There was a boy in the morning outpatient clinic, now 11 years old, who has grown 9 cm since July last year, and his mother was very happy and asked me how tall my child can grow?
As soon as I heard it, this child may have grown up early.
From July last year to April, 9 months have grown 9 cm, which is equivalent to 1 cm per month, and the growth rate is very fast.
Then the child enters the rapid growth period around the age of 10, which is early.
Normally, boys enter puberty at around 11 and a half years of bone age and begin to grow rapidly. Between the ages of 12 and 14 is the fastest 2 years, growing 10-12 cm per year, and then the growth rate gradually slows down until the bone age is 16 years old.
Girls enter puberty at about 9 and a half years of bone age, 10-12 years old is the time when they grow faster, and then the growth rate gradually slows down until the bone age is 14 years old and slowly stops growing.
It is not a good thing for a child to enter the rapid growth period too quickly, which means that it will end growing early, and other children are growing up at the age of 14, and this child may grow very slowly, or even not at all. If the previous height foundation is not high, the child's lifetime height will be relatively low.
This type of child is called an early growth child. Parents don't have to worry too much, as long as they say that the intervention is early, and the child's epiphyseal line has not been closed, there is still a chance. In my clinical practice, I will use Chinese medicine to delay the growth of bone age, gain a little more time, and at the same time increase the growth rate, so that the child can grow as much as possible.
Children who grow up later will develop later than ordinary children, and they may only start to grow rapidly at the age of fifteen or sixteen, and some are still growing up when they go to high school and college.
So how can you tell if your child is growing up late?
01 The height is not particularly short, generally above the 25th percentile
If the child's height is lower than the 25th percentile, we will think that the height is more short, and we need to find out the reason for the child's slow growth as soon as possible.
02 The bone age is less than 1 year old and less than 2 years old, but not more than 2 years younger
Bone age is dynamically changing, less than one year younger than the actual age, and is medically considered to be consistent with age, which is normal. If the bone age is younger than 2 years old or older, it reminds us that the child may have growth retardation and is abnormal.
03 It is important to note that the annual growth rate is normal, at least 5-7 cm long
If the bone age is small, but the child only grows 2-3 cm per year, or even because of frequent illness, it is almost not normal, and you can't wait for it to grow late.