Associations between life course longitudinal growth and hip shapes at ages 60–64 years: evidence from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development

Objective: We sought to examine associations between height gain across childhood and adolescence with hip shape in individuals aged 60-64 years from the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development, a nationally representative British birth cohort.

Methods: Height was measured at ages 2, 4, 6, 7, 11 and 15 years, and self-reported at age 20 years. 10 modes of variation in hip shape (HM1-10), described by statistical shape models, were previously ascertained from DXA images taken at ages 60-64 years. Associations between (1) height at each age; (2) Super-Imposition by Translation And Rotation (SITAR) growth curve variables of height size, tempo and velocity; and (3) height gain during specific periods of childhood and adolescence, and HM1-10 were tested.

Results: Faster growth velocity was associated with a wider, flatter femoral head and neck, as described by positive scores for HM6 (regression coefficient 0.014; 95% CI 0.08 to 0.019; p

Conclusion: Our analyses suggest that individual growth patterns, particularly in the adolescent period, are associated with modest variations in hip shape at 60-64 years, which are consistent with features seen in osteoarthritis.