Should I be worried about son's height?

[sharbear]

I have 5'2' Freshman DD and she towers over some of the boys in her class. My DS is 16 now but he was the shortest boy in the class in elementary school. My DH is 5'9" and I'm 5'1". My DS is now 5'7 and will probably be 5'9 by the time he's done growing.

I would go to the doctor. We saw ours every year and she knew when my son was going through his growth spurt. It can't hurt although I think that your DS is fine.

It's funny to see the pictures of my DS from Freshman year. In his photo's from dances, his date towers over him. He now towers over her, she's all of 5'5".

 

[paulh]

you will know when they start the growth spurt they stay in bed all day start to shave ect the usaual teenage things

 

[Regina]

My poor DS was a late bloomer just like DH. My DD is 17 months younger. When she was a HS freshman and he was a Sophomore, a lot of people assumed that she was older because she was taller than him. He wasn't a happy camper.

It was a tough time, but he finally started to grow and is now a handsome 5'10" young man.

Just continue to be supportive.

 

[robertsmom]

I would check with the doctor also. At seven years old, my DS was the size of a 4 year old. Went through lots of testing....bone age x rays, blood tests for growth hormone levels, etc. He was finally started on synthetic growth hormones about six weeks ago, and he has already grown almost an inch! That is phenomenal to me because it took hiw almost all of last year to grow the much on his own. Chances are, your child just has not hit a growth spurt yet, but I would check just to be on the safe side.

 

[Snowysmom]

My DS (15) was one of the shortest boys in his class until late last year (9th grade.) He had a big growth spurt and is now the same height or taller than alot of the boys. He probably isn't finished yet and he is cranky and always hungry! Your DS will no doubt have a big growth spurt soon. You can always just touch base with his doctor next time he has a physical just to relieve your mind.

 

[Mickey76]

Although I was not as short as your son is when I was 14, I was smaller than most of the boys my age. I didn't get a major growth spurt until I was going into my senior year of high school. I was in the back during my graduation, which was a personal accomplishment for me, since we lined up by height. Don't be worried. However, if it is making him sad because he's getting picked on, maybe just give him some extra attention. He'll be ok, as long has he has a good personality, which I'm sure he does.

 

[luvflorida]

Reason I ask is, my son, an 8th grader, will be 14 in April. He's only 4'11" right now whereas his sister who's 12 is already 5'2.5". I only have one son, so I don't know, do you think he just hasn't hit his growth spurt yet?
Thanks,
Suzanne

I'll bet he just hasn't hit his growth spurt yet. I know it isn't the same, but my daughter is 14 and a HS Freshman and she is barely 4'10". She has been the same height for over a year, so I don't think she's going to grow any taller, (plus, I'm only 5'!). She's also very petite. It annoys the heck out of her that she looks more like a sixth grader than a ninth grader.

My son was always the shortest in his class, and I know he was around 5'1" when he entered HS. When he graduated he was 5'8", still among the shortest. They lined up for graduation from shortest to tallest, and he was sixth in line. He is now 24 and 5'9".

 

[CinderellaIam]

Me too! I reached my full height of 5' 9" at 13! My brother didn't stop growing until much later. I think he was about 18 or 19.

And me too...reached my full height of 5'8" at the age of 12. My brother and nephews all hit their growth spurts during sr. year in H.S.

So, no, I wouldn't worry.

 

[Southern4sure]

OK....don't laugh at this.. , but what size shoe does he wear? Have you had a hard time keeping him in shoes lately? About a year ago, my 15 yo (turns 15 in a few weeks) feet really started growing, but his height was not. It seemed overnight he went from an 8 1/2 to a 10 in shoes. He was short to average compared to the boys in his class. Then out of nowhere, he started sprouting. Now he is 5' 7" and is still growing and is wearing an 11 shoe (his feet are still growing also). I'm beginning to wonder how tall he will be.

 

[swilphil]

You might mention it during his annual physical (and maybe make that sooner rather than later). But I doubt there is a problem. I taught high school freshmen for several years. Many of the boys at age 14 were just skinny little things at about 5 feet tall. By the time they were 16 or 17, they had grown several inches.

 

[paulh]

i forgot to say that doctors checked te size of our kids feet as well
paulh

 

[Amy]

Same with my DS15 - he's the shortest in the entire 9th grade at his school, and it REALLY bothers him. His pediatrician referred us to a pediatric endocrinologist. She did a bone scan of his hand and some blood work to check his hormone levels. He did hormone shots for a while last summer (his shots were only once a month, not daily like someone else posted), then stopped for a while. We recently had more blood work done to see if he needs more shots. The ped. endocrinologist is taking a very cautious approach: she said if he gets too much hormones and the growth plates in his bones grow too fast, then it will actually stop his growth!

