Heat-labile alkaline phosphatase

Fifty Egyptian infants and children [28 males and 22 females] aged 4 months to 15 years were enrolled in this study. All were subjected to thorough clinical evaluation, to exclude any medical problems that may affect growth; together with anthropometric measurments [Height, weight and skull circumference for those who were less than 3 years old]. Serum alkaline phosphatase [ALP]. Total activity and the bony isoenzyme level were measured for all of them. Statistical analysis of our data showed no significant correlation between ALP bony isoenzyme and the crude anthropometric measures. However, higher levels of bony ALP were detected in age groups with high growth velocity [infancy and adolescence] and lower level were found in the low growth velocity age group [2-10 years], which confirms the presence of a significant direct relationship between bony and growth velocity. This may signifies the validity of using bony ALP isoenzyme as an index of growth velocity in normal Egyptians infants and children