Skeletal maturation

The term "skeletal maturation" refers to the developmental process by which the skeleton is gradually transformed from cartilage into bone. There is a concordance between the rate of skeletal maturation and the rates of other developmental processes, such as linear growth, the decline in growth potential, and puberty. Thus, the radiographic assessment of skeletal maturation is a useful indicator of the overall developmental tempo. The rate of skeletal maturation is determined by endocrine, paracrine, nutritional, and genetic factors. Factors extrinsic to the skeleton tend to regulate bone growth and bone maturation in a concordant fashion. This correlation between skeletal growth and skeletal maturation has diagnostic implications; short stature with delayed bone maturation suggests a defect extrinsic to the skeleton, The rate of skeletal maturation also correlates with the rate of loss of growth potential. This correlation is used clinically to predict final height. There is an additional concordance between the rates of skeletal maturation and pubertal development in many pathological conditions, Possible biological explanations for these various concordances are discussed.