Development of specific growth charts for children with Fanconi anemia

Patients with Fanconi anemia (FA) are often perceived to have poor growth when general population growth curves are utilized. We hypothesize that FA patients have unique growth and aimed to create FA-specific growth charts. Height and weight data from ages 0 to 20 years were extracted from medical records of patients treated at the Fanconi Anemia Comprehensive Care Clinic at the University of Minnesota. Height, weight, and BMI growth curves were generated and fitted to reference percentiles using the Lambda-Mu-Sigma method. FA-specific percentiles were compared to WHO standards for ages 0–2 and CDC references for ages 2–20. In FA males, the 50th height- and weight-for-age percentiles overlap with the 3rd reference percentile. In FA females, only the 50th height-for-age percentile overlaps with the 3rd reference percentile. For weight, FA females show progressive growth failure between 6 and 24 months followed by stabilization around the 50th percentile. The FA BMI-for-age percentiles show similar patterns to the weight-for-age percentiles but have different timing of onset of adiposity rebound and broader variability in females. Growth in FA patients follows a different trajectory than available normative curves. FA-specific growth charts may be useful to better guide accurate growth expectations, evaluations, and treatment.