Covers the difference between growth, measured as size, and development, gained as skills, and why both are checked at every paediatric visit. It sets out childhood age periods in a table, then gives growth figures for weight, length, head circumference, fontanelles and teeth from birth to puberty. Further sections address growth charts, short stature and failure to thrive, four developmental areas with a milestone table by age, primitive reflexes, and red flags with screening tools.
Topic 14 of 30 in the MU Sofia syllabus for Paediatrics and Infectious Diseases (Dental Medicine, Year 4). The free AceMed note covers it in 7 sections, about 415 words (5 min of reading), with 16 flashcards.
In this note
Introduction
Periods of childhood
Growth in numbers
Development: four areas
Key milestones (median age, and limit age)
Primitive reflexes
Red flags
Introduction
Growth is the increase in size (measured); development is the gain of skills (observed). Both follow a predictable sequence, and checking them is the core of every paediatric visit: a child who is not growing or developing is telling us something is wrong.
Growth in numbers
Growth charts and short stature
Plot weight, length or height and head circumference on WHO charts (0–5 years) and national charts after; follow the child along a centile.
Compare with mid-parental height (average of parents' heights, +6.5 cm for boys, −6.5 cm for girls).
Short stature: below −2 SD (or the 2nd–3rd centile). Normal variants: familial (short parents, normal bone age, normal velocity) and constitutional delay (late puberty in a parent, delayed bone age, catches up). Abnormal: falling across centiles; growth hormone deficiency, hypothyroidism, Turner syndrome, coeliac disease, chronic illness, steroids, small for gestational age without catch-up.
Bone age (X-ray of the left hand) shows how much growth is left.
Failure to thrive: weight falling across two major centiles in an infant; most often from too little intake (feeding problems, neglect), less often malabsorption or chronic disease.
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