An anthropometric study of 38 individuals with Prader‐Labhart‐Willi syndrome

Abstract

Weight, height, sitting height, and 24 other anthropometric variables (5 body circumferences, skinfolds at 7 sites, 4 head dimensions, and 8 hand and foot measurements) were obtained on 38 Prader‐Labhart‐Willi syndrome (PLWS) individuals (21 with apparent chromosome 15 deletions and 17 nondeletion cases) with an age range of 2 weeks to 38 1/2 years. More than half of these individuals were measured on more than one occasion. The measurements confirmed the presence of short stature, small hands and feet, obesity, and narrow bi‐frontal diameter in PLWS. No differences were found for the anthropometric measurements between the 2 chromosome subgroups. Inverse correlations were produced with linear measurements (eg, height, hand and foot lengths) and age, which indicated a deceleration of linear growth relative to normal individuals with increasing age.