Definition
Failure to thrive syndrome (FTT) is a condition in infants and young children in which they do not grow at expected rates. It can be a sign of a general medical condition or can have other biopsychosocial causes.
Description
Failure to thrive is the term generally used to describe a syndrome in which an infant or child does not grow at a rate considered to be healthy. It is generally diagnosed based on size ratio, whether it is weight-for-height, weight-for-age, or height-for-age [7]. Weight-for-age is the most common ratio used to assess FTT. Weights are plotted according to age along a normal distribution curve, and neonates who fall below a certain cutoff score are considered to be failing to thrive. Professionals are not entirely unanimous in what this cutoff score should be, but most of the literature describes cutoff scores as below the third or...
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Brosbe, M.S. (2011). Failure to Thrive Syndrome. In: Goldstein, S., Naglieri, J.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Child Behavior and Development. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79061-9_1091
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79061-9_1091
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
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