Catch-up growth following long-term administration of essential fatty acids in a girl with growth failure and essential fatty acid deficiency

A 10-year-old girl with benign recurrent intrahepatic cholestasis, malabsorption of fat, growth failure (growth rate 1.2 cm/year) and deficiency of essential fatty acids (EFA) is described. Long-term administration of EFA, mainly by cutaneous application of sunflower seed oil, was followed by a remarkable catch-up growth (23.8 cm in 3.5 years) while the serum values for EFA improved. Since no other changes in the therapeutic regimen occurred and other causes of growth failure and subsequent acceleration of growth could be ruled out, it is highly probable that the observed increase in growth rate was the result of the administration of EFA