Construction of a Simplified Bone Age Assessment Model in Chinese Children Aged 3 to 18 Years
Authors' conclusion
These 3-bone models could be useful for rapid BAA, with improved accuracy when puberty stages is included. Further validation is warranted to test their robustness across populations and scenarios.
Study context
- Population
- Children aged 3 to 18 years, Beijing, China; left-hand X-ray images assessed by the Tanner-Whitehouse 3-China/radius-ulna-short bone method
- Participants
- 5,551 children
- Outcome
- Model accuracy: R², residuals, root mean square error, and BA with an error margin ≤0.5 years
Methodological detailsmodel development (linear regression)
- Model development (linear regression)
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Simplified 3-bone model (radius, ulna, metacarpal I) accuracy
R² of simplified 3-bone model
> 0.94
Root mean square error of simplified 3-bone model
< 0.5 years
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Bone age (BA) when metacarpals and phalanges reach grade 6 (consistent bone grades)
- BA, boys
- 13.0 to 13.5 years
- BA, girls
- 10.9 to 11.5 years
- When bone grades were inconsistent, regression models were needed
Models including puberty stages
- Specific bone combination models considering puberty stages can further improve assessment accuracy
Original publication
Construction of a Simplified Bone Age Assessment Model in Chinese Children Aged 3 to 18 Years. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. Published 15 January 2025. doi:10.
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