Short Stature
Type: Symptom
Definition
A height that is significantly below the standard growth curve for age and sex.
Clinical Details
Without adequate growth hormone to stimulate the liver's production of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), the long bones fail to grow at a normal rate. Children with GHD fall progressively further behind their peers on growth charts. Their physical proportions remain normal, but their overall size is exceptionally small.