Researchers at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia are measuring children with Down syndrome from birth to age 21 to develop updated growth charts. This research study is supported by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The Down Syndrome Growing Up Study is currently recruiting children with Down syndrome from Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. In regularly scheduled follow-up visits, the researchers measure the patients’ growth and body dimensions and collect data about health, dietary patterns and physical activities.
“The past 20 years have seen significant improvements in the care of children with Down syndrome, accompanied by longer life expectancy,” says The Down Syndrome Growing Up Study’s principal investigator, Babette S. Zemel, PhD, director of the Nutrition and Growth Laboratory at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “We believe that children with Down syndrome are growing better now than they were 20 years ago. We also want to look at how they are growing throughout childhood, from infancy to young adulthood, and how body mass index changes across time, and how that relates to body fat composition.”
“If we can better understand the growth patterns and the rates of other illnesses that co-occur with Down syndrome, researchers may be better able to plan treatment and design preventative health programs,” adds Zemel. “The CDC has recognized updated growth charts as an important tool for people providing healthcare to children with Down syndrome.”
In its grant guidelines, the CDC states that new growth charts produced from the study will be broadly distributed free of charge. To learn more and get involved:
Call 215-590-2913 or email hallw@email.chop.edu
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