Patterns of height growth vary from infancy to early adulthood and are controlled by a number of interacting mechanisms. The fastest gain is observed during the first year of life, followed by a period of slower growth, with another peak in puberty [8]. Longitudinal height growth analysis involves individual growth curve fitting and derivation of growth parameters from the fitted curves. Commonly derived biologically meaningful growth parameters include peak velocities at periods of fast growth and the timing of these peaks [8],[9]. The choice of periods of fast growth is based on prior knowledge of the biological regulation of height growth during these periods [10],[11].
