When 12-year-old Brooklyn was a week old, she fell into a week-long coma. Testing at Akron Children’s showed she had an under-active thyroid and 2 pineal brain cysts. A later check-up by cardiologist Grace Smith also showed she had a hole in her heart and a leaky valve. She’s endured all of her medical trials during her short life with grace and hope.
Why am I so short? Understanding growth disorders in kids
Growth is a complex process that can be influenced by many internal and external factors. There’s also a wide range of normal growth patterns in both height and weight for boys and girls. When kids are shorter than average, they likely come from families where one or both parents are short. The onset of puberty and the rapid growth and body changes associated with it are also tied to genetics.
