Informational only. Not medical advice.INFORMATIONAL PLATFORM ONLY — NOT MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT
Informational only. Not medical advice.INFORMATIONAL PLATFORM ONLY — NOT MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT
Head-to-head comparison of Capromorelin and Tesamorelin — mechanism, dosing, side effects, legal status, and pricing.
Capromorelin is a non-peptide, orally active pyrazolinone-piperidine dipeptide-mimetic that functions as a growth hormone secretagogue receptor 1a (GHS-R1a) agonist, mimicking the endogenous hormone ghrelin. It is NOT approved for human use anywhere; a Pfizer Phase II trial in 395 older adults showed positive signals for lean body mass, body weight, and physical function but was terminated early and never advanced to approval. Capromorelin is FDA-approved as a veterinary drug (Entyce for dogs, Elura for cats) and is explicitly named on the WADA Prohibited List under S2 (growth hormone secretagogues), prohibited at all times in competitive sport.
Tesamorelin (Egrifta / Egrifta SV) is a stabilized analog of human GHRH(1-44) with a trans-3-hexenoic acid moiety at the N-terminus that protects against protease degradation. FDA-approved in November 2010 for the reduction of excess abdominal fat in HIV-infected patients with lipodystrophy, it is the only FDA-approved GHRH analog for this indication. Off-label use for general body composition and visceral fat reduction in non-HIV populations is common but outside the approved label.
Capromorelin
Tesamorelin
Category
Legal Status
Mechanism
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Frequency
COA-verified vendors · trust score ≥70 required · single-vial price — bulk/bundle deals may be lower
Capromorelin
Tesamorelin
COA corpus from Disclosed Labs — independently tested batches only.
Capromorelin
No COA data yet.
Submit testing data →Tesamorelin
175
COAs
99.5%
Avg purity
14
Labs
Tesamorelin is among peptides under FDA review for the Category 1 (503A) list; if added, it would require a prescription to be compounded by registered 503A/503B pharmacies — not yet authorized. Capromorelin remains research-only. In April 2026 the FDA removed 12 peptides from Category 2, which does not place them on the Category 1 list or authorize compounding. The FDA's Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee is advisory and meets July 23–24, 2026 to review nominations and make recommendations to the FDA.
Capromorelin has human clinical trial data but is not an approved human drug. A Pfizer-sponsored Phase II trial randomized 395 adults aged 65–84 at risk of functional decline to oral capromorelin or placebo for up to 2 years (315 completed 6 months; 284 completed 12 months). The trial reported increased lean body mass (+1.4 vs 0.3 kg, P=0.001), body weight (+1.4 kg, P=0.006), improved tandem walk (P=0.02), and improved stair climb (P=0.04), concluding capromorelin "may improve body composition and physical function." The study was terminated early according to predetermined treatment effect criteria; no human product was ever approved. Preclinical studies in rats showed an ED50 <0.05 mg/kg IV for plasma GH elevation; in healthy Beagle dogs, oral capromorelin increased food consumption and body weight in a 4-day randomized, masked, placebo-controlled trial. In healthy cats, capromorelin altered glucose-metabolism parameters. In broiler chickens, it increased feed intake and body-weight gain.
Key references
FDA approval (NDA 022505) was based on two Phase 3 trials reported by Falutz et al. (NEJM, 2007; PMID 18057338) and the pooled 52-week safety extension, showing ~15-18% reduction in visceral adipose tissue with improved triglycerides in HIV patients with abdominal fat accumulation. Stanley et al. (JAMA, 2014; PMID 25038357) demonstrated concurrent reductions in visceral and liver fat (NAFLD). Baker et al. (Arch Neurol, 2012; PMID 22869065) reported favorable effects on executive function in older adults with and without mild cognitive impairment at 1 mg/day for 20 weeks — note this cognition signal was in MCI / healthy older adults, not specifically APOE4-positive individuals. Current label dose is 1.4 mg SubQ daily (Egrifta SV); legacy Egrifta used 2 mg/day. Off-label use for general body composition in non-HIV populations is common but outside the FDA label.
Capromorelin (Hormone) and Tesamorelin (Performance) are in different categories and target different biological pathways. This is a common pattern in multi-compound research protocols. Researchers should monitor the biomarkers from both profiles and watch for interactions listed in each compound’s contraindications. Consult a licensed healthcare provider before combining any research compounds.
This platform provides informational tools only, not medical advice. This comparison is for educational purposes only. Consult a licensed provider.
Dosing Notes
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Key references
Disclosed Labs