It appears the bug reported here:
https://bugtracker.qtmsoft.com/view.php?id=39899 still exists in 4.5.3. I tested in the Demo with the Apparel category in both Light & Lucid 3-col and Ideal Comfort. When you add a featured product to a category, the Per Page selector (to select number of products appearing per page) disappears from the products table. Take away all featured products and the selector comes back.
I posted a solution in the Bugtracker entry linked to above. The issue is caused by confusion involving the variable, $total_items. I used the solution in my 4.5.2 store and it works.