What is the difference between stunted growth and shortness?

Growth rate: Stunted growth in medicine means that you have stoped growing or the velocity of your growth has diminished significantly over a period of time. Shortness is being in the lower percentiles of growth, but in most instances this is genetically determined.

Terminology: You can be short because your growth was impaired "stunted" by chronic illness (kidney disease, severe asthma). A male child of parents averaging 5'10 should reach over 6' but would be stunted at 5'8".You can also be shorter than average if your growth follows that pattern based on your genetics. A male child of two 5 ft parents could only expect to reach 5'2.5 inches.