Table 1 Baseline characteristics at age 3Â years
Characteristic % or mean (SD) | Total | Children with short stature (height SDS ≤  − 2) (N = 514) | Children without short stature (height SDS >  − 2) (N = 12,022) | p value* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Height, mean (SD) | ||||
 cm | 95.5 (4.2) | 87.0 (2.3) | 95.9 (3.8) |  < 0.001 |
 SDS |  − 0.29 (1.0) |  − 2.50 (0.5) |  − 0.20 (0.9) |  < 0.001 |
Age (months), % | 37.6 (2.4) | 37.6 (2.6) | 37.6 (2.4) | 0.914 |
Sex (girls), % | 49.4 | 51.0 | 49.3 | 0.462 |
Ethnicity (White), % | 85.3 | 87.2 | 85.3 | 0.231 |
Birth weight (kg), mean (SD) | 3.4 (0.6) | 3.0 (0.7) | 3.4 (0.6) |  < 0.001 |
Mid-parental height SDS, mean (SD) | 0.0 (0.8) |  − 0.6 (0.8) | 0.0 (0.8) |  < 0.001 |
Mother’s age at birth of child, mean (SD) | 29.6 (5.8) | 28.9 (5.9) | 29.6 (5.8) | 0.012 |
Mother’s diagnosis of anxiety or depression, % | 24.3 | 27.6 | 24.2 | 0.075 |
High maternal education, % | 50.0 | 42.8 | 50.3 | 0.001 |
Second-hand smoke exposure, % | 12.8 | 17.9 | 12.6 |  < 0.001 |
Breastfeeding, % | 69.9 | 63.2 | 70.2 | 0.001 |
Income quintile, % |  |  |  |  < 0.001 |
 Lowest | 21.0 | 30.2 | 20.6 |  |
 Second | 21.6 | 26.7 | 21.4 |  |
 Third | 19.7 | 17.7 | 19.7 |  |
 Fourth | 19.5 | 12.7 | 19.8 |  |
 Highest | 18.2 | 12.8 | 18.5 |  |
IMD, mean (SD) | 4.8 (2.9) | 4.3 (2.8) | 4.9 (2.9) |  < 0.001 |