How can we detect early if a child has a growth disorder?
1.Compare the height with other normal and healthy children of the same age and same gender, below the third percentile, which means short stature.
2.Measure height: measure every six months to a year according to age, then calculate the number of centimeters of height increase per year, i.e. growth rate. The growth rate of infancy (under 3 years old) is less than 7 cm/year, the growth rate of childhood (3 years old – puberty) is less than 4-5 cm/year, and the growth rate of puberty is less than 5.5-6.5 cm/year, which can be clearly defined as the child’s growth retardation.
3. The development of teeth can reflect the development of bones. Children usually start to have permanent teeth when they are about 6 years old, and start to change their milk teeth when they are about 7-8 years old. If the teeth come out or change too late, it often reflects the backward development of bones.
What factors can lead to growth disorders in children?
1, genetic factors: children’s growth and development by the influence of genetic factors of both parents. Children’s growth and development characteristics, potential, tendency, skin, hair color, facial features, height, early sexual maturity and susceptibility to disease are related to genetics. Some hereditary metabolic defects, endocrine disorders, chromosomal aberrations, etc. can seriously affect the growth and development of children.
Endocrine factors: Children’s growth and development are regulated by various hormones in the body, for example, lack of or insufficient secretion of growth hormone can lead to short stature; lack of thyroid hormone can cause physical dwarfism and intellectual development disorders.
3. Pregnant mother’s condition: viral infection, exposure to certain drugs, radiation, and mental trauma in early pregnancy can cause fetal development to be impaired. If the fetus is delayed in utero, it can affect the growth and development of children.
4, disease factors: acute infections often make children lose weight; long-term chronic diseases can affect the development of weight and height; congenital diseases such as congenital heart disease have a more obvious impact on growth and development.
Parents should avoid the misconceptions that their children are found to be short in stature 1, parents blindly wait: some children do not grow tall, the family just blindly think that the child grows late, and not from a scientific point of view, the best time for treatment is delayed.
2, parents blindly listen to the propaganda of height increasing products on the market, choose and take the so-called height increasing drugs on the market, and wait until the effect is not good before going to a specialist, which not only wastes money, but also accelerates the closure of the bones and misses the best time for treatment.
3, parents blindly consult: many parents do not know where to go to see a doctor, often to find some informal hospitals, non-specialist doctors, which caused misdiagnosis, and the wrong medication, delaying the time, and even bring adverse consequences. Therefore, children with slow growth or short stature should go to the growth and development specialist or endocrine specialist in large hospitals for consultation and examination and timely treatment. Eat more vegetables, milk, steak and other foods to ensure adequate nutrition, participate in jumping rope, swimming, playing basketball, jogging, running stairs and other sports, and ensure sufficient sleep.