J Korean Med Sci.  2016 Oct;31(10):1631-1634. 10.3346/jkms.2016.31.10.1631.

The Change of Stretched Penile Length and Anthropometric Data in Korean Children Aged 0-14 Years: Comparative Study of Last 25 Years

• Park S
• Chung JM
• Kang DI
• Ryu DS
• Cho WY
• Lee SD

• KMID: 2468255
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2016.31.10.1631

Abstract

There has been a great improvement in height and weight of Korean children owing to economic development over the last 25 years. This study aimed to evaluate the penile length of Korean children today and to compare it with a previous Korean study reported in 1987. The cross-sectional study was conducted with 909 Korean boys aged 0-14 years who had been brought to outpatient clinics of five tertiary hospitals (Busan, Ulsan, and Changwon) between September 2013 and May 2015. The stretched penile length (SPL) was measured and the testicular size was measured using orchidometry (mL). Student's t-test or Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the result of our study and the study reported in 1987. SPL of Korean children gradually increased from 4.1 ± 0.8 cm at 0-1 year old to 9.6 ± 3.0 cm at 13-14 years old, the most rapidly during the age of 13. While body weight and testicular size significantly increased from 1987 in most of age groups, there were no significant changes in SPL although there was in some age groups. Height decreased in the infants < 1 year old and increased in the children > 6 years old. With the great economic development over the last quarter century in Korea, height, body weight, and testicular size of children significantly increased but there was no significant change in SPL except penile growth pattern.

Keyword

Penis; Length; Child; Anthropometry; Change

MeSH Terms

Adolescent
Asian Continental Ancestry Group
Body Weight
Child
Child, Preschool
Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Infant
Infant, Newborn
Male
Penis/*physiology
Reference Values
Republic of Korea
Tertiary Care Centers

Figure

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  Fig. 1 Age-related changes of stretched penile length and comparison with a previous study (1987).

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  Fig. 2 Age-related changes of height (A), body weight (B) and testicular sizes (C) and comparison with a previous study (1987).

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