GH response to GHRH-arginine testing is reduced in both overweight and obese subjects and negatively associated with indices of central abdominal obesity including WC, trunk fat, and visceral adipose tissue. The use of waist circumference, as a surrogate for central adiposity, adds predictive information to the determination of GH response, independent of BMI.

These results suggest that reduced GH secretion is associated with a more abnormal metabolic phenotype in obesity, characterized by increased cIMT, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and inflammation.