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Estimating skeletal age is crucial for assessing child growth and development. This study reviews common methods for determining bone age using X-rays of the lower leg and hand.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric radiology
- Orthodontics
- Developmental biology
Background:
- Skeletal age determination is vital for diagnosing growth-related issues in children.
- It serves as an objective measure of a child's growth and developmental stage.
- Familiarity with current bone age assessment methods is essential for clinicians.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide an overview of established methods for estimating skeletal age in pediatric patients.
- To highlight the importance of bone age assessment in clinical practice.
- To familiarize readers with techniques applicable to different age groups.
Main Methods:
- Lateral X-ray of the left lower leg (including knee and foot) for newborns and infants.
- X-ray of the left hand for children older than three months.
- Review of specific bone age assessment methods: v. Harnack (lower leg), Greulich-Pyle, Tanner-Whitehouse, and de Roo and Schröder (hand).
Main Results:
- Different radiographic approaches are used for skeletal age assessment based on patient age.
- Established methods like Greulich-Pyle and Tanner-Whitehouse are commonly applied to hand X-rays.
- The v. Harnack method is utilized for lower leg assessments in younger children.
Conclusions:
- Accurate skeletal age determination is fundamental for pediatric diagnostics and growth monitoring.
- The choice of radiographic view (lower leg vs. hand) depends on the child's age.
- Clinicians should be proficient in multiple bone age assessment techniques to ensure objective evaluation.
Abstract:
Determination of skeletal age in the growing patient is very important for various diagnostic questions. It is the most objective criterion of growth and development. Accordingly, it is necessary to be familiar with the most common methods used at present to estimate bone age in childhood. In newborns and infants skeletal age is usually determined from a lateral x-ray of the left lower leg, including knee and foot; after three month of age, an x-ray of the left hand is used. We present methods of assessing bone age from lower leg (v. Harnack) and from the left hand (Greulich-Pyle; Tanner-Whitehouse; de Roo and Schröder).