Final height of 75 adults with Turner's syndrome (45 Israeli, 30 Italian), never treated with GH, was examined to see if a relationship with karyotype patterns and parental height existed. Patients were divided into five groups according to their chromosome pattern, as follows: group A = 45, X karyotype (34 patients); group B = mosaicism (11 with karyotype 45,X/46,XX and 7 with karyotype 45,X/46,XY); group C = deletion of all or part of Xp (19 patients); subgroup C1 = 6 with complete deletion of Xp; subgroup C2 = 9 with mosaicism 45,X/46,X,i(Xq); subgroup C3 = 4 with 45,X/46,X,ring(X); group D = deletion of Xq (4 patients); pure gonadal dysgenesis (PGD) group = 9 patients with pure 46,XX gonadal dysgenesis. No statistical difference was noted between the mean height of the two national populations studied (Italian 142.2 +/- 5.7 and Israeli 143.0 +/- 7.2 cm). The mean heights of group D (148.9 cm; range 147-166.2) and the PGD group (156.0 cm; 141-171.5) were found to be significantly higher than those observed in groups A, B and C (p < 0.03, p < 0.02 and p < 0.02, respectively), even though gonadal distinction existed in all five groups. Subgroup C1, where a deletion of the entire Xp segment [46,X,i(Xq)] was present, was found to be the shortest group (median height 134.5; range 131.9-138 cm).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)