How to determine if a child is currently short in stature A child is diagnosed with dwarfism if his or her height is less than two standard deviations below the height standard for normal children of the same age, sex, region, and race. In layman’s terms, if a child is half a head below his or her peers for a long period of time and grows less than 5 cm taller each year, he or she is suspected of having growth retardation. It is understood that normal children grow at different rates at different times, generally 50 cm at full-term birth, less than 47 cm suggests intrauterine growth retardation; the first year after birth growth of 25 cm, the second year growth of 10 cm, the third year to the beginning of puberty growth rate of an average of 5-7 cm per year, puberty growth of 8-12 cm per year, lasting 2-3 years. Generally, when the growth rate is less than 7 cm per year before the age of 3, less than 5 cm per year between the age of 3 and puberty, and less than 6 cm per year after puberty, the growth rate is considered to slow down and should be seen by a child health care provider and endocrinologist in a timely manner. It is best to see a doctor before puberty when the epiphysis closes in the teenage years and no longer grows taller. What causes short stature in children There are many causes of short stature in children, the more common ones are intrauterine growth retardation, that is, the weight and length at birth are below the normal value for gestational age. These children catch up quickly in growth and development two years after birth, and most of them can reach normal levels, but if growth still lags at 3 weeks of age, growth hormone treatment should be considered. Secondly, children with long-term chronic diarrhea; with severe liver, kidney, heart disease and endocrine disorders; and with genetic and congenital disorders can all lead to dwarfism. Children with growth hormone deficiency, hypothyroidism, precocious puberty, and delayed puberty are more common, and even children with “idiopathic dwarfism” whose cause is unknown. Reminder: Parents must pay attention to children’s height problems early. Some parents mistakenly believe that they can catch up with their children’s height as long as they keep up with their nutrition, so they keep giving them supplements, not knowing that excessive nutrition can easily cause precocious puberty, and children with precocious puberty will close their bones early, which will contribute to the occurrence of dwarfism. Therefore, parents must pay attention to the fact that once the child’s growth rate is significantly slow, it should be checked as soon as possible, otherwise once the child enters puberty, the treatment will become more difficult and the time available for treatment will become shorter. Generally speaking, when the bone age of girls exceeds 14 years old and that of boys exceeds 16 years old, their epiphyses will be close to closing, which means that there is no chance of growing taller.