Is the severity of obesity associated with poor prediction of adult height and height gain?

ABSTRACT

Background: Obese children may attain skeletal maturation earlier than normal weight children, but the relation between body fat and physical maturation including adult height has not been clarified. Objective: To identify impact of obesity on predicted adult height and height gain. Materials and methods: Sixty two obese children (38 males and 24 females) aged 5-17 years old at the Department of Pediatrics, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Bangkok, were recruited. Height, weight, mid-parental height, pubertal staging, bone age, predicted adult height, and height gain were recorded. Results: Severity of obesity was positively associated with bone age advancement that had a substantial negative correlation to predicted adult height and height gain. Poor predicted adult height was demonstrated in obese girls who have a low height standard deviation score and high bone age advancement. Conclusion: Obese children may have suboptimal final adult height due to their advanced bone age. They also have poor predicted adult height and height gain.