Signs of abnormal growth in children

When parents see their child looking shorter than other children of the same age, this is not unusual or too serious. However, if the child has a much slower growth rate of height, weight, and intelligence than other children of the same age, at this time parents need to seriously find out, take the child for examination and timely adjustment. .

“Bad development” is a broad phrase used to describe the various causes and effects of conditions related to inadequate growth with age and over time in young children, from from birth to the end of puberty.
About 3 to 5% of children are considered short, which means their height is less than the 3rd or 5th percentile on the infant growth chart. However, the majority of these children have one or both parents who are shorter than the adult average. Accordingly, only a few have specific pathological growth problems and may require treatment.
Signs of normal or abnormal child development can sometimes be obvious from birth, in each case a baby is born full term or preterm, full weight or low birth weight, and even a child with medical conditions genetics, birth defects or not. Accordingly, in the process of taking care and monitoring children, signs of abnormal development can sometimes be recognized as soon as they see that the child has a lower height and weight measurement compared to his or her age. However, when observed over a longer period of time, the child can still achieve the same fitness level with other children is not called abnormal.
However, if the child's abnormal development is not detected and cared for properly, the child's growth becomes increasingly poor, the child's overall nutrition is not improved and the long-term consequences will be increasingly difficult. overcome.

To recognize signs of abnormal growth, parents or caregivers need to know how to measure children at home as well as signs that the child is developing normally and is consistent with the growth chart. of children by age or not.
Accordingly, the "normal" growth milestones to be achieved in children from birth to adulthood are as follows:
0 to 12 months: The baby grows about 25cm (10 inches) tall and weighs 3 times as much at birth. Growth during this period is largely dependent on the role of nutrition. 1 to 2 years old: Child grows about 13cm (5 inches) tall. From the age of 1, hormonal factors play an increasingly important role in a child's development. 2 to 3 years: Children grow about 9cm (3.5 inches) tall each year. At the same time, children's motor skills and perception of the world around them are constantly improving. 3 years to puberty: Children grow about 5cm (2 inches) each year. There is minimal difference in growth in boys and girls until puberty, resulting in an average height difference between the sexes of 12 to 13cm (4 to 5 inches). Therefore, the way to recognize the signs of abnormal growth is when a child grows less than 5cm (2 inches) each year after his or her second birthday. In addition, other symptoms of suspected developmental delay may include:
Delay in the development of physical skills, such as rolling over, turning over, sitting up, standing and walking, running, jumping, climbing Slow speech, poor communication skills Delayed formation and development of social and mental skills Slow development of secondary sex characteristics in adolescence

Growth problems in young children, besides poor nutrition, can be caused by a number of different factors, including genetics, hormonal disorders, systemic diseases, and malabsorption syndromes. collect food. Causes of common growth problems:
Delayed puberty . A child with this disorder enters puberty later than his or her peers, but is still capable of developing at a normal rate. Most of these children eventually tend to grow to be the same height as their parents.
Systemic or chronic illness or disease affecting the gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, heart or lungs.
Malnutrition . A diet that does not contain all the nutrients necessary for a child's growth will lead to malnutrition. It is the most common cause of low birth weight or poor growth around the world.
Psychological suppression, often in a state of severe stress. Endocrine diseases, such as diabetes or thyroid hormone deficiency.
Genetic disorders syndromes. Growth problems can be characteristic of syndromes such as Cushing syndrome, Turner syndrome, Down syndrome, Noonan syndrome, Russell-Silver syndrome, and Prader-Willi syndrome.
Bone abnormalities. There are more than 50 bone diseases that affect the height and growth of young children, many of which are inherited. Waking up early. This growth disorder is characterized by an early onset of adolescence. Initially, the child will grow very quickly for his age, but due to the rapid bone maturation process, growth stops when the child is still young, making the child shorter than his peers in adulthood.

In some cases, when a growth problem is diagnosed at birth or in premature infants, special attention is given to the child's examination and care regimen. Some babies may need to be kept in an incubator for the first few days to months of life and fed a special diet through a nasogastric tube. When the child is discharged from the hospital, parents will be given thoughtful instructions on how to raise the child at home, focusing on breastfeeding, hygiene as well as preventing the risk of infection.
In cases where the infant is physically fit at birth, a growth problem can be diagnosed by checking the baby's development during routine checkups. The cause of children's growth retardation is often due to nutrition, namely improper breastfeeding or children's laziness to eat solid foods as well as insufficient quality weaning. At this time, parents need to prioritize choosing nutritious food sources for their children.
When children reach school age, signs of abnormal development are mainly recognized by observing that children are shorter than their peers of the same age. Interventions need to be implemented early and actively on both nutrition and physical training, ensuring children are in good shape so that they can study and develop necessary social skills.
In addition, when nutritional interventions do not work, the child may need medical tests to find a medical cause, such as:
Blood tests, to check for hormone disorders, chromosomes or other disorders that can cause growth problems. X-ray. A small amount of radiation is used to create images of the bones, usually done in the bones of the hand and wrist. This is a tool for doctors to estimate a child's bone age. With delayed puberty or hormone problems, bone age is often lower than calendar age and the indication for growth hormone supplementation should be considered. In summary, early recognition of signs of abnormal development in children is an opportunity to facilitate intervention and correction. In particular, a number of diseases that affect the growth of children require detection and treatment. Only by doing so can children return to their normal growth rate, reaching the same stature as their peers.
For more nutritional knowledge and child care for each age, parents should regularly visit the website vimec.com and make an appointment with the leading doctors, pediatric and nutrition experts of the National General Hospital. Vinmec when needing advice on children's health.