The early diagnosis of obesity is a necessary precondition for the decrease of its sequallae. Increasing the knowledge of the growth of obese children would help the diagnostic procedure. The aim of the present work is to define rates of growth and maturation of obese students who have reached final height. The height and body mass from birth to 18 years of age are followed in 2195 students - 989 (45,1 %) boys and 1 206 (54,9 %) girls. As "obese" at final height were defined those with BMI 1,645 SDS, and as "overweight" - those with BMI 1,036 SDS for age and sex. Height is assessed through the standard deviation score (SDS) and compared with the reference group accordingly. Maturation parameters are compared in 2159 (969; 45 % boys) who have reached final height. Overall 253 (11,5 %) of the adolescents under study are overweight, and 133 (6.1 %) are obese. The follow-up of the postnatal growth by SDS shows significantly higher values of the index throughout childhood. There is no difference in final height for both sexes. The obese boys and girls experience peak pubertal growth and cease to grow significantly earlier compared to controls - on the average by about 5 months, p < 0,0001. The obese girls attain their first menstruation more than 8 months ahead of controls-12,2 1,3 years vs. 12,9 1,1 years, p = 0,013. The routine follow-up of the linear growth from birth till the moment of clinical evaluation could be helpful in building the diagnosis of the exogenous obesity.
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