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Variation of bone age progression in healthy children
L Benso1, S Vannelli, L Pastorin
1Centro di Auxologia, Università di Torino, Italy.
Insights
Bone age velocity in Italian boys exceeded UK standards, but significant individual differences were observed. Growth and maturation measures showed weak correlations, complicating individual patient assessments.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Auxology
- Skeletal Maturation
Background:
- Bone age assessment is crucial for evaluating growth and predicting adult height.
- Understanding factors influencing skeletal maturation is key for pediatric growth management.
- Variability in maturation rates necessitates reference standards for diverse populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate factors affecting skeletal maturation rate in Italian boys.
- To assess the utility of bone age measures for individual patient evaluation.
- To compare bone age velocity with auxological and pubertal variables.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the radius-ulna-short bones (RUS) method for bone age assessment.
- Analyzed data from 407 Italian boys aged 7–12 years.
- Correlated bone age velocity with height velocity, height SDS, BMI, and pubertal maturation indicators.
Main Results:
- Bone age velocity in Italian boys was higher than UK reference standards, with substantial interindividual variation.
- Poor correlations were found between bone age velocity and height velocity or pubertal maturation.
- Slight positive correlations existed between bone age velocity and height SDS and BMI.
- RUS method yielded higher bone age estimations compared to the carpus method.
Conclusions:
- Marked interindividual deviations in bone age assessments hinder individual patient data correlation.
- Bone age velocity alone is insufficient for comprehensive individual growth and maturation evaluation.
- Further research is needed to refine skeletal maturation assessment for personalized pediatric care.
Abstract:
Bone age assessments were related to auxological variables in 407 Italian boys, between 7 and 12 years of age, in order to elucidate the factors that affect the rate of skeletal maturation and to examine the possibility of using measures of skeletal maturation of evaluate individual patients. Using the radius-ulna-short bones (RUS) method of assessment, bone age velocity was greater in the Italian boys than for the UK reference standards, although there was considerable interindividual dispersion around the mean. Bone age velocity and height velocity were poorly correlated, and there was little correlation between skeletal and pubertal maturation. There was a slight positive correlation between bone age velocity and height SDS and between bone age velocity and body mass index. Bone age estimations using RUS were greater than those obtained using the carpus. In conclusion, the marked interindividual deviation in measured bone ages makes it difficult to relate data on an individual basis to other measures of growth and maturation