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Teenagers

Parenting teenagers has its ups and downs. Get advice from Mumsnetters here.

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Original poster

DS concerned about height

30 replies

rainandsun · 24/10/2021 23:30

My DS is going to be 15 at Christmas. He is very short and doesn't seems to be growing. All his friends have shot up and are head and shoulders above him. He is only 5 foot 3.

He has gone through puberty and developed muscles, some facial hair etc etc.
He has voiced concern about his height. He has complained about not having an appetite during the day or on waking up. He complains about mood swings and low mood.

I would like to take him to the doctor about this but I don't want to make him worry that so think he has a problem too.

Also what should I say to the doctor to be taken seriously and not come across as an anxious mother?

Has anyone got experience of this?

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MatildaIThink · 24/10/2021 23:35

As long as he is otherwise developing normally the doctor is unlikely to have any concerns about his height. Unless there is an actual growth issue with his bones, rather than him just being of shorter stature then there is nothing to be taken seriously.

How tall are you and his father? Does either of you have any short immediate relatives?

Original poster

rainandsun · 25/10/2021 11:30

We have a history of endocrine disorders in the family, do I am concerned. We have a mixture of very tall and short. My brother is 6 foot 2 and my parents are both tiny.
I am short my DH is just under 6 foot.

The lack of appetite concerns me. I also read that static or minimal growth in a year should be looked into and he falls into that category.

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MatildaIThink · 25/10/2021 11:53

@rainandsun

The lack of appetite concerns me. I also read that static or minimal growth in a year should be looked into and he falls into that category.

It could be a endocrine disorder, it could equally be normal growth patterns, have they previously done any tests? On the basis that you have very short and you and your parents being short he is probably not outside the normal rage. Most males stop growing in height at around 16 (although some even with normal growth patterns keep growing into their late teens), so 15 would not hugely abnormal, he could also have a spurt in the next year or so.

The loss of appetite, mood swings and low mood could be depression, it could be classical teenage angst, I also know plenty of people who don't like to eat breakfast and are only really hungry in evenings.

For piece of mind it may well be worth speaking to the doctor. If you want to present this to a doctor I would say that you should lead on the lack of growth over the last year and the family history of endocrine disorders rathe than the shorter stature which in itself is not a medical condition. The appetite could be something or nothing, the mood could also be depression, or nothing. There is quite a lot to cover so it might be worth (if even possible these days) trying to get a double appointment.

Original poster

rainandsun · 25/10/2021 12:13

Thank you, this is really helpful advice.

I really wanted to put our minds at rest, as he has been feeling self conscious and I have been worried that if I don't do anything soon and there is an issue- it will be too late.

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nolongersurprised · 26/10/2021 02:15

On the Australian and NZ growth charts for a nearly 15 year old 160cm is just above fhe 10th centile, so short but not medically so.

If he’s well into puberty it’s normal for growth to taper off. (Growth plates fuse at a certain level of testosterone/pubertal development). His appetite will be less vigorous if that’s the case. A bone age (left wrist and hand) will let you know if there’s growth to come, but if it’s not delayed there’s prob only about 7cm or so of growth left. But that’s ok.

Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 08:20

Thank you nolongersurprised that's interesting to know. I may get one of those X-rays.
His feet still seem to grow!

I just want to check that it is not an endocrine disorder.

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Dancetherain · 26/10/2021 08:35

My ds1 was a similar height at 15 and still very slight all over. I did take him to the Dr who did some basic blood tests and referred him to endocrinology. In his case it was clear he had entered puberty relatively late. His consultant said that some kids just take a little bit longer and his xrays showed a much younger 'bone age' so lots of growth potential. At 18 he is still quite slight but now 5'7 and latest xray shows there's more growth there (bone age 14.5).

I would get him seen just to be sure theres no underlying issue as they tested for lots of other things before diagnosing delayed puberty.

You said about his feet growing still and we were told that boys grow feet first so hopefully there's still time.

Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 09:29

Dancetherain

Thank you for telling me your experience. What reason did you give for seeing the doctor?

I think my son my son started going through puberty relatively early.

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Appliancedesparation · 26/10/2021 09:46

Could you call your doctor, discuss your concerns re endocrine disorder and ask for their advice? Apologies I don't know anything about the effects of that but my son was v short at 15 and then sometime between 15 and 16 had a growth spurt and went to 5'8", he's 19 now and a good 5'10". He has always had a light appetite and isn't really interested in food but he did actually make an effort to consume more calories at that time.

delilahbucket · 26/10/2021 09:49

My DH was the smallest until he was 16. He's 6ft2 now.

OtterAndDog · 26/10/2021 09:55

Go to doctors about low appetite and mood swings but not his height

EmmaGrundyForPM · 26/10/2021 10:02

DS was average height until his teens then all his male friends overtook him. I've got photos of him at his Y11 prom where he is by far the shortest boy in his social group and shorter than several of the girls. I think he was about 5'6". He then grew a lot in 6th form. He's now 22 and 6'2".

