[Pubertal growth and final height in 40 patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus]

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM1), the most important chronic endocrine-metabolic disease in children and adolescents, may lead to delayed growth and puberty. In this study we analyzed the influence of DM1 on growth spurt and puberty of patients whose onset of the disease was before or at the beginning of this phase.

Data from 40 patients, 25 females, who had attained final height were retrospectively obtained, including duration of disease, patient's height and weight SDS at each consultation, parental target height, yearly growth velocities (GV), peak of growth spurt, duration of puberty, magnitude of growth spurt and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) levels.

37 patients had an adequate final height to parental target height, and only 3 were below the lower limit. There was no significant association among the variables and the appropriate final height to the target height, except for GV on growth spurt, when it was lower than or equal to 6 cm/year. The age of onset of DM1 and the age of peak of growth spurt was similar to previously data reported; regarding the age of the onset of puberty, there was no delay. However, the magnitude of the growth spurt and the peak of GV were lower. According to HbA1C levels, all patients exhibited a bad chronic control of DM1.

In this group of inadequately controlled patients, the final height was lower than expected when compared to the height at onset of DM1, probably due to a slow GV during puberty, which however had no influence on the final height to parental target height.