{"id":"growth-hormone","name":"Growth Hormone (GH)","shortName":"Growth hormone","aliases":["Growth Hormone","GH","Human Growth Hormone","Somatotropin","hGH","Growth Hormone, Serum","Growth Hormone (Random)","HGH","Somatotropic Hormone","Somatotrophic Hormone","STH","Growth Hormone, ICMA","Growth Hormone, S"],"abbreviations":["GH","hGH","HGH","STH"],"loinc":[{"code":"2963-7","primary":true},{"code":"25529-9","primary":false},{"code":"33858-2","primary":false}],"specimen":"serum","units":[{"ucum":"ng/mL","display":"ng/mL"},{"ucum":"ug/L","display":"µg/L"},{"ucum":"m[IU]/L","display":"mIU/L"}],"referenceRanges":[{"population":"Men, 18+","low":0.02,"high":0.97,"unit":"ng/mL","unitDisplay":"ng/mL","note":"Mayo Clinic Laboratories interval (Beckman Access Ultrasensitive hGH immunoassay, fasting sample). Labs differ a lot, and GH assays are not interchangeable. For adults, Quest prints 7.1 ng/mL or lower, Labcorp prints 0.0 to 10.0 ng/mL (IDS-iSYS immunoassay, fasting and rested for 30 minutes), Labcorp Endocrine Sciences prints 6 ng/mL or lower, Michigan Medicine prints 0 to 3 ng/mL for men and 0 to 5 ng/mL for women, and LifeLabs (Canada) prints below 0.80 µg/L for men and below 8.00 µg/L for women. ARUP prints no interval for this test. No guideline sets a cutoff for a random GH: the Endocrine Society acromegaly guideline (2014) recommends IGF-1 as the first test and advises against routine single random levels, its adult deficiency guideline (2011) says stimulation testing is usually needed, and a 2024 review adds that random GH and IGF-1 aren't reliable alone. Quest and Labcorp print much wider limits, so a result above this range can still be inside the limit on a Quest or Labcorp report. GH is released in bursts, so one random value is a snapshot. On the current calibration standard, 1 µg/L equals about 3 mIU/L. Use the range on your own report.","sources":[{"title":"HGH: Growth Hormone, Serum","url":"https://www.mayocliniclabs.com/test-catalog/overview/8688","publisher":"Mayo Clinic Laboratories"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (GH) (test code 521)","url":"https://testdirectory.questdiagnostics.com/test/test-detail/521/?cc=MASTER","publisher":"Quest Diagnostics"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (test 004275)","url":"https://www.labcorp.com/tests/004275/growth-hormone","publisher":"Labcorp"},{"title":"Endocrinology Expected Values and S.I. Unit Conversion Tables (Growth Hormone, ICMA, test 500647)","url":"https://specialtytesting.labcorp.com/sites/default/files/2021-07/L5167-0421-18%20Endocrine%20Expected%20Values_0.pdf","publisher":"Labcorp (Endocrine Sciences)"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (GH)","url":"https://mlabs.umich.edu/tests/growth-hormone","publisher":"Michigan Medicine Laboratories (MLabs)"},{"title":"Growth Hormone Method Update and Reference Range Change","url":"https://lifelabs.com/?p=4118","publisher":"LifeLabs (Canada)"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (ARUP test 0070069)","url":"https://ltd.aruplab.com/Tests/Pub/0070069","publisher":"ARUP Laboratories"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (GH), Serum (Ward Manual)","url":"https://manual.cpy.cuhk.edu.hk/wardmanual/Menu/R1/D-S/Growth%20Hormone.htm","publisher":"Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong"},{"title":"Acromegaly: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25356808/","publisher":"Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism","year":2014},{"title":"Acromegaly diagnosis, treatment guideline issued by the Endocrine Society","url":"https://www.healio.com/news/endocrinology/20141104/acromegaly-diagnosis-treatment-guideline-issued-by-the-endocrine-society","publisher":"Healio","year":2014},{"title":"Evaluation and Treatment of Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21602453/","publisher":"Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism","year":2011},{"title":"A 2024 Update on Growth Hormone Deficiency Syndrome in Adults: From Guidelines to Real Life","url":"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11508958/","publisher":"Journal