Abstract: The present invention provides methods and compositions for increasing the growth rates, alleviating the symptoms, or improving the metabolism of human patients having an endocrine disorder characterized by partial endogenous growth hormone activity or signaling. The invention provides a method comprising administering to a patient suffering from an endocrine disorder characterized by partial endogenous growth hormone activity or signaling an amount of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) effective to improve metabolism in the patient, where the patient receives IGF-1 in a single daily administration.

Abstract: The present invention provides standard deviation score (SDS) calculators, which SDS calculators are useful for transforming insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) concentrations to IGF-1 standard deviation scores. In one embodiment, IGF-1 blood levels are calculated so as to take into account IGFBP-3 blood levels (and, optionally, IGF-2 blood levels) to provide an IGF-1 production rate, which can be used to calculate an IGF-1 production rate SDS. The IGF-1 SDS and IGF-1 production rate SDS are particularly useful in assessing the stimulated rate of IGF-1 production in response to, for example, growth hormone therapy.