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Bio-Band Variation

This is an excerpt from Growth, Maturation, Physical Activity, and Sport-3rd Edition by Robert M. Malina.

Except for the range of percentages of predicted adult height in the respective bands, studies do not ordinarily report variation in size or other relevant variables of youth within the bands. As noted in earlier reviews and in the preceding section, a variety of bands have been used in studies of bio-banding, and the bands are often interpreted relative to age at PHV and to a lesser extent, stages of puberty (Cumming et al., 2017; Malina et al., 2019, 2023). It is thus important to consider variation in CA, body size, skeletal or pubertal maturity status, functional capacities, and sport-specific skills among players within specific bands defined by percentages of predicted adult height at the time of observation.

Bands Relative to Age at Peak Height Velocity in Longitudinal Studies

Applications of bio-banding discussed above, though limited to boys, have used a variety of bands based on the percentage of predicted adult height at the time of observation, and the bands are generally described in the context of intervals of the adolescent growth spurt. The following question thus merits attention: What is the range of variation in estimated percentages of adult height attained at different phases of the adolescent growth spurt in longitudinal samples?

Statistical models used in the analysis of longitudinal height data typically identify ages at TO of the growth spurt and at PHV, and at times heights at TO and at PHV. In this context, ages at TO and at PHV and heights at TO and at PHV expressed as a percentage of adult height in several longitudinal studies of boys and girls merit attention; results for several longitudinal samples are summarized in table 24.2. Although bio-banding is not commonly discussed in studies of female youth athletes, corresponding data for girls in several of the longitudinal studies are also included in the table. The data for boys also include estimates for a longitudinal sample of soccer players.

Allowing for variation among methods used to estimate parameters of the growth spurt, mean ages at TO in the studies of boys, including the two estimates for soccer players, ranged from 10.5 to 11.3 years. The estimated means and medians for height at TO expressed as a percentage of adult height spanned a relatively narrow range, 78.7% to 81.2%, among the studies; however, the minimum and maximum values ranged from 70% through 85%, while the 10th and 90th percentiles suggested a band from 75% to 85%. Percentages of adult height attained at TO were also somewhat skewed toward the lower end of the range.

Mean ages at TO in the four longitudinal studies of girls ranged from 8.8 to 9.8 years. Except for the Zurich study, means and medians for the percentage of adult height attained at TO were about 80%. The minimum and maximum values also suggested a broad band, about 73% to 88%, while the 10th and 90th percentiles suggested a band from 75% to 87% among girls.

The range of estimated mean ages at PHV for boys spanned 13.0 to 14.1 years, and the estimates for the sample of soccer players (13.6 and 13.7 years) were within the range. Means and medians for the estimated percentage of adult height attained at PHV varied within a relatively narrow range among the samples, 90.0% to 91.4%. With one exception, standard deviations for height at PHV expressed as a percentage of adult height ranged from about 1% to 2% and were reduced compared to standard deviations for percentage of adult height at TO in the respective samples. The large standard deviation for the Berkeley study reflected the broad range in the sample, 75.3% to 94.8%; otherwise, the minimum and maximum values for height at PHV expressed as a percentage of adult height in the other samples, including the soccer players, ranged from 85.4% to 95.5%. The difference of 13% between the minimum values in contrast to the small difference among maximum values (3%) suggested a skewed distribution in the Berkeley sample. In contrast, the 10th and 90th percentiles in the five longitudinal series, including the soccer players, suggested a narrower band, 88% to 93%. The range of percentages of height attained at PHV was also narrower than the corresponding range for percentages of height attained at TO.

Consistent with observations among boys, means and medians for percentage of adult height at PHV among girls varied within a very narrow range, 90.0% to 91.5%. The minimum and maximum values for height at PHV expressed as a percentage of adult height ranged from 81.2% to 96.8%, but the 10th and 90th percentiles in four longitudinal series suggested a narrower band, 88% to 94%. Overall, percentages of adult height at TO and at PHV in girls overlapped those observed in boys, so that the conservative bands suggested for boys may also apply to girls.

Table 24.2 Ages at TO and at PHV and Heights at TO and at PHV Expressed as a Percentage of Adult Height in Several Longitudinal Samples of Boys and Girls. Data are means, standard deviations, minima, maxima, and percentiles (10th, median, 90th). Fels (Ohio): triple logistic (Malina et al., 2016); subjects born in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, with complete growth records from 8 to 18 years of age; percentage of adult height at TO and PHV was estimated after the paper was published (courtesy of Audrey Chow). Zurich (Switzerland): kernel regression (Molinari et al., 2013); subjects born from 1954 to 1956, measured annually from 2 to 10 years of age, then at 6-month intervals until two successive increments <0.5 cm/year, then annually until two successive increments <0.05 cm/year. Wrocław (Poland): Preece-Baines model 1 (Kozieł and Malina, 2018); subjects born 1953, measured annually from spring 1961 through spring 1972. Brno (Czech Republic): B-spline and functional data analysis (Bouchalová, 1987; Králík et al., 2021); former Czechoslovakia, measured from 1961 to 1980 spanning the interval from birth to 18 years of age. Brush Foundation (Cleveland, Ohio): measured from 1931 to 1942, subjects for whom growth spurt could be identified and who had completed growth, defined as an increment of <1 cm/year (Sanders et al., 2017). Berkeley Guidance Study (California): subjects were followed from 1928 to 1929, until growth completion; cubic splines were used to estimate parameters of the growth spurt (Sanders et al., 2017). Coimbra Soccer Study (Portugal): superimposition by translation and rotation and functional principal component analysis models (Malina et al., 2024); subjects 11 to 12 years old at initial observation in December 2003, measured annually in December through 2007 or 2008 (four or five observations); young adult heights reported at 22 to 25 years of age (23.2 ± 1.1 years); reported heights were adjusted for overestimation.

Means and medians for percentages of adult height at TO and at PHV varied within relatively narrow ranges among the longitudinal samples of boys (including the soccer players) and girls. Estimated percentages of adult height attained at TO and at PHV also overlapped among boys and girls and were reasonably consistent among the longitudinal studies. The 10th and 90th percentiles thus provide a conservative range for estimated percentages of adult height at different phases of the adolescent growth spurt among both boys and girls; accordingly:

Interval of TO 75.0% to [less than] 84.0%

Interval between TO and PHV 84.0% to [less than] 88.0%

Interval of PHV 88.0% to [less than] 93.0%

Post-PHV [greater than or equal to] 93.0%

The interval between TO and PHV was inferred as the difference between the upper limit of the percentage of adult height attained at TO and the lower limit of the percentage of adult height attained at PHV. The suggested ranges overlap to some extent the ranges of percentages of predicted adult height used in studies of bio-banding.

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