C H A P T E R 4 In this study, we analyze the growth pattern, expressed as BMI and weight for height values of SGA children, treated with rhGH and compare the results with the Deuterium TBW study14 to evaluate which method offers the highest accuracy in estimating the change in body composition in SGA children treated with rhGH. Methods Inclusion Data for this study were collected at the department of Pediatrics at the academic hospital of Maastricht, in the South of The Netherlands. Included were SGA children who met the inclusion criteria reviewed by the Dutch Growth Research Founda-‐ tion7: Birth length or weight: < -‐2 standard deviation (SD) for gestational age, actual height: < -‐2.5 SD and/or deviating > 1 SD from target height (TH), age: > 4 years, bone maturation: ≤ 13 years in girls and ≤ 15 years in boys, no signs of catch-‐up growth in the previous year. Exclusion criteria include: Evident dimorphism suggestive for an (un)known syn-‐ drome or chromosomal anomaly, skeletal dysplasia or severe disproportion, severe complications after birth or during the first weeks of life with current lung prob-‐ lems, nutritional deficiencies or malabsorption, untreated endocrinological anoma-‐ lies, untreated chronic systemic or organ diseases or use of medication with nega-‐ tive effect on growth, suspicion of emotional deprivation, active malignancy or se-‐ vere psychomotoric retardation. Measurements Measurements of weight and height were taken at start of rhGH treatment and 1 year thereafter with a variance of 1 month. Height was measured with the Harpenden stadiometer, weight with an electronic scale with digital readings accurate to 5 gram. BMI was calculated as: BMI = weight푘푘푘푘 62 height푚푚! The values of weight, height, BMI as well as weight for height were expressed in terms of standard deviation scores (SDS):
Proefschrift binnenwerk Manon Ernst_DEF.indd
To see the actual publication please follow the link above