De Greulich&Pyle-atlas voor het bepalen van de skeletleeftijd nog steeds bruikbaar in een hedendaagse Nederlandse blanke populatie

Objective. To validate the use of the Greulich&Pyle atlas for determining skeletal age in a healthy contemporary Dutch white population. Design. Diagnostic evaluation study. Methods. In 278 Dutch white boys (mean age: 12.6 years; range: 5.0-19.5), and 294 Dutch white girls (mean age: 12.2 years; range: 5.2-19.9) radiographs of the left hand were scored by two investigators according to the Greulich&Pyle atlas. Participants and their parents or guardians gave informed consent. Results. The intra-observer coefficient of variation of duplicate assessment of skeletal age for the investigators was 2.4% and 1.5% respectively. There were no significant systematic differences between both observers with respect to variability and the agreement between the two was good. There was a strong significant correlation between skeletal and calendar age: r_girls = 0.974 and r_boys = 0-979 (both p < 0.001). On average calendar age slightly preceded skeletal age by 1.7 months in girls and 3.3 months in boys (both p < 0.001). Conclusion. The Greulich&Pyle atlas still appears to be applicable in a contemporary Dutch white population.