Short stature in children: Experience from a tertiary care hospital in Kolkata, India

ABSTRACT

Background: Early diagnosis and treatment is most of the time rewarding for short stature [SS] caused by failure of the intricate process of growth. The objectives of the present study was to, a] determine the magnitude of SS among the patients attending a tertiary referral centre, b] ascertain the pattern of SS, and c] find out the aetiological profile of SS. Methods: A descriptive observational study was carried out from August 2006 to December 2009 in endocrine out patient department [OPD] of RGKar Medical College, a tertiary care teaching institution in the eastern part of India involving the children and adolescents referred to the clinic for their growth failure. With informed consent; detailed history, clinical examination and laboratory investigations were carried out and information was gathered by administering predesigned and pretested questionnaire. Diagnosed short statured cases were followed up for one year. Results: Analysis showed 8% participants had SS. Hypothyroidism [29%], chromosomal anomalies [20%], normal variants of growth delay [18%] and growth hormone deficiency [15%] were revealed to be the predominant causes of SS. Growth hormone deficiency was the most common cause among boys [26%] compared to chromosomal anomalies [32%] and hypothyroidism [31%] among their counterpart. Conclusion: The findings can frame our mindset to remain vigilant about the problem fo detection at its earliest stage for getting maximum benefit from available treatment