The growth pattern of Kuwaiti pre-school children. Compared to NCHS/CDC reference population

The aim of this study was to present growth charts of pre-school children based on cross-sectional data of the population in Kuwait to determine their health status. This survey was carried out during September 1989 to June 1990. The growth patterns of weight and heights per age were designed separately for boys and girls. The growth pattern of height for age, and weight by age were constructed and smoothed by the spline regression polynomial technique. The girls were taller than the boys after the age of one year. The growth deficit in children from Kuwait compared with internationally recommended reference populations may be attributed to genetic and environmental factors. The growth pattern presented here will suffice as a standard in monitoring the growth of Kuwaiti children in particular and those in the Gulf region in general.