How can growth hormone deficiency affect bone age and growth?

Growth hormone (GH) deficiency significantly impacts physical development by slowing growth and delaying skeletal maturation. Because GH is essential for stimulating the growth of body tissues, including bone, its deficiency leads to growth retardation that typically becomes evident within the first two years of life.1

Regarding skeletal development, bone age is a key clinical measure used to assess a child's growth potential. In children with GH deficiency, radiographs of the epiphyses—the growing ends of the bones—reveal that bone age is delayed, meaning it does not correlate closely with the child's chronological age.12

This condition is often managed with injections of recombinant growth hormone, which can help children achieve a height closer to their anticipated range. If left untreated, the deficiency results in short stature, as the hormone is vital for the normal progression of physical growth during childhood and the pubertal growth spurt.13