Disorders of Sex Development - Health Encyclopedia - University of ...

Disorders of Sex Development
When a child's gender is not clear at birth, the child has atypical genitalia (ambiguous
genitalia). This means that the genitals don't seem to be clearly male or female.
Atypical genitalia can be a difficult experience for families.
How do the reproductive organs form?
You have 46 chromosomes in each cell of your body. These are grouped into 23 pairs.
The 23rd pair determines your gender. Females have two X chromosomes, and males have
one X and one Y chromosome.
The gender of a developing baby is determined at conception, when the embryo has either
two XX chromosomes, or an X and a Y chromosome. Around the 6 th week of the unborn baby's development, a gene on the Y chromosome of a developing
boy tells the fetal tissue that will form the sex organs to become the testes.
As the testes make testosterone, the penis, scrotum, and urethra form. Then during
the 7th to 8th month of the pregnancy, the testes descend into the scrotum.
Without the Y chromosome, the fetal tissue in a female baby that will form the sex
organs becomes the ovaries, uterus, and fallopian tubes.
Certain hormones also can affect the development of the sex organs. These hormones
are secreted during the early weeks of gestation.
How do disorders of sexual development happen?
Many genetic and environmental factors can affect the developing baby and lead to
atypical genitalia. Ambiguous genitalia may make it harder to determine a baby’s gender.
But very few newborns with this condition have genitals that are so ambiguous that
the healthcare provider can’t figure out the gender at birth.
These are far more common at birth:
A girl baby with too much of the male hormones (virilization) who seems to have a
small penis
A boy baby with an abnormally small penis that looks like a female clitoris. This
is either because the baby did not respond to male hormones or the baby did not make
male hormones.
What causes atypical genitalia?
Atypical genitalia can have a number of different causes. In many cases, healthcare
providers don’t know the cause. It seems to occur by chance.
Children who are born with atypical genitalia may fall into one of these groups.
True hermaphroditism
These children have:
Tissue that is related to both the ovaries and the testes
Internal sex organs for both genders
External genitalia that are partly ambiguous
Chromosomes that are either normal female or male, or a mixture (mosaic)
Gonadal dysgenesis
These children have:
An undeveloped sex organ
Internal sex organs that are often female
External genitals that may vary between normal female and normal male. Most are female.
Chromosomes that are normal, have only an X chromosome, or are a mixture (mosaic)
Pure gonadal dysgenesis
Pseudohermaphroditism in males
Children with this condition have questionable external genitalia. But they have only
one gender's internal sex organs. Male pseudohermaphrodite means the child has male
internal sex organs. Female pseudohermaphrodite means the child has female internal
sex organs.
The two primary causes of male pseudohermaphroditism are androgen insensitivity syndrome
and 5-alpha reductase deficiency.
Androgen insensitivity syndrome
These children have:
Normal male chromosomes
Normal female external genitalia
This is called androgen insensitivity syndrome because male babies don’t respond to
testosterone (androgens). This syndrome is inherited. It's caused by a problem with
a gene on the X chromosome. This problem is called X-linked recessive. Mothers who
carry the gene have a 1 in 2 chance of having a son with the syndrome. Daughters of
mothers who carry the gene have a 1 in 2 chance of being carriers of the gene.
5-alpha-reductase deficiency
Children with this condition have:
Normal male chromosomes
Genitals that are ambiguous
Children with this condition lack an enzyme (5-alpha reductase). This enzyme is needed
to help the male sex organs complete their development. This condition is inherited.
It's caused by an autosomal recessive gene. Autosomal recessive means that each parent
carries one copy of the gene and transmits the gene at the same time to the child.
Carrier parents have a 1 in 4 chance of having a child with this condition with each
pregnancy. It affects only male babies.
Pseudohermaphroditism in females
Female pseudohermaphroditism has a number of causes.
Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH)
Girl babies with this condition have male sex organs. The condition is caused by a
lack of a certain enzyme in the adrenal gland. It's the most common cause of atypical
genitalia in newborns.
The condition is inherited and passed on by an autosomal recessive gene. Autosomal
recessive means that each parent carries one copy of the gene and passes on the gene
to the child. Carrier parents have a 1 in 4 chance of having a child with this condition
with each pregnancy. Girl babies with the condition have atypical genitalia. Boy babies
don't.
In some cases, the mother of a child with this condition can be given medicines during
pregnancy to lessen the effects of the enzyme deficiency if the baby is female.
Another type of CAH is called salt-losing. This is very serious and often fatal. It
causes an electrolyte collapse in the newborn. Treatment is available if diagnosed
early. Boys and girls are equally affected.
Other, rarer enzyme problems can also cause CAH in either boy babies or girl babies.
Overproduction of male hormones before birth
This condition is often caused by a problem with the adrenal glands. High levels of
male hormones may also enter the placenta via the mother. This could be when the mother
is given progesterone to prevent a miscarriage. Or if she has a hormone-producing
tumor.
How is the gender determined in a child with atypical genitalia?
When a child's genitalia are ambiguous at birth, your child's healthcare provider
will ask about your health history. The health history will include your health during
pregnancy and a family history of any neonatal deaths or genital abnormalities. The
provider will also do a physical exam of your child's external genitalia.
Your child's provider will look for the underlying cause of the disorder. Your child
may need a newborn screening test for CAH, hormone studies, and a biopsy of the sex
organs.
To figure out the sex, your child's healthcare providers will look at the following:
A pelvic ultrasound to check for the female sex organs. Or the provider may use direct
cystoscopy or vaginoscopy.
A genitourethrogram to look at the urethra and vagina, if present
A chromosome study to help figure out the genetic sex of the child
Evaluation of gene on the Y chromosome that starts development of the male sex organs
How fertile a child may be who is a female pseudohermaphrodite
Size and possibility for growth of a penis present in a male pseudohermaphrodite
Ability of an internal sex organ to make the appropriate sex hormones for the gender
assigned to the child
Risk of future health conditions (such as cancer) that may develop in the original
sex organs later in life
The actions of male or female hormones on the fetal brain
Your opinion or preference
Treatment for atypical genitalia
Sometimes a child with atypical genitalia is at higher risk for tumors in the sex
organs. Treatment for atypical genitalia depends on the type of the disorder. But
it often includes surgery to remove or create sex organs appropriate for the child's
gender. Treatment may also include hormone therapy.
Most important, you and your family should be included early in the decision of assigning
the child's sex. Ask your healthcare provider about what is available for long-term
psychological support.
Long-term outlook for children born with atypical genitalia
Making a correct determination of gender is important for treatment. But it's also
important for the child's emotional well-being. Some children born with atypical genitalia
may have normal internal sex organs that allow them to live normal, fertile lives.
But others may have problems with fertility as adults.