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Model of normal prepubertal growth
N K Thalange1, P J Foster, M S Gill
1Department of Child Health, University of Manchester.
Insights
Childhood growth is a complex, non-linear process. Research reveals unpredictable spurts and stasis periods, alongside seasonal growth trends, making short-term growth irregular.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Human Growth and Development
- Biostatistics
Background:
- Short-term growth models vary, including periodic cycles versus abrupt spurts (saltation and stasis).
- Understanding growth variability is crucial for accurate developmental assessments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the variability of short-term growth in healthy prepubertal children.
- To analyze the patterns of growth spurts and stasis over one academic year.
Main Methods:
- Studied 46 healthy prepubertal children with measurements three times weekly for one academic year.
- Employed descriptive statistical approaches and regression modeling to analyze growth data.
Main Results:
- Growth occurred in a biphasic manner with 3-6 unpredictable spurts (mean length 56 days) and stasis periods (mean length 18 days).
- Stasis periods accounted for at least 20% of the observation time.
- Observed strong seasonal trends: declining growth in autumn/winter, with a spring spurt.
Conclusions:
- Short-term human growth is discontinuous, irregular, and unpredictable.
- The findings challenge simple linear or periodic growth models in children.
Abstract:
Growth over the short term is a highly complex non-linear process. Contrasting models of short term growth have been proposed which include periodic growth cycles versus abrupt growth spurts with intervening growth arrest ('saltation and stasis'). The variability of short term growth has been characterised from a study of 46 healthy prepubertal children measured three times a week over one academic year using a combination of descriptive statistical approaches and regression modelling. Growth in childhood over one year is represented by a biphasic process comprising three to six unpredictable growth spurts, each of mean length 56 days (range 13-155 days), separated by periods of stasis (less than or equal to 0.05 cm height increment over more than seven days), each lasting a mean of 18 days (range 8-52 days) and accounting for at least 20% of the period of observation. This is superimposed on strong seasonal trends in growth with a declining growth rate over the autumn months reaching a nadir in midwinter, followed by a growth spurt in the spring. Human growth over short periods is therefore a discontinuous, irregular, and unpredictable process.