Tehran University Medical Journal

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Background: The first step in assessment of children with precocious puberty is to determine whether the cases are of benign nature or have more serious causes. It seems that two criteria of "height age" and "bone age" are helpful for this decision.

Materials and Methods: To evaluate the usefulness of those criteria, a retrospective study of 74 children (50 girls and 24 boys) with precocious puberty whom be visited between years 1993-2000 was performed. According to the medical history, clinical signs, and certain laboratory tests (in some cases) the patients were classified in different groups of precocious puberty.

Results: Height age and bone age were determined for all the patients. Those patients for whom treatment of any kind was required were also identified. The results of the statistical analysis of the findings were as follows: - No clear relation between "height age", "Bone age", type of precocious puberty, and the need for treatment was found in the male patients. All (100 percent) of the boys needed treatment. - Among the female patients, those with progressive complete precocious puberty (16 patients) had a significantly advanced height age and bone age comparing to the other groups. There was also a direct relation between the need for treatment and the advanced height age (11 patients), and between the need for treatment and the advanced bone age (10 patients).

Conclusion: All the boys with precocious puberty should be evaluated thoroughly because they usually have a serious disorder which needs treatment. However among the girls with precocious puberty, those with benign causes can be detected using the criteria of height age, bone age, and clinical signs. Therefore, unnecessary laboratory tests and treatments can be avoided in a percentage of these patients.

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Background: This study was performed in order to detect the frequency of different types of precocious puberty, predisposing factors and to show which group of patients need to treatment.

Materials and Methods: In this study, 74 patients who referred to pediatric endocrine clinic of Imam Khomeini Hospital and private office from 1993-2000 were assessed. A complete history was taken and physical examination was done in all patients by pediatrics endocrinologist. Bone age was done in all patients and specific hormonal tests were measured in some of them.

Results: Among 74 patients, 50 cases (67.6 percent) were female and 24 cases (32.4 percent) were male. The age of the patients was between 0.8-10 years old with mean 5.37 year. 75 percent of male patients had central (complete) precocious puberty and 25 percent had peripheral (incomplete) precocious puberty. 40 percent of female patients had central precocious puberty, 46 percent had premature telarche, 8 percent had premature pubarche, 2 percent had premature menarche and 4 percent had other kinds of precocious puberty (one case with hypothyroidism and one case with Mccune-Albright syndrome). 10 percent of female patients with central precocious puberty had predisposing factor and 90 percent of them were idiopathic. 38.8 percent of male patients with central precocious puberty had predisposing factor and 61.2 percent of them were idiopathic. 100 percent of male patients with peripheral precocious puberty had congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia. 38 percent of female patients and 100 percent of male patients needed to treatment.

Conclusion: According to this study and references, precocious puberty in female usually benign but in male patients it should be evaluated thoroughly because they usually have a serious disorder which needs treatment.

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Background: Gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog (GnRHa) therapy is used in central precocious puberty (CPP) worldwide and it is the treatment of choice for this condition. Many of the previous studies concerning the effect of gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog (GnRHa) therapy on height. Much less attention has been paid to changes in body weight. However, concerns have been expressed that CPP may be associated with increased body mass index (BMI) both at initial presentation and during GnRH agonist treatment, but it is controversial in some studies. Methods: We have retrospectively reviewed 52 female patients that the majority of them had CPP. We assessed height, height SDS, weight, weight SDS, BMI and BMI SDS. All patients were treated with GnRHa over 12 months. The variables were evalu-ated at 0, 6 and 12 months after initiation of treatment.8 girls received growth hormone concomitantly. Also bone age and sexual maturity were measured. Bone age was assessed according to the Greulich-Pyle method and sexual maturation was classified according to the Marshall-Tanner method. Results: Before the initiation of therapy, the girls had a mean BMI SD score for chronological age of 0.80± 1.18 after 6 months of therapy BMI SDS was 0.82± 1.15 and after 12 months was 0.82± 1.28 the P value is 0.909 and it is not statistically signif-icant. Height SD score for chronological age was 0.41± 1.65 before the initiation of therapy and was 0.41± 1.65 after 6 months and 0.43± 1.60 after 12 months of therapy. The P= 0.66 and it is not statistically significant. Eight girls received growth hormone concomitantly, in this group increasing height SDS is statistically significant P= 0.044 but increasing BMI SDS is not significant. Conclusion: Gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog (GnRHa) therapy in central precocious puberty (CPP) is safe for BMI and increasing of BMI is not significant, long- term follow-up study is required to elucidate whether GnRHa treatment affects adult obesity. Using growth hormone concomitantly, the effect on increasing height is significant.