CORRELATION BETWEEN SOMATOMEDIN A IN SERUM AND BODY HEIGHT DEVELOPMENT IN HEALTHY CHILDREN AND CHILDREN WITH CERTAIN GROWTH DISTURBANCES

Abstract

The somatomedin A level in serum was determined in a series of 66 children in whom longitudinal data on body height growth and dental development were available. The series comprised normal children as well as children with some different types of growth disturbances. A high correlation was found between the somatomedin A level and the age at a certain stage of the dental maturity (r = −0.67) and between the somatomedin A level and the growth rate at this age (r = 0.67). The different groups of patients ranging from pituitary dwarfs to unusually tall children demonstrated a continuous gradient in the correlation between the level of somatomedin A and the different variables of the somatic development.