Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
203,203 studies31 sourcesUpdated 36 min ago
Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica

Tanner stages of thelarche in relation to anthropometric and ultrasound predictors in premenarcheal girls

  • Andrius Cekuolis1
  • Zivile Sabonyte‐Balsaitiene1
  • Eugenijus Jasiunas2
  • Rytis Marozas3
  • Janina Tutkuviene4
  • Diana Ramasauskaite1
  • Zana Bumbuliene1
4 affiliations
  1. 1Clinic of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Institute of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Vilnius University Vilnius Lithuania
  2. 2Translational Health Research, Faculty of Medicine Vilnius University Vilnius Lithuania
  3. 3Section of Ultrasound, Department of Pediatric Radiology, Centre of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine Vilnius University Hospital Santaros Klinikos Vilnius Lithuania
  4. 4Department of Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology, Faculty of Medicine Vilnius University Vilnius Lithuania
Read full textDOICite

Abstract

Introduction: Thelarche is often the first sign of puberty initiation in girls. Although Tanner staging is widely used, it remains subjective. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between Tanner breast staging and anthropometric, breast ultrasound, and pelvic ultrasound parameters in healthy premenarcheal girls.

Material and Methods: A cross‐sectional study was conducted at Vilnius University Hospital Santaros Clinics (September 2023–July 2025), including 251 premenarcheal girls aged 7–13 years. Breast development was staged using Tanner criteria. Anthropometric and ultrasound parameters were recorded, including body circumferences, skinfolds, uterine and ovarian dimensions, and breast tissue thickness. Logistic regression identified predictors of pubertal stage, and model performance was evaluated using ROC analysis.

Results: A total of 251 girls (mean age 10.5 ± 1.8 years) were included. Thelarche (Tanner B2) occurred at a mean age of 10.7 years. Anthropometric parameters varied significantly across Tanner stages, with body circumferences demonstrating very large effect sizes, whereas skinfold thickness showed only medium effects. Pelvic ultrasound parameters exhibited even stronger associations with Tanner staging. In multivariable analysis, uterine body length (OR = 1.12 per mm, p = 0.004), uterine thickness (OR = 1.23 per mm, p = 0.003), left ovarian follicle count (OR = 1.39, p = 0.035), and right ovarian length (OR = 1.11, p = 0.013) independently predicted Tanner B2–B3 status, while a higher number of right ovarian follicles was inversely associated (OR = 0.72, p = 0.036). The logistic model accurately distinguished Tanner B2–B3 from B1, demonstrating excellent discriminatory ability (AUC = 0.924, 95% CI 0.889–0.959).

Conclusions: Anthropometric and particularly pelvic ultrasound parameters are strong indicators of thelarche and early pubertal maturation. Our findings support the use of pelvic ultrasound as an objective, non‐invasive adjunct to Tanner staging, especially in situations where visual breast assessment may be uncertain.

Related

  1. Prevalence and predictors of undernutrition among preschool children (3 to 5 years) in Nigerian semi-urban community: conventional anthropometric indices versus composite index of anthropometric failure approach.
    Ifeoma Christiana Afiaenyi, Florence Ifeyinwa Nwoga
    BMC nutritionPeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDFull textNutritionEurope PMCDOAJ
  2. Physical activity and incident hypertension in relation to anthropometric and liver-related indices during 5-year follow-up in the Azar Cohort Study
    Rouhollah Haghshenas, Mohammad Hossein Somi, Elnaz Faramarzi
    Scientific ReportsPeer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Full textCardiovascular medicineCrossref
  3. Sex-specific predictors of lower-limb strength: an interpretable machine learning analysis of anthropometric and body composition measures
    Jae-Hwan Kang, Young-Ju Jeon, Ji-Ho So +2
    Scientific ReportsPeer-reviewedCC BYFull textPhysiologyDOAJ
  4. A predictive model for adverse events in left heart failure patients based on cardiopulmonary ultrasound parameters and clinical predictors
    Yanfen Zhong, Ji Wu, Hongyu Zheng
    Journal of thoracic diseasePeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDFull textGeneral medicineEurope PMC
  5. Trajectories of kinesiophobia over the first six months after cardiac pacemaker or defibrillator implantation: clinical, psychological, and rehabilitation predictors and their relation to functional capacity.
    Chunli Zhang, Xiaoping Guo
    Frontiers in cardiovascular medicinePeer-reviewedCC BYFull textCardiovascular medicineEurope PMCCrossref

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{cekuolis2026tanner,
  title = {{Tanner stages of thelarche in relation to anthropometric and ultrasound predictors in premenarcheal girls}},
  author = {Andrius Cekuolis and Zivile Sabonyte‐Balsaitiene and Eugenijus Jasiunas and Rytis Marozas and Janina Tutkuviene and Diana Ramasauskaite and Zana Bumbuliene},
  journal = {Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica},
  year = {2026},
  month = sep,
  doi = {10.1111/aogs.70341},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.70341},
  note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Tanner stages of thelarche in relation to anthropometric and ultrasound predictors in premenarcheal girls
AU  - Andrius Cekuolis
AU  - Zivile Sabonyte‐Balsaitiene
AU  - Eugenijus Jasiunas
AU  - Rytis Marozas
AU  - Janina Tutkuviene
AU  - Diana Ramasauskaite
AU  - Zana Bumbuliene
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/07
JO  - Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica
DO  - 10.1111/aogs.70341
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.70341
AB  - Introduction: Thelarche is often the first sign of puberty initiation in girls. Although Tanner staging is widely used, it remains subjective. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between Tanner breast staging and anthropometric, breast ultrasound, and pelvic ultrasound parameters in healthy premenarcheal girls.  Material and Methods: A cross‐sectional study was conducted at Vilnius University Hospital Santaros Clinics (September 2023–July 2025), including 251 premenarcheal girls aged 7–13 years. Breast development was staged using Tanner criteria. Anthropometric and ultrasound parameters were recorded, including body circumferences, skinfolds, uterine and ovarian dimensions, and breast tissue thickness. Logistic regression identified predictors of pubertal stage, and model performance was evaluated using ROC analysis.  Results: A total of 251 girls (mean age 10.5 ± 1.8 years) were included. Thelarche (Tanner B2) occurred at a mean age of 10.7 years. Anthropometric parameters varied significantly across Tanner stages, with body circumferences demonstrating very large effect sizes, whereas skinfold thickness showed only medium effects. Pelvic ultrasound parameters exhibited even stronger associations with Tanner staging. In multivariable analysis, uterine body length (OR = 1.12 per mm, p = 0.004), uterine thickness (OR = 1.23 per mm, p = 0.003), left ovarian follicle count (OR = 1.39, p = 0.035), and right ovarian length (OR = 1.11, p = 0.013) independently predicted Tanner B2–B3 status, while a higher number of right ovarian follicles was inversely associated (OR = 0.72, p = 0.036). The logistic model accurately distinguished Tanner B2–B3 from B1, demonstrating excellent discriminatory ability (AUC = 0.924, 95% CI 0.889–0.959).  Conclusions: Anthropometric and particularly pelvic ultrasound parameters are strong indicators of thelarche and early pubertal maturation. Our findings support the use of pelvic ultrasound as an objective, non‐invasive adjunct to Tanner staging, especially in situations where visual breast assessment may be uncertain.
SN  - 0001-6349
SN  - 1600-0412
ER  -