children s health issues
Delayed Puberty
Treatment of Delayed Puberty
Treatment of cause Hormone therapy The treatment for delayed puberty depends on its cause. When an underlying disorder is the cause of delayed puberty, puberty usually proceeds once the disorder has been treated. An adolescent who is naturally late in developing needs no treatment, but if the adolescent is severely stressed by delayed or absent development, some doctors may give supplemental sex hormones to begin the process sooner. This treatment is much more common among boys. Children with delayed puberty often need additional support from parents, family members, and friends to ensure they have a healthy body image and self-esteem. Ifboysshow no sign of puberty by age 13 or 14, they may be given a 4- to 6-month course oftestosteroneinjections once a month. At low doses,testosteronestarts puberty, causes the development of some masculine characteristics (virilization), and does not prevent adolescents from reaching their adult height potential. Ingirls,low doses ofestrogenmay be started with pills or skin patches. This estrogen therapy may be used to induce puberty or, in some cases, such as in girls who have Turner syndrome, may be needed for long-term hormone replacement. Genetic disorders cannot be cured, but hormone therapy may help sex characteristics develop. Surgery may be needed to remove pituitary tumors, and these children are then at risk of Hypopituitarism (a deficiency