Clinical usefulness of bone age determination in the management of tall stature

Measurements of skeletal maturation are used in the study and management of growth and growth disorders because of the correlation between the degree of skeletal maturation and the potential for further growth. In a study of 147 tall girls, final height was overpredicted by 0.7 +/- 2.5 cm (mean +/- SD) when based on the Bayley-Pinneau method. The radius-ulna-short bones (Tanner-Whitehouse 2) mark II method of assessment produced an underprediction of final height by 0.8 +/- 2.9 cm and 1.0 +/- 2.8 cm when the rating was performed by a skilled human or by a computer-aided system, respectively. These errors in prediction were considered acceptable, although when predictions were made on five girls below 11 years of age, they were less accurate.