Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Teenagers

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

Flip

Original poster

Delayed puberty, 16yr old boy so small

15 replies

Nmeag · 25/09/2023 15:28

Hi, just wanted to hear other parents thoughts on possible delayed puberty or experiences with children being small for their age.
My son is 16, he has always been small. He was on 2nd centile when he was born. And until recent years he always seemed to cope quite well with being the smallest at school but recently he seems fed up with no growth for at least 3 years. Hes 5ft 2, same height as myself and at max about 8 stone. He has small features, skinny wrists etc. His father is about 5ft 8. I tried to play it down but saw photos of him at sports with his friends recently and was so so shocked at how small he was with all of his peers. Hes laso finding it hard to get clothes that fit for going out with friends and 6th form uniform.
Iv taken him to the gp recently and she did bloods which came back normal but has made an onward referral naming my anxiety as the reason. Its to orthopaedic services.
My son has some facial hair, his body is skinny, not a lot of hair on his legs. I cannot ask him about his private parts, testicles etc as he'd be so embarrassed but I'm wondering if he has reached his final height. Does anyone have any experience of this with their children? Im worried hes becoming very conscious of it and I dont think I can do anything to help. Thanks in advance

OP posts:

Meetthecats · 25/09/2023 22:56

Ask for a referral to an endocrinologist. Or go to see one privately if you can afford to.

Highlyflavouredgravy · 25/09/2023 23:02

Can his dad take him swimming or something and share changing space in order to find iut about his development?I would be getting a referral to an endocrinologist too. He doesn't sound like he was ever going to be a 6 footer but it doesn't sound right.

Patchworksack · 25/09/2023 23:04

Agree get a referral - they will do hormone testing and assess bone age. Once the growth plates in his long bones fuse then there’s no potential for him to grow more. There’s a ‘fag packet’ calculation for eventual height which is the average if the parents height +10cm for boys which would mean he would be expected to be more like his father’s height.

Nat6999 · 25/09/2023 23:07

He is only 16, boys can grow up to age 20, get him checked out, lots of boys don't bulk up & grow till later, just like some girls don't develop until 16 or 17.

Blueeyedmale · 25/09/2023 23:09

Might be worth seeing an endocrinologist OP even at 43 I'm 5ft7,tiny wrists,small hands and only 5.5 feet but if your concerned get it checked out

RedGreenBlueSky · 25/09/2023 23:17

Yes, my DS was referred to endocrinologist at age 13 and 4 foot 8ish. They did bloods, hand X-ray and checked size of testicles (apparently this is good indicator of how close to puberty they are). All came back normal but is going to be seen again in 6 months. Hand X-ray shows their bone age - this gives an idea of how much more time there is to grow, so if younger than their age then they will probably stop growing later. They did offer him testosterone injections to kick start things but he decided not to yet. It was reassuring for him and me to speak to someone about it, he's now sure he will grow eventually so is less worried about it. He will never be tall though - I reckon he might reach 5 6 or 7 eventually

RedGreenBlueSky · 25/09/2023 23:20

By the way, the doctor was amazing with making him feel comfortable during examination. I think it's a good thing he's had to go through that now actually as hopefully it will mean that he won't be worried about going to see drs in the future about anything 'embarrassing' like a lot of men are

CoffeeBean5 · 25/09/2023 23:20

What's his diet like? Not eating enough calories can stunt growth. Boys do start puberty later and continue to grow until around 18 whereas for girls it tends to be early teens when they reach their final height.

RubyRubyRubyRubay · 25/09/2023 23:34

My brothers were small and skinny at 16. By 18 they were 6ft and filled out really well.

Original poster

Nmeag · 26/09/2023 21:01

Thank you all for your help. I will ring a private clinic tomorrow regarding an endocrinologist just for my own peace of mind that I tried my best if nothing else. Thank you all for taking the time to reply, it is much appreciated

OP posts:

Remmy123 · 27/09/2023 21:22

My son is 14 and we took him to have tests as he hadn't grown for a couple of years much smaller than friends and very down about it. He had his bone age done and he is about 1.5 years behind. This summer he has had a small growth spurt and is almost 5 ft 3 - he is at v early stage puberty (they did an examination). His younger brother is also very small so I think it's in our family.

I wouid get him checked out for your own piece of mind if nothing else.

Notnastypasty · 27/09/2023 21:25

A friend of mine was 5’3 and looked very young until he was 18. He suddenly shot up to 6ft and bulked out so it can happen!

ShoutItQuietly · 27/09/2023 21:37

Does he have arm pit hair? At least that is visible. Look if you are planning on taking him to endocrinologist then I would ask him the question about whether or not he has any pubic hair. You don't have to be looking him in the eye to do it, you can write it on a piece of paper.

Ds1 had testicular torsion which resulted in it dying and having to be removed. He had the other one sewn into place to stop that one twisting too. He wasn't even a year old. Since then we had to watch for signs of puberty in case he needed injections. We have always been open about it. He started to smell sweaty in year 5 and we asked him to tell us if he started to grow any hair rather than us having to scrutinise the parts of his body we did see.

If you google stages of puberty in boys it will bring up the Tanner Stages list and you can get him to see how far along he is. I think you are absolutely right to get him checked out.

The fag packet calculation doesn't work for us, MIL is 5'2" FIL is 5'6" and Dh is 6'3". My sons are both 5'10" and my youngest is 17.

Ozziedream · 27/09/2023 21:44

You’re absolutely right to get him checked out but the GP sounds dismissive citing your anxiety as reason for referral (cf. just mentioning it) where there are clear clinical markers of delayed puberty. As per pp, an endocrinologist will look beyond the growth plate tests that ortho will presumably do. The facial hair is a good sign and they may ask exactly when that started. There are two separate lines of enquiry : delayed onset puberty and delayed/stunted growth. The Gp should have explained this; hopefully you get more help and support from an endocrinologist and/or the ortho referral.

Its5656 · 27/09/2023 21:46

Definitely get it checked but for peace of mind I just asked my DH, he has a friend who was similar and then in the space of a few months grew a foot gained muscle and grew a beard, he was 18.
I was born premature and didn't go through puberty until I was 17.. was always tiny compared to my friends but I'm now 5'8.

Flip