The evaluation of an infant who has a failure to thrive begins with a history and physical examination.

Physical findings in infants with failure to thrive include:

• Lower than normal weight
• Lower than normal height

Tests are usually required in order to investigate causes for failure to thrive.

Tests that may be used to evaluate failure to thrive include:

• Complete blood count
• Urinalysis
• Urine cultures
• Kidney profile
• X-rays may be done of the entire skeleton (skeletal survey) to exclude the possibility of injury or abuse.