Onset of puberty at eight years of age in girls determines a specific tempo of puberty but does not affect adult height

Abstract

Girls with onset of puberty at 8 y show all the compensatory phenomena related to height at onset, pubertal duration and height increase during puberty. These phenomena cause their adult height to be similar to that of girls who begin puberty at the age of 10 to 13 y.

Metformin Therapy during Puberty Delays Menarche, Prolongs Pubertal Growth, and Augments Adult Height: A Randomized Study in Low-Birth-Weight Girls with Early-Normal Onset of Puberty

“…After comparison with the findings in untreated girls, the results from the treated girls indicate that insulin-sensitizing therapy with metformin (for 36 months) normalizes the timing of menarche (14,34) and prolongs and augments pubertal growth up to adult height. Metformin treatment also results in a leaner body composition and less adverse lipid profile.…”

Early Puberty-Menarche After Precocious Pubarche: Relation to Prenatal Growth

“…20,21 This compensation explains why the age of menarche varies less than the age of pubertal onset. 20,21 For unknown reasons, such compensation seems to be less operational in LBW girls: their onset of puberty is advanced by ϳ6 months, and menarche is also advanced by ϳ6 months, or by even more.…”

“…20,21 This compensation explains why the age of menarche varies less than the age of pubertal onset. 20,21 For unknown reasons, such compensation seems to be less operational in LBW girls: their onset of puberty is advanced by ϳ6 months, and menarche is also advanced by ϳ6 months, or by even more. 22,23 Among girls who start puberty at 8 years of age, menarche occurs 1 year earlier in LBW than in non-LBW girls, and such rapid pubertal progression may contribute to shortening adult stature.…”

Menstruation in Girls and Adolescents: Using the Menstrual Cycle as a Vital Sign

“…In girls with early onset of breast development, the interval to menarche is longer (3 years or more) than in girls with later onset. [11][12][13] By 15 years of age, 98% of females will have had menarche. 3,14 Traditionally, primary amenorrhea has been defined as no menarche by 16 years of age; however, many diagnosable and treatable disorders can and should be detected earlier, using the statistically derived guideline of 14 to 15 years of age.…”