Reply to Would this worry you? Growth charts

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]If she is eating and drinking normally and otherwise developing appropriately and not having GI issues, there is nothing drs will do.  Sure they can refer you to a pediatric endocrinologist who will run a bunch of tests and charge your insurance $$$ but that is all that will come of it.  The tests will be normal.  Even if growth hormone is low (which is probably isn’t), giving growth hormone is highly risky and you are better off with a short normal child. [/quote]

You have no idea what you're talking about lol. You have no way to know if the tests will be normal or show a serious deficiency it celiac. Good armchair doctor ing though[/quote]

Lol.  Ok, go and get a bunch of tests then. Maybe add on a bone density screening, gi scope, and a full body mri just in case.  You don’t want to miss anything.  Drs love parents like you.  [/quote]

NP, and a pediatrician

The growth chart is the most effective medical tool in pediatrics, even moreso than a stethoscope. Growth problems can be constitutional growth delay (the answer is in the hand x-ray), or the first indication of kidney problems, or a developing heart condition, or thyroid problems, or genetic problems like Turner Syndrome, or occult cancer, or any number of things. It's not worthless to get it checked out, and the recommended protocols for growth failure don't include anything silly like bone density screening (no norms for little kids, anyway) or full body MRIs.

There was a big study in 1994 that looked at almost 115,000 school-aged children in Utah. Of the ones with significant growth problems, most were the benign conditions of constitutional growth delay or familial short stature (or a combo) -- about 80%. The other 20% were diagnosed with "idiopathic short stature" (unknown cause) at 5%, growth hormone deficiency at 3%, Turner Syndrome* at 3% of the girls, thyroid problems at 0.5%, and 10% of a variety of other medical causes.

*You want to know if there is a diagnosis like Turner Syndrome (the ovaries are prone to develop cancer if not removed) or early kidney failure (often the kidneys can be saved if diagnosed and treated early, rather than proceeding to dialysis and/or transplant) or other medical problems.[/quote]

Ok but Turner syndrome has other identifies that any good pediatrician should be able to pick up on.  A thyroid panel is also something a pediatrician can order.  My point is not every child low on growth curve needs to see a pediatric endocrinologist.  There is nothing medically wrong with the vast majority

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