Growth Issues (Was Re: )

[Guest guest]

Hi Lynn,

We too went through that phase where the children were both suddenly the same

height and lots of people would ask whether Josh and his younger sister were

twins. That was kind of cute. As Kayla (21 months younger) continued to grow at

her regular rate, and Josh didn't, it became instead the assumption that Kayla

was the older of the two children. Some people were incredulous and it sparked

some sibling rivalry between the kids. There was some resentment on 's

part. Kayla thought it gave her an edge up. decided/came to the

conclusion that if people knew them they would see how much more mature he was

and know that he was the older of the two. Kayla, right now, is about 6 or 7

inches taller than .

As a side note, there have been several occasions when we're standing in line

waiting for admission to events, buying tickets to things like the circus, and

the people we're with have commented that I could 'get away' with buying a

younger child's ticket for a lower price ... because Josh is so little. I've

made it a point to never do that, even when money is tight, just because I don't

want 's height to increase/interfere with the perception of his age. If a

child is smaller than normal, some people will respond to them as if they are

younger. Treat them differently based on their size. It changes people's

expectations of their behavior. And, in turn, can affect a child's behavior.

Take care,

Georgina

Re:

Hi Jane:

I share your concern and frustration. We have been told the same thing, the

lack of growth is due to either the level of inflammation or the prednisone,

or both. Although our daughter just turned 7, she is the same size now she

was at 4. We have never been able to get her below 2mg of prednisone/day -

and only once have we even gotten that far, usually she flares at less than

5. Georgina has posted some very good articles on growth issues, growth

hormone, etc. There is a new form of growth hormone available that is a once

per month injection as opposed to daily. Any studies I've read on growth

hormone seem to indicate there are a lot of benefits, including increased

bone density (since our kids are at greater risk for osteoporosis than a

post-menopausal woman), but nearly as soon as the growth hormone is stopped,

the benefits stop too, or wear off quickly. Our docs keep telling us to try

to get her to eat more, but volume isn't an issue - she just prefers fruits

and vegetables to anything more " highly caloric " (why not ME????). I'm don't

think more food would help a lot, but i guess it would be a start. I know

there are greater issues than size in dealing with arthritis, but I can't

help but be concerned. She was always in the 95th percentile for height

before the arthritis began... now she is barely on the scale. Her sister

(two and a half years younger) is now the same size she is. People keep

asking lately if they're twins (Mickey is brunette, Kinsey is blonde, but I

suppose there is some resemblance!) - and this is bothering her. Woe be unto

the person who asks HER - they get a long (and knowledgeable) lecture on

juvenile arthritis, the drugs she takes and the way both affect growth!

I have heard that ENBREL does not have the same growth suppressing affect,

but it is not yet available in Canada, where we are.

The endocrinoligist should be able to provide some helpful info for you.

Lynn