Emotional problems during youth as predictors of stature during early adulthood: results from a prospective epidemiologic study.
OBJECTIVE
Adults with emotional disorders exhibit abnormalities in growth hormone secretion. If these abnormalities were to occur during childhood, they could affect growth. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between youth emotional disorders and stature in early adulthood.


METHODS
Using data from a prospective epidemiologic study of youth psychopathologic status, we used linear regression to examine the prospective relationship between anxiety disorders (separation anxiety and over-anxious disorders) or major depressive disorder in youth and stature in early adulthood.


RESULTS
Anxiety disorders during childhood prospectively predicted relatively short stature in early adulthood among females, accounting for more than 5% of the variance in adult height. However, these associations were not found among males.


CONCLUSIONS
There may be an association between abnormalities in growth and emotional problems in youth. Further research should examine biological measures related to growth among youth with emotional disorders.
Pine
D S
DS
Division of Child Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute, NY 10032, USA.
Cohen
P
P
Brook
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001010:Anxiety, Separation / Q000150:complications*; D002648:Child; D002667:Child Reactive Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D015986:Confounding Factors, Epidemiologic; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D006130:Growth Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution