Abstract

Introduction

Various methods are used to estimate target height in patients diagnosed with precocious puberty. These methods include the Bayley-Pinneau (BP) and Roche-Wainer-Thissen (RWT) methods. In addition to these methods, in our clinic, we routinely use a practical approach based on the percentiles in growth charts. In this method, the bone age percentile is projected to the end of the percentile curve (at 18 years of age) to estimate the final adult height. We have named this method BAPCPHE (Bone Age Percentile Curve Projected Height Estimation). This study aimed to retrospectively compare the effectiveness of these three methods in predicting target height in patients treated for central precocious puberty and who have reached their final height in our pediatric endocrinology clinic.

Materials and Methods

50 female patients were included. The predicted adult heights ( PAH) were calculated at treatment initiation, at the end of the first, second, and third years of treatment, and at the time of  final height attainment using the BP, RWT, and BAPCPHE methods, based on the patients' heights and bone ages.

Results

When the agreement between the PAH calculated by three  methods and the  final height was analyzed using the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC), a statistically significant agreement was found for PAH by the BAPCPHE method at the third year. Among the methods, the strongest agreement with  final height and PAH was observed with the BP method at the end of treatment, followed by the BAPCPHE method.

Conclusion

The BAPCPHE method not only measures percentile chart and bone age data, but also allows estimation of  PAH quickly, making it a valuable tool in the outpatient setting. Given its simplicity and accuracy, we found the BAPCPHE method preferable.