 

[Galahad]

There is a condition not uncommon among kids (especially boys, I think) called Osgood Slaughters disease. Its main feature is late rapid growth (height). The problem it presents the kid is that after that late rapid growth occurs there can be significant joint pain and weakness compared to somebody whose growth rate was more "normal". Essentially, the bones grow faster than the joints that have to support them. My brother and two of his three sons had this condition. My brother was very short until he was 15 and then grew about 18 inches in a single year. He's in his 40's now and 5'10" and perfectly normal. It is just that his adolescent growth pattern was different. If your son has this condition, be careful about sports after he starts his rapid growth because he could get injured more easily. If not, take Toby'sfriend's advice and watch your fridge.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I posted that my dd has gotten daily injections, going on 2 years now. In her case she had stopped growing. It really is based on your child's growth curve. If your child is progressing normally I wouldn't worry. At 4' 11", I wouldn't freak out on that. Sounds fine to me but I am not a doctor. Just follow up with regular check ups with the ped.

Things to look for, for example, my dd would wear the same size shoes & clothing for two years. That is NOT normal. It could indicate a problem, one of which is a malfunction of the pituitary gland.

My dd started shots in Kindergarten and she is now in 2nd grade. While she is still small she is finally at her last check up on the charts and 5% for height and 25% for weight. That is the heighest she has ever been in her life.
When she started she was not on the growth chart and was flat-lining it. We did a measurement every 6 months with her ped and from 5-6yso she barely grew at all, ie a couple of cms.

 

[popeyeohoh]

My son as a freshman weighed 99lbs and was 5' 1" tall. He is nearly 17 now and is 5' 11'. Don't worry yet.

 

[Idahomom]

OK....don't laugh at this.. , but what size shoe does he wear? Have you had a hard time keeping him in shoes lately? About a year ago, my 15 yo (turns 15 in a few weeks) feet really started growing, but his height was not. It seemed overnight he went from an 8 1/2 to a 10 in shoes. He was short to average compared to the boys in his class. Then out of nowhere, he started sprouting. Now he is 5' 7" and is still growing and is wearing an 11 shoe (his feet are still growing also). I'm beginning to wonder how tall he will be.

I believe he wears a size 7 1/2. I just bought him a new pair of sneakers a few weeks ago when he started complaining that his 6 1/2 were too small.

It's reassuring to hear everybody's thoughts. Except for mentioning it at his next checkup, I will stop worrying. I'm sure there will come a day when I will wish for the days when he was still my "little" guy!

Suzanne

 

[figment52]

Although there's a fairly small chance that there's a problemI might go to your family doc and ask for a referral to a pediatric endocrinologist. He'll be able to check your son's hormone levels, and if he's coming up short on human growth, it might be possible to supplement that. Smart of you to be thinking about this when he's 14, because when he's 24 it's probably too late to mitigate anything on the small-off chance that this is hormonal.

an orthopedic can also check to see if his growth plates have closed or not. Once they have there is not much chance that he will get any taller.

This stuff can be checked now with testing and if you wait to long hormone theraphy will not be an option. Talk to your doctor and see what the professional tells you.

 

[golfgal]

My 7th grader is the shortest kid in the grade at 4'7" (we have twins that are 3 years younger and they are the same size as our oldest-except they wear shoes 2 sizes larger then his). He basically didn't grow at all from 2nd grade to 4th grade. He broke his arm when he was 8 1/2 and the orthopedic dr saw is x-ray and said, "now he is 4 right". We took him to the dr because he leveled out on the growth chart and they sent us to a pediatric endocrinologist. The first endo we saw was getting things in order to have him tested, but in mid process had a baby, so her partner took over (we had his "this is what we are going to do" check-up about 4 hours after she had her baby). The partner really had not looked at DS's chart and started in on the "well, some kids don't grow when other's do" until he saw his growth chart. He started his testing that afternoon.

They took x-rays of his hands to determine "bone age" and then they simulate sleep to see if they are producing enough growth hormone. DS was barly in the normal range so they really couldn't do much for him. He has grown some, but it is tough on a 7th grade boy.

The other thing to look at is called Constitutional Growth Delay. Basically it is when a child starts out at average height and then at some point stops growing. They start growing again later and achieve full adult height later. Puberty is also delayed for what ever reason. We figured that DH had this as well as he was 5'4" when he graduated from high school and by the end of his freshman year in college was 6' tall. DS, according to his "bone age" should be close to 6' tall when he is done growing.

 

[gallaj0]

You know, as a fully "grown" man who barely tops 5'-4" I don't see the need for growth hormones unless there was a chance of a disability; not being able to drive, find clothes, etc.

Besides, I never bump my head, I was GREAT at wrestling and Rugby in college, and sometimes I fit easily in overhead compartments. J/K

Obviously, there are cases where growth hormones are necessary, but unless it's going to be a debilitating thing, it really is just cosmetic. Would you give a 13 YO girl implants because you thought she should be "bigger" when she gets older?

 

[DawnCt1]

My daughter is on growth hormones and I echo danacara's sentiment when she says to see a endo doc. In fact I wished I had seen one earlier.

Basically if your son is not progressing on his growth curve he may need hormone therapy. It is a daily shot in the evening. No big deal, but I do encourage you to seek a medical opinion from an endocrinologist.

I agree. It never hurts to seek an opinion and have definitive tests. If everything is on track, blood tests will confirm that. If it isn't, appropriate intervention can occur at the right time. There is nothing to be gained from waiting and if there is nothing to be concerned about she will know that too. Peace of mind is a valuable commodity.