Version July 2025
| Pain factors | Inclusion criteria | Exclusion criteria |
| Nature of pain | Intermittent, some pain-free days and nights | Persistent, increasing intensity |
| Unilateral or bilateral | Bilateral | Unilateral |
| Location of pain | Anterior thigh, calf, behind knee – in muscles | Joint pain (exclusive) |
| Onset of pain | Late afternoon, evening, nocturnal | Pain still present next morning |
| Duration | At least 3 months | |
| Physical examination | Normal* | Swelling, erythema, tenderness; local trauma or infection; reduced joint range of motion; limping |
| Laboratory tests | Normal | Objective findings – inflammatory indices, imaging abnormalities (radiographs, bone scan, MRI) |
| Limitation of activity | None | Reduced physical activity |
MRI: magnetic resonance imaging.
* Hypermobility, pes planus, genu valgus do not exclude growing pains.