Growth
Is My Child Too Short? When to See a Pediatric Endocrinologist
Growth charts, growth velocity, early or late puberty, and what a growth evaluation looks like. Guidance from the Upper East Side practice with two in-house pediatric endocrinologists.
By the Uptown Pediatrics team · · 6 min read
"Is my child growing normally?" is one of the most common questions we hear. Most kids who are shorter than their friends are perfectly healthy. But sometimes slow growth is a sign that something needs a closer look.
It's about the curve, not the height
At every checkup, we plot your child's height on a growth chart. A single measurement tells us less than the pattern over time. A child who has always tracked along the 10th percentile is usually just fine. A child who drops from the 50th to the 10th percentile deserves an evaluation.
Reasons to see a pediatric endocrinologist
- Growing much more slowly than peers, or crossing down percentile lines
- Being much shorter than expected based on parents' heights
- Signs of puberty before age 8 in girls or 9 in boys
- No signs of puberty by about 13 in girls or 14 in boys
- Abnormal thyroid tests, or symptoms like fatigue, weight change, or a swollen neck
- Being born small for gestational age and not catching up
What a growth evaluation looks like
Your endocrinologist will review your child's growth history and family history, do a physical exam, and may order blood work and a bone age X-ray, which shows how much growing your child likely has left.
Because growth hormone is released in pulses, a random blood test can't tell us whether a child makes enough. If needed, we can do a growth hormone stimulation test in our office. Read how to prepare for a growth hormone test.
Specialists in the same office as your pediatrician
Uptown Pediatrics has two fellowship-trained pediatric endocrinologists, Dr. Michelle Klein and Dr. Vickie Wu. Learn more about our pediatric endocrinology care.
This article is general information and not a substitute for medical advice.
