GROWTH ANALYSIS UP TO FINAL HEIGHT AND PSYCHOSOCIAL ADJUSTMENT OF TREATED AND UNTREATED PATIENTS WITH PRECOCIOUS PUBERTY

Thirty-four patients (27 girls and 7 boys) with precocious puberty who had reached final height were examined in order to analyze their growth. Thirty patients were diagnosed as having idiopathic precocious puberty, while 4 patients had cerebral organic disorders. Twenty-two patients were treated with cyproterone acetate, 3 with medroxyprogesterone acetate, and 9 patients remained untreated. Growth data of these three groups showed no differences, and final height was not affected by treatment. In patients with precocious puberty, adult height was significantly more often in the lower percentiles (less-than-or-equal-to P-25, corresponding to an SDS of -0.67) than expected. In both treated and untreated patients, any negative influence of the early onset of puberty on well-being in later life could not be established.