PDA

View Full Version : Are any of your DC below the height charts?



kelly ann
10-14-2005, 11:14 AM
DS is barely on the height charts for his age. A couple of his doctor's are concerned and have talked to us about possible future treatments, but I wanted to see if any other mom's on the board have been through this.

What have the doctor's told you? Has anyone taken any action...meaning growth hormones? Is it still possible for DS to have a growth spurt and start to catch up with the other children his age or am I hoping for too much?

g-mama
10-14-2005, 11:30 AM
My 2yo ds, Benjamin, is below the height AND weight charts. They have done SO many tests on him to see if something is wrong with him, including a test for cystic fibrosis. They also checked his growth hormone levels, which came back normal. Everything has come back normal. They have told us that he is just a small guy and that he may or may not have a growth spurt and catch up. It's hard not to worry. My older ds is around the 75th% for height and weight and always has been.

We haven't really discussed growth hormones so I don't have anything to add about that.


Kristen
Paolo 11-00
Benjamin 8-03
and a *THIRD BOY* coming in December '05

Calmegja2
10-14-2005, 11:42 AM
Jake was forever. Seriously tiny, with no explanation at all.

When he turned 6, he slowly started to climb back onto the charts, and now he's in the 20th (he used to hover between 3-5%). Which is a vast improvement, and he's getting bigger all the time. None of my other children have been like that at all.

samiam
10-14-2005, 11:45 AM
My friend had an experience like Kristen. Her ds was a preemie, wasn't even on the charts for the longest time. They did a million tests but found nothing wrong. At 18 months he finally had a growth spurt and made it onto the charts - 20th percentile for height and weight.

octmom
10-14-2005, 12:22 PM
No current experience, but when I was a child, my mom said that I was *really* short for a long time. I gained weight and just kept getting rounder, but not taller. They talked about having me tested for growth problems, but then I shot up a bit. I tended to grow in big spurts and then level off for a while. No one in my family is tall, but I am around 5'4" now and taller than my mother. My DH is tall (about 6'3"), and I think DS is taking after his side of the family more than mine, though he does tend to grow in spurts too and then stay put for a while.

Jerilyn
DS, Sean 10/03

http://bd.lilypie.com/UB6Bm4/.png


"Baby makes days shorter, nights longer, home happier, and love stronger."

Mikesa3
10-14-2005, 01:29 PM
I've always been told it not important where on the charts they are as long as there is consistant growth. Has your dc always been low on the charts? Has he gotten taller the past 6 months? All my kids have been small so I know how it can make a Mom worry but I don't think I'd agree to any treatments unless my child wasn't growing at all. I do know someone at my church who's ds is 3 1/2 and received growth hormones,I can ask her for more info if you want.
Nancy-Mom to 6 great kids

kelly ann
10-14-2005, 03:30 PM
DS was always at the 5th percentile, but measured the other day below the charts. However, I measured him 3 times this morning and he is 1/2"-3/4" higher than what they found. On the charts, this would put him around the 3rd-5th.

A large part of me thinks he is just fine, but my mom is now on the "get him taller" bandwagon. Don't you just love moms ;) I told her that I would be thrilled if he ended up to be around 5'6" and she said "what???" She would go for 5'11"...like I have control over this. Both DH and I come from short families (even though I am very tall) so I think it is totally ridiculous to think he will reach 5'11".

Anyway, he is getting measured again tomorrow at the ENT, so I guess I will have a third opinion.

kelly ann
10-14-2005, 03:33 PM
Nancy-

I guess I am primarily concerned about side effects children experience and how long does the treatment last for. A few things I read online indicated that parents give shots and it goes on for several years. Also, it costs upwards of $25K a year. I would appreciate any info you can get from your friend at church.

Thank you!!!

gisele
10-14-2005, 05:34 PM
I would leave it alone. My husband was small as a child, always the smallest in the class. But he is now 6ft tall - boys shoot up later in teen years. My own son is small as well and barely on the chart for weight. I would leave your son alone. The idea of using growth hormones for this seems pretty scary - your son is healthy, don't mess with it. I have known children who took hormones to grow or prevent puberty early, and develop serious problems because of them.

So he's a little small now - has no bearing on his height later.

Rachels
10-14-2005, 05:39 PM
Is he growing and more or less following a curve? Is he meeting developmental milestones? There's no way I would do growth hormones unless there was a VERY severe problem. Not every child is going to be the same height, kwim? The chart is on a curve. Some kids will be taller, some smaller, and that's normal. Also, the charts are OLD and based on formula-fed babies from the 40s. Not all kids grow like that either.

I was a really small kid (and now have a really small kid). I remember when I went to college having an epiphany where I looked around and realized I was of completely average height. No biggie.

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02
New baby coming in October!
(Holy smokes, it's a boy!!!)


"When you know better, you do better."
Maya Angelou
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_amethyst_36m.gif
Nursed for three years!

pb&j
10-14-2005, 07:45 PM
My parents went through this with my older sister, who topped out at 4'11" (or so she claims, though I think she's shorter). They did tons of testing, and figured out that she was just short. My mom and I are both 5'2", and my dad claims that he was once 5'6". We're all just short! My sister and I both got teased in school, but really, if you don't get teased for one thing, you'll get teased for something else. I know there are some studies out there saying that taller people are more successful, but in my family, that's total bunk. I was an airline captain in my twenties, my sister has been very successful in her career, and my dad just retired after 35 years of being a respected physician. Our height was really a non-issue in our family - our parents never expressed any concern about it to us. They spent their energy on making sure we did well in school.

IMHO, the growth hormone treatments just aren't worth it. At best, your child will get an extra inch or two. Worst case, he'll have side effects from them, and end up being very insecure and hung up about his height. As long as your DS is growing and healthy, I guess I personally don't see what the big deal is about being short.

ETA: I just read how much it would cost! To me, socking that kind of cash away in a college fund would be a much better use of the money. Just me, though, YMMV.


-Ry,
mom to Emma, stillborn 11/04/04
and Max, edd 01/15/06 - it's a HEALTHY BOY!

http://lilypie.com/days/060115/3/25/1/-5/.png[/img] ([img)