I did think he would grow as his feet were growing and became enormous ( size 13) but it took his body a few years to catch up! He always had a huge appetite though.

I would take him to the GP re the lack of appetite, but maybe email the GP ahead and say you're concerned about height but don't want to make an issue of it. The GP can then check it out discreetly.

Blewitt · 26/10/2021 10:04

HI, My son is 15 and 5'4", the smallest of all of his friends and has been under paediatric review for 18 months, the reason we went to GP was because he used to be average height but noticed over a couple of years that he just seemed to stop growing compared to all his peers. He dropped across from 50th centile to 9th centile but has now started to grow again along this line. They can't explain why he dropped across, but are satisfied that he is now growing again at a normal rate. His bloods, scan etc were all normal. Has your son always been shorter than his friends or is this a change? The fact he is well into puberty suggests he may not grow a lot more so I think it is reasonable to ask for him just to be checked from an endocrine point of view, particularly if he hasn't always been shorter than his peers.

ErickBroch · 26/10/2021 10:08

I knew a lot of boys at school that, when we finished in Year 11, were still very short! Much shorter than a lot of the girls who were only averaging 5ft 6. Most of them were 5ft11+ when I saw them two years later.

Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 10:14

He has always been smaller than his friends, but not the smallest or noticeably do.

He seems to have barely grown at all in the last couple of years whereas his friends have literally shot up. There's a bigger disparity now.

I have booked the appointment for an hours time and now he doesn't want to go. Urgh. I think he should have some kind of investigation, as he does has symptoms that need to be looked into.

I couldn't choose the doctor as the receptionist said it's first come first serve. Hopefully it is not the rude obnoxious one with terrible google reviews!

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Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 10:15

I would say my son was average height before too.

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Blewitt · 26/10/2021 10:28

My son never wants to go to appointments either! Great you got one already, hope it goes well.

Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 10:35

Thank you Blewitt!

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Dancetherain · 26/10/2021 11:36

@rainandsun I just said that we were concerned there hadn't been a lot of growth, he had kind of stalled growthwise and I hadnt needed to get new clothes for him for ages. Everyone we saw said they would rather see him just in case there was a problem than just leave it as once he's finished growing there's not much they can do. However in his case it was the clearly delayed puberty that was the issue.

Dancetherain · 26/10/2021 11:40

Oh just seen you have an appointment. Hope it all goes well

Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 11:44

Dancetherain thank you! We are literally sitting in the surgery waiting now.

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MissSmiley · 26/10/2021 12:05

@rainandsun one of my sons didn't grow when he had undiagnosed ceoliac disease but he was 6, no other symptoms and negative antibody tests, diagnosed via genetic test and the fact he grew again after cutting out gluten completely

Original poster

rainandsun · 26/10/2021 13:34

Hi everyone, we went for the appointment and the doctor was a lot shorter than my son! He was filming the appointment to send for some board or other.

Anyway he measured himself against my son and as he said they had no height and weight scales in the room as it had just been built. My son towered over him, so the doctor estimated he was 5 foot 6 approximately. It was a bit uncomfortable talking about height to him but he made a joke out of it. We have got to go back this afternoon for the nurse to do the measurements in her room. They are also doing a full blood test. He didn't really know why he would have such a lack of appetite but the blood test will test for possibilities.

I just thought I would update just in case others have concerns in the future.

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Wellthatsit · 27/10/2021 11:17

We have a very similar story to Dancetherain. My son was nearly 15 and no signs of puberty, got a referral to an endocrinologist, blood tests normal but bone scan showed a bone age of 12/13, so two-three years behind. This was good news as just showed a delay rather than a disorder. Not sure what the significance of your son having gone through puberty already is.
We are a short family (DH 5'6"), but now my DS is the tallest, at 5'9". He is now 19 (almost 20) and was definitely still growing this summer.
I hope you get some clarity from the blood tests. And don't let the doctors minimise the mental health implications of experiencing this. (I hope the doctor being very short himself means he's more sympathetic, and doesn't lead him to minimise it).

Original poster

rainandsun · 27/10/2021 12:15

Welltahatsit My son going through puberty means that he may not have much more growth from what I understand from other commenters on here and from what I have read. The doctor said he obviously has growth hormone and testosterone as he has facial hair muscles etc. The doctor told my DS not to compare himself to others and he finds people that are even smaller than him.
I am glad we went because he definitely needs a blood test.

My son ended up fainting in the nurse's office when he had the blood taken. His lack of appetite meant he had no real food and it was 3.30pm. The nurse said this and not enough water can make you faint. It meant he literally had to be held by the nurse in a position for about 10 minutes after he went deaf, blurry vision and started to sweat profusely. Luckily he was still sitting down.
He measured 5 foot 6.

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