Fig. 1

Trends in Z-scores before and after operation. Decline was seen in WAZ (− 2.7 ± 1.2, P = 0.04) at discharge. The most significant increase in all the three parameters of WAZ (− 0.8 ± 1.1, P = 0.04), HAZ (− 0.7 ± 1.3, P = 0.004), and WHZ (− 0.7 ± 1.3, P < 0.001) were observed at the end of the first year after surgery. The children presented a modest improvement in growth at the end of the second year, and the individual values could be considered within the normal range [(− 0.3 ± 0.9, P < 0.001), HAZ (− 0.2 ± 0.8, P = 0.001), and WHZ (0.03 ± 0.6, P < 0.001)]. There were no significant differences in the growth assessment data between the second year and third years