RESUMO
Puberty is a critical time between childhood and adulthood. Puberty onset is determined by the appearance of breast buds in girls. Many studies have been reported that the mean age of breast development is decreasing. The aim of this study was to provide updated data on the pubertal development of girls and to evaluate precocious puberty in our population. This cross sectional study was conducted in 6 to 16 years old school girls during 2009 to 2010 in Qazvin. 2240 healthy girls from all geographical regions with every socioeconomic status were selected by a stratified multistage cluster design to obtain representative sample of population. A questionnaire including demographic data, anthropometric measurements, secondary sexual characteristics, menarche status and its onset was filled out for every participant. Secondary sexual characteristics including breast development [B1-5] and pubic hair [PH 1-5] were evaluated according to Marshal and Tanner recommendation. The mean +/- SD of height, weight, and BMI of participants was 139.7 +/- 14.5, 36.1 +/- 12.9 and 17.9 +/- 3.7 respectively. The mean age [10th - 90th percentile] of B2 and PH[2] were 9.71[7.67 - 11.4] and 9.82 years [7.84 - 11.42] respectively. Mean age of menstruation was 12.52 years. The mean BMI was significantly higher in pubertal females comparing to prepubertal girls [p <0.001]. Average duration of puberty [the time from initiation of puberty to menarche] was 2.81. The mean age of pubertal onset in girls living in Qazvin is 9.71 years. Menarche occurs at mean age of 12.52 and onset of puberty earlier than 6.24 years will be precocious. We found that girls in Qazvin had a slightly earlier age of initiation of puberty and of menarche in comparison with other studies in Iran
RESUMO
Deficient enzyme activity may cause congenital metabolic defects. These defects are inherited in an autosomal recessive, autosomal dominant, and X-linked patterns. This study was aimed at investigating the occurrence of metabolic diseases in Qazvin Province. This cross-sectional study was performed on 79,100 children aged 12 years or less between 2000 and 2010. Clinical manifestations, laboratory findings, and all other essential information were assessed to precisely diagnose the metabolic diseases. The sorted information on congenital metabolic defects of the patients, information included in a checklist, and data were analyzed using SPSS. A total of 57 metabolic disorders were recorded. The difference in the prevalence of metabolic disorders between male [29 cases] and female [28 cases] was not statistically significant. The most frequent congenital metabolic disorder among our patients was phenylketonuria [PKU; 5 per 1,000 cases], and the least common disorder was galactosemia [3 per 1,000 cases]. Timely detection and management of congenital metabolic disorders can help save the affected children. Prenatal screening programs, molecular gene therapy, and counseling for consanguineous marriage can play important roles in reducing the rate of metabolic disorders in this province