One year follow-up study of stature, weight, emergence of dentition, and sexual maturation of well-nourished indian girls from birth to 20 years

Abstract

Stature, weight, and emergence of deciduous and permanent teeth of 1,330 well‐nourished girls from birth to 20 years belonging to well‐off families residing in Delhi are reported. All subjects were measured on two occasions 1 year apart. In addition, each subject was examined for gingival emergence of deciduous or permanent teeth on both occasions. Data on age at menarche were also collected. Single‐year velocities of stature and weight are highest during the first year. The peak of adolescent spurts in stature and weight velocities are observed at 11.0 and 12.0 years, respectively. The first deciduous tooth to emerge is the mandibular I₁, of girls at 7.6 months. The sequence of emergence based on ascending median ages is I1, I2, M1, C, and M2 for both maxillary as well as mandibular deciduous teeth. The permanent dentition starts with the emergence of mandibular M₁ at 5.75 years. The sequence of emergence of permanent teeth is M¹, I¹, I², PM¹, C, PM², and M² in the maxilla, and M₁, I₁, I2, C, PM₁, PM₂, and M₂ in the mandible. Annual increase in number of permanent teeth erupted shows a spurt between 9 and 10 years of age. Median age at menarche is 12.37 ± 0.03 with a standard deviation of 0.8 years; it is about one and one‐half years later than the estimated age at peak height velocity. Single‐year velocities of stature and weight decline after the onset of menarche. An association of emergence of deciduous teeth with birth weight is observed. Newborns with higher birth weight tend to have more teeth emerged at one year of age compared to those having lower birth weight. In all age groups, girls who had experienced menarche are taller and heavier and have more erupted permanent teeth compared to those who have not yet attained menarche. Girls with earlier menarche apparently have short adult stature compared to those with later menarche.