Growth characteristics of pediatric patients with down syndrome
DOI: 10.32364/2587-6821-2026-10-11-5
Growth characteristics of pediatric patients with down syndrome
A.D. Gudis, A.V. Vitebskaya
Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Moscow, Russian Federation
Aim: to assess growth characteristics in children with Down syndrome (DS) and to identify associations between growth delay, thyroid function, and congenital heart defects (CHD).
Materials and Methods: a retrospective study was performed including 100 patients with DS aged 8.0 [4.0; 13.9] years. Growth was assessed using general population references (Growth Analyser, British 1966, height-for-age) and specialized references for children with DS (Growth Analyser, Down syndrome, Dutch 1996, height-for-age). Growth delay was defined as a height standard deviation score (SDS) below -2. Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free thyroxine (free T4), thyroid pathology, and CHD were analyzed.
Results: when general population references were used, growth delay was identified in 34% of patients, whereas when specialized references for children with DS were used, it was identified in 12%. Patients with growth delay were significantly older (p=0.03). The presence of CHD increased the likelihood of growth delay when specialized references were used (odds ratio 5.00; 95% confidence interval 1.35–18.5). No association between thyroid pathology and growth delay was found.
Conclusion: the use of general population growth references in children with DS may lead to overdiagnosis of short stature. The use of specialized growth charts provides a more accurate assessment of physical development and allows more appropriate identification of patients requiring additional evaluation.
Keywords: Down syndrome, growth delay, height SDS, congenital heart defects, thyroid pathology.
For citation: Gudis A.D., Vitebskaya A.V. Growth characteristics of pediatric patients with down syndrome. Russian Medical Inquiry. 2026;10(11):852–857 (in Russ.). DOI: 10.32364/2587-6821-2026-10-11-5
About the authors:
Andrey D. Gudis — postgraduate student of the Department of Pediatric Diseases, N.F. Filatov Clinical Institute of Children's Health, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University; 8–2, Trubetskaya str., Moscow, 119048, Russian Federation; ORCID iD 0009-0001-7329-8923
Alisa V. Vitebskaya — C. Sc. (Med.), Associate Professor of the Department of Pediatric Diseases, N.F. Filatov Clinical Institute of Children's Health, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University; 8–2, Trubetskaya str., Moscow, 119048, Russian Federation; ORCID iD 0000-0001-5689-0194
Contact information: Andrey D. Gudis, e-mail: phelectro.work@gmail.com
Financial Disclosure: no authors have a financial or property interest in any material or method mentioned.
There is no conflict of interest.
Received 19.05.2026.
Revised 11.06.2026.
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