Should we inject hormones to 'suppress' early puberty in children?

Many parents, panicking when their children show signs of early puberty such as menstruation, a male voice, early breast development, etc., have listened to information online and rushed to give their children hormone injections to suppress their early puberty.

Some children start puberty at age 2.

Recently at Children's Hospital 1 (Ho Chi Minh City), doctors have been continuously examining children with early puberty, including children as young as 2 and 3 years old who have vaginal bleeding and broken voices... At the Endocrine, Metabolism and Genetics Clinic of the National Children's Hospital (Hanoi), doctors said that almost every day there are children brought in by their families for early puberty examination, among them are children as young as 2 years old.

Dr. Bui Phuong Thao - Deputy Head of the Department of Endocrinology - Metabolism - Genetics (National Children's Hospital) said that currently, children (both male and female) begin puberty earlier than before (10-20 years ago). "Currently, for girls, signs of puberty usually start at 8 years old, and for boys at 9 years old. Thus, if signs of puberty appear before that age, it will be considered early puberty. On the contrary, if girls are after 13 years old and boys are after 14 years old and have not yet reached puberty, it will be considered late," said Dr. Thao.

Accordingly, signs of puberty in women often appear as breast development, pubic hair growth, psychological changes... while in men, it is often a broken voice, penis development, mustache, acne, pubic hair...

Experts say there are many reasons why children go through puberty early.

Adding more information, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Tien Dung, former Head of the Pediatrics Department of Bach Mai Hospital, said that in the past, usually "girls were thirteen, boys were sixteen" - meaning girls were 13 years old, boys were 16 years old when they entered puberty. Currently, due to many factors, the ability to have children and the reproductive age are longer than before.

"Children under 8 years old who have their period are considered early, but those 9-10 years old and older are normal, there is nothing to worry about" - Associate Professor Dung explained.

In addition, Dr. Bui Phuong Thao also pointed out the fact that many parents are often worried when they see the "outstanding" development of the mammary glands in girls and rush to take them to the doctor. However, according to Dr. Thao, even for children whose mammary glands develop before the age of 8, but when examined, the bone age is still normal, the uterus and pubic hair do not develop, then it is not considered early puberty.

Do not arbitrarily inject "growth-stopping" hormones into children before age without a doctor's prescription.

According to experts, it is completely reasonable for parents to worry about their children's early puberty. However, to know whether their children are experiencing early puberty, parents should take their children to a specialist at a hospital and not arbitrarily listen to information on the internet and then inject their children with hormones that will "stop growing" without a doctor's prescription.

When going for a medical examination, in cases of suspected precocious puberty, the children will have their bone age X-rayed and screened to see if there are any abnormalities in their bone age. If there are any, the child will have a blood test to see how high their sex hormones are. If it is pseudo-puberty due to diseases such as brain tumors or adrenal tumors, it must be treated immediately.

“For children with early puberty, it only affects their psychology, so parents should guide and teach them to understand clearly. In addition, it also affects physical development because growth hormones may not be produced in time, making children short because the ends of bones have closed early. If they go to the hospital, there will be drugs to intervene to slow down the puberty process, helping children grow to their full potential,” said Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Tien Dung.

Accordingly, for children under 6 years old who have reached puberty, the doctor will examine and prescribe hormone injections to suppress it. For cases 6-8 years old or over 8 years old, depending on each specific case, the doctor will have clear instructions. For cases under 6 years old with early puberty, hormone injections will help inhibit the development of secondary sexual characteristics such as breast development, pubic hair... This helps children focus on studying and avoid sexual abuse.

Children come to see a doctor for early puberty at the Endocrinology - Genetics - Metabolism Clinic of the National Children's Hospital. Photo from the internet

Dr. Bui Phuong Thao also added that in the long term, hormone injections will help children grow taller later. Depending on each case, the doctor will advise the family on the pros and cons of hormone injections.

“However, in reality, injecting hormones into children certainly has certain effects, the most typical being hormonal changes, secondly the children have to endure pain, and nextly they will age prematurely, not to mention the cost of treatment,” Thao emphasized.

Dr. Thao also warned that there are some cases where, although endocrinologists have instructed and advised that it is not necessary to inject puberty-suppressing hormones, families still arbitrarily go out to inject puberty-suppressing drugs in the hope that their children will grow taller later. Using puberty-suppressing hormones incorrectly will prevent children from going through normal puberty, affecting their psychological development.

According to SK&DS