The first thing parents should do if they're worried about their child's growth is take the child to a pediatrician or another healthcare provider. First, the healthcare provider will decide whether the child's size or growth curve is a cause for concern. If it is, a series of possible causes of short stature and growth failure must be considered and your child may be referred to an endocrine specialist.
If tests show that a child is not suffering from growth hormone deficiency or any other identifiable cause for growth failure, he or she may be diagnosed with idiopathic short stature.
Idiopathic, or non-growth hormone-deficient short stature, is clinically defined by a healthcare provider's determination that a child's height is SDS <-2.25 (more than two standard deviations below the mean, which puts them within the shortest 2.3% of their peers), and associated with growth rates unlikely to permit attainment of his or her adult genetic potential height.
This standard is applicable only to children or adolescents in whom the growing ends of the bones have not yet "fused" (meaning it is still possible for them to grow) and for whom diagnostic evaluation excludes other causes associated with short stature that should be treated by other means.
Tools for evaluating progress
Evaluating the effectiveness of your child's Nutropin therapy is the job of your healthcare provider. Many patients and parents also like to keep track themselves. These interactive tools can help you track your child's progress during Nutropin therapy.Growth charts and percentile calculator
Growth velocity charts and percentile calculator
Please note that these tools do not take the place of consultation with your healthcare provider.
