XXXX , @entity11795 , and @entity102 : long term impact on height.

@entity1 @entity3617 @entity565 @entity102 @entity2673 @entity5539 @entity56 @entity11795
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether common conditions in early childhood, such as @entity565 and @entity2673 (mainly @entity11795 ), affect height during later childhood and in adult life. DESIGN: Longitudinal follow up of subjects in the 1958 British Birth Cohort Study. Data from the birth survey and ages 7, 11, 16, and 23 were used. SUBJECTS: 12,537 subjects remaining in the study at age 23, representing 76% of the target population, cohort members still alive and resident in Britain. RESULTS: Heights of @entity1 with @entity56 , acute or @entity5539 , or @entity565 /wheezy @entity3617 did not differ by age 7 from those of @entity1 without such illnesses. When @entity565 was graded by severity, there was a trend (not significant) for the severe group to be shorter at ages 16 and 23. Although @entity1 with a @entity102 by age 7 were on average almost 0.5 cm shorter than @entity1 without such illnesses, this difference was reduced by half and was not significant after adjusting for maternal height, birth weight, parity, and social class at birth. However, a marked and long lasting effect was found for @entity1 with @entity2673 who at age 7 were significantly shorter, by a mean of 0.77 cm. Within this group, enuretic @entity1 with a problem at age 11 were more than 1 cm shorter in adulthood, even allowing for other height related factors. CONCLUSIONS: Common childhood illnesses do not appear to affect height, either in the short or in the long term, although exceptions include @entity102 and @entity11795 . The value of height as an indicator of @entity1 health status in an industrialised country such as Britain requires further reassessment.
