundamentals.
This profile is for information and education only. It is not medical advice and deliberately contains no dosing or usage details. Decisions about use belong in a doctor’s hands.