Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 21, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Head Circumference Charts for Turkish Children Aged Five to Eighteen Years
Bülent Kara1, Nilay Etiler2, Ayşen Aydoğan Uncuoğlu3
1Department of Pediatric Neurology, Kocaeli University School of Medicine, Kocaeli, Turkey.
Insights
New head circumference growth charts for Turkish children aged 5-18 years were developed. These charts aid in screening for developmental and genetic disorders in children and adolescents.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric endocrinology
- Human growth and development
- Biostatistics
Background:
- Head circumference references are crucial for early childhood development screening.
- Existing references may not accurately reflect growth patterns in older children.
- Accurate growth data is vital for identifying developmental, neurological, and genetic disorders.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish head circumference growth reference charts for Turkish children aged 5-18 years.
- To incorporate height and waist circumference into the growth references.
- To provide localized growth data for a specific population.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the LMS method to construct reference centile curves.
- Collected anthropometric data (head circumference, height, waist circumference) from 5079 Turkish students (aged 5-18).
- Statistical analysis to determine correlations and population-specific growth patterns.
Main Results:
- Head circumference showed strong correlations with height (r=0.74), weight (r=0.76), and waist circumference (r=0.68).
- Boys exhibited larger mean head circumference values than girls across all age groups.
- Turkish children's head circumference measurements were lower than those reported in US and WHO data.
Conclusions:
- Developed localized head circumference growth charts for Turkish children aged 5-18.
- These charts are essential for accurate assessment of growth in Turkish children and adolescents.
- Local growth charts improve the evaluation of head circumference in clinical and research settings.
Introduction:
Most head circumference growth references are useful during the first years of life, but they are also useful for older children when screening for developmental, neurological, and genetic disorders. We aimed to develop head circumference growth reference charts for age, height, and waist circumference for Turkish children aged 5-18 years.
Methods:
Head circumference, height, and waist circumference measurements were obtained from 5079 students aged 5-18 years from İzmit, Kocaeli Province, Turkey. The LMS method was used to construct reference centile curves.
Results:
Head circumference measurements were strongly correlated with height (r=0.74), weight (r=0.76), and waist circumference (r=0.68). The mean head circumference values for boys were larger than those for girls at all ages. Compared with data from the United States, the World Health Organization, and other studies from Turkey, our data showed a decrease in head circumference at all ages for both sexes.
Conclusion:
Local growth charts can be used to evaluate head circumference growth in older Turkish children and adolescents.