of Clinical Medicine","year":2024}]},{"population":"Women, 18+","low":0.02,"high":3.61,"unit":"ng/mL","unitDisplay":"ng/mL","note":"Mayo Clinic Laboratories interval (Beckman Access Ultrasensitive hGH immunoassay, fasting sample). Labs differ a lot, and GH assays are not interchangeable. For adults, Quest prints 7.1 ng/mL or lower, Labcorp prints 0.0 to 10.0 ng/mL (IDS-iSYS immunoassay, fasting and rested for 30 minutes), Labcorp Endocrine Sciences prints 6 ng/mL or lower, Michigan Medicine prints 0 to 3 ng/mL for men and 0 to 5 ng/mL for women, and LifeLabs (Canada) prints below 0.80 µg/L for men and below 8.00 µg/L for women. ARUP prints no interval for this test. No guideline sets a cutoff for a random GH: the Endocrine Society acromegaly guideline (2014) recommends IGF-1 as the first test and advises against routine single random levels, its adult deficiency guideline (2011) says stimulation testing is usually needed, and a 2024 review adds that random GH and IGF-1 aren't reliable alone. Quest and Labcorp print much wider limits, so a result above this range can still be inside the limit on a Quest or Labcorp report. GH is released in bursts, so one random value is a snapshot. On the current calibration standard, 1 µg/L equals about 3 mIU/L. Use the range on your own report.","sources":[{"title":"HGH: Growth Hormone, Serum","url":"https://www.mayocliniclabs.com/test-catalog/overview/8688","publisher":"Mayo Clinic Laboratories"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (GH) (test code 521)","url":"https://testdirectory.questdiagnostics.com/test/test-detail/521/?cc=MASTER","publisher":"Quest Diagnostics"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (test 004275)","url":"https://www.labcorp.com/tests/004275/growth-hormone","publisher":"Labcorp"},{"title":"Endocrinology Expected Values and S.I. Unit Conversion Tables (Growth Hormone, ICMA, test 500647)","url":"https://specialtytesting.labcorp.com/sites/default/files/2021-07/L5167-0421-18%20Endocrine%20Expected%20Values_0.pdf","publisher":"Labcorp (Endocrine Sciences)"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (GH)","url":"https://mlabs.umich.edu/tests/growth-hormone","publisher":"Michigan Medicine Laboratories (MLabs)"},{"title":"Growth Hormone Method Update and Reference Range Change","url":"https://lifelabs.com/?p=4118","publisher":"LifeLabs (Canada)"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (ARUP test 0070069)","url":"https://ltd.aruplab.com/Tests/Pub/0070069","publisher":"ARUP Laboratories"},{"title":"Growth Hormone (GH), Serum (Ward Manual)","url":"https://manual.cpy.cuhk.edu.hk/wardmanual/Menu/R1/D-S/Growth%20Hormone.htm","publisher":"Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong"},{"title":"Acromegaly: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25356808/","publisher":"Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism","year":2014},{"title":"Acromegaly diagnosis, treatment guideline issued by the Endocrine Society","url":"https://www.healio.com/news/endocrinology/20141104/acromegaly-diagnosis-treatment-guideline-issued-by-the-endocrine-society","publisher":"Healio","year":2014},{"title":"Evaluation and Treatment of Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21602453/","publisher":"Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism","year":2011},{"title":"A 2024 Update on Growth Hormone Deficiency Syndrome in Adults: From Guidelines to Real Life","url":"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11508958/","publisher":"Journal of Clinical Medicine","year":2024}]}],"review":{"status":"ai-verified","label":"AI-verified against cited sources. Awaiting expert review","lastReviewed":"2026-10-03"},"summary":"A hormone from the pituitary gland that drives growth in children and helps manage body composition in adults. It is released in bursts, so one level is hard to interpret.","url":"https://bloodtesttracker.com/markers/growth-hormone","notice":"Information, not medical advice. Ranges differ between labs, so the range on your own report is the one your result is judged against."}