SHORT CHILDREN: TO TREAT OR NOT TO TREAT

Excerpt

To the Editor: Stimulation of growth of short children with anabolic agents is an area of great controversy and confusion. Unfortunately, the article, "The Use of Androgens and Thyroid for Stimulation of Growth in Short Children," by Storment, Escamilla, and Williams (ANNALS OF INTERNAL MEDICINE 60: 962, 1964) only adds to this confusion. This study is open to extensive criticism and raised numerous questions.

There is no suitable control group of untreated children of the same chronological age, height age, and bone age who have the same predicted mature height as the treatment group prior to therapy. Such controls were