Providers can treat precocious puberty—marked by breast development before age 8 or testes growth before age 9—with hormonal suppressants, also called puberty blockers.
Puberty blockers are not recommended for children who have not started puberty. In most cases, youth aren't old enough to get medical treatment without a parent, guardian or other caregiver's permission. This is called medical consent.
Puberty blockers are only given to children who have started puberty. For a child who is assigned female at birth, Dr. Cartaya says puberty typically starts between the ages of 8 and 13. For a child who was assigned male at birth, the range is between 9 and 14.
Pubertal blockers are available as an injection or as an implant which is placed under the skin. These medications are effective for anyone regardless of gender. They can be started just after the early physical changes of puberty, but are sometimes used in older adolescents who have gone through puberty.
Under 18s. In Australia, trans young people may commence puberty blockers with permission from both carers or guardians, and their doctor. This is usually coordinated through a multi-disciplinary team, when available.
Puberty blockers (also called suppressors) are medications that delay the changes that come with sexual maturity. These medications can stop menstrual periods and the growth of breasts, or stop the deepening of the voice and the growth of facial hair.
Hormones are however available on the PBS and so the costs are usually between $6 and $40 per month depending on what you have been prescribed and whether you have a health care card. There are significant costs associated with surgery.
Puberty blockers delay the start of puberty, including development of secondary sex characteristics. Surprisingly, even though puberty blockers are widely used to help transgender adolescents go through gender transition, their impact on brain function during this critical stage of brain development is largely unknown.
The cost of puberty blockers is approximately $1,200 per month for injections and can range from $4,500 to $18,000 for an implant. The least expensive form of estrogen, a pill, can cost anywhere between $4 to $30 a month, according to Simons, while testosterone can be anywhere between $20 to $200 a vial.
Taking puberty blockers alone should not affect your ability to have a baby in the future. But if you also take estrogen or testosterone, this can affect it. If your body has ovaries that produce eggs, taking testosterone can affect the ability to produce them.
In both cases, puberty blockers will temporarily stop or limit: growth in height. development of sex drive. impulsive, rebellious, irritable or risk-taking behaviour.
Avoid exposure to hormones.
Keep your children away from medications, creams, and lotions that contain reproductive hormones like estrogen and testosterone. This is the best way to avoid early puberty, as it cannot be prevented in most cases.
The number of children who started on puberty-blockers or hormones totaled 17,683 over the five-year period, rising from 2,394 in 2017 to 5,063 in 2021, according to the analysis.
The actual spurt was then smaller and, moreover, puberty occurred earlier. In the category of children with lower BMI and later onset of puberty, the spurt was all the stronger. Those whose puberty was delayed also had several extra years to grow in, and quite simply ended up taller.
Doctors can prescribe estrogen or testosterone at gradually higher amounts to mimic the puberty of the female or male gender. The Endocrine Society recommends that kids start taking these hormones around age 16, but doctors will start them as early as 13 or 14.
Once it begins, it lasts about 2 to 5 years. But every child is different. And there's a wide range of what's normal. Your child may begin puberty a little earlier or later and finish sooner or later than their friends.
If you are referred to a GDC, the clinic will typically ask your GP to sign a shared care agreement. Then, if you are prescribed blockers and/or hormones, the GDC will write to your GP asking them to prescribe the hormones and blockers as required.
How Does Someone Get a Prescription for Puberty Blockers? Young people who want to start blockers must work with an endocrinologist or primary care doctor and a mental health professional, and must have documented proof of gender dysphoria or gender non-conformity that started or worsened at the onset of puberty.
Opponents of the use of puberty blockers in adolescents argue that gender identity is still fluctuating at this age and that blockers might interfere with gender identity formation and development of a free sexuality, as well as pointing to what they consider to be high rates of desistance after puberty.
The exact cause of gender dysphoria is unclear. Gender development is complex and there are still things that are not known or fully understood. Gender dysphoria is not related to sexual orientation. People with gender dysphoria may identify as straight, gay, lesbian or bisexual.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved puberty blockers in 1993. They were originally approved to temporarily stop puberty in children who were going through it too early. Using puberty blockers can make your bones weaker while you are taking them.
Transgender Australians are generally not eligible for sexual reassignment surgery until they turn 18 years old. A number of requirements must be satisfied in order for a transgender child to receive treatment.
Gender dysphoria history: Of the 55 TM patients included in our study, 41 (75%) reported feeling GD for the first time by age 7, and 53 (96%) reported first experiencing GD by age 13 (Table 2).
If you're 17 or younger, you need your parent or guardian's consent to get gender-affirming hormone replacement therapies (HRT) like testosterone and estrogen. However, some states are trying to pass laws blocking people under certain ages from getting HRT, even with parental consent.