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Most transgender adolescents go through the same steps during the medical transition from one gender to another. They're given a drug that blocks or pauses puberty. Then, if they and their doctors are sure they want to continue, they are given sex hormones that will resume puberty and give them more male or more female bodies.
This has been going on for just under a decade. "But what are the benefits and adverse effects of starting young kids on these powerful [puberty blockers] and then hormones? We don't know," says Dr. Frederic Ettner, a physician who has worked with transgender patients for over two decades. Since hormone treatment began for transgender youth, there's been a paucity of data on what happens to them in the long term.
What is known about transgender youth health is pretty dismal. A 2007 paper showed that out of a survey of 55 transgender youth, about a quarter had attempted suicide at least once. Drug abuse and depression are common as are high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. The lack of information also makes it hard for doctors and patients to decide on treatment options.
Many physicians who treat trans youth believe that not giving hormone treatment is unethical, because of the strains of going through their biologically programmed puberty. "There are very compelling data showing very high risk of depression, suicide ideation, suicide attempts, and other risk taking behavior," says Dr. Stephen Rosenthal, a pediatric endocrinologist at the University of California San Francisco Benioff Children's Hospital.
This has been going on for just under a decade. "But what are the benefits and adverse effects of starting young kids on these powerful [puberty blockers] and then hormones? We don't know," says Dr. Frederic Ettner, a physician who has worked with transgender patients for over two decades. Since hormone treatment began for transgender youth, there's been a paucity of data on what happens to them in the long term.
What is known about transgender youth health is pretty dismal. A 2007 paper showed that out of a survey of 55 transgender youth, about a quarter had attempted suicide at least once. Drug abuse and depression are common as are high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. The lack of information also makes it hard for doctors and patients to decide on treatment options.
Many physicians who treat trans youth believe that not giving hormone treatment is unethical, because of the strains of going through their biologically programmed puberty. "There are very compelling data showing very high risk of depression, suicide ideation, suicide attempts, and other risk taking behavior," says Dr. Stephen Rosenthal, a pediatric endocrinologist at the University of California San Francisco Benioff Children's Hospital.
Health Effects Of Transitioning In Teen Years Remain Unknown
Though endocrinologists have been treating trans youths with hormones for about a decade, it's not clear how starting that process in adolescence affects health. A study aims to find out.
www.npr.org
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