Purpose: To assess conventional assumptions that underpin the percentage of mature height index as the simple ratio of screening height (numerator) divided by actual or predicted adult height (denominator). Methods: We examined cross-sectional data from 99 academy youth soccer players (chronological age range, 11.5 to 17.7 y) skeletally immature at the screening time and with adult height measurements available at follow-up. Results: The y-intercept value of −60 cm (95% confidence interval, −115 to −6 cm) from linear regression between screening height and adult height indicated the failure to meet the zero y-intercept assumption. The correlation coefficient between present height and adult height of .64 (95% confidence interval, .50 to .74) was not equal to the ratio of coefficient of variations between these variables (CV_x/CV_y = 0.46) suggesting Tanner’s special circumstance was violated. The non-zero correlation between the ratio and the denominator of .21 (95% confidence interval, .01 to .39) indicated that the percentage of mature height was biased low for players with generally shorter adult height, and vice versa. Conclusion: For the first time, we have demonstrated that the percentage of mature height is an inconsistent statistic for determining the extent of completed growth, leading to potentially biased inferences for research and applied purposes.

目的：评估支持成熟身高指数百分比的传统假设，即筛选身高（分子）除以实际或预测成人身高（分母）的简单比率。方法：我们检查了 99 名青训足球运动员（实际年龄范围，11.5 至 17.7 岁）的横断面数据，这些运动员在筛选时骨骼未成熟，并且在随访时有成年身高测量值。结果：筛选身高和成人身高之间的线性回归的y截距值为−60 cm（95% 置信区间，−115 至 −6 cm）表明未能满足零y-拦截假设。当前身高和成年身高之间的相关系数为 0.64（95% 置信区间，0.50 至 0.74）不等于这些变量之间的变异系数比 (CV x /CV _y = _0.46  )，这表明 Tanner 的特殊情况被侵犯了。该比率与分母 0.21（95% 置信区间，0.01 至 0.39）之间的非零相关性表明，成年身高普遍较矮的运动员的成熟身高百分比偏低，反之亦然。结论：我们首次证明，成熟身高的百分比对于确定已完成生长的程度而言是一个不一致的统计数据，导致对研究和应用目的的潜在推断有偏差。