ABSTRACT
Growth-retarded, markedly slim children with poor appetite are often seen by a pediatric endocrine service without any previous information to their parents about known correlations between their condition and poor intrauterine growth. There are follow-up studies covering the first years of life, but only a few concerning growth prognosis in later years. Therefore, full-term, nonasphyxiated small-for-date children were traced by a questionnaire at ages between 5 to 11 years, and growth data were evaluated using standard deviation scores (x-means/s): for the whole group the height deficit was -0.724 +/- 0.965 SD, whereas normal persons show a deviation from normality of 0.000 +/- 1.000 SD (p less than 0.001); it was -0.823 +/- 0.949 SD and -0.495 +/- 0.927 SD for children with birth weights below and above the 3rd percentile for birth weight resp., and -1.285 +/- 1.031 and -1.261 +/- 1.069 SD for children whose length or length and weight were below the 3rd percentile at birth. The weight deficit (0.048 +/- 0.999 SD) of the whole group was statistically but not medically significant. There was no correlation to the parents or the mothers heights. These data correspond well with those from a review of the literature. Together with an accurate bone age determination our data could help to improve the counselling of involved families about growth prognosis of their originally small for date children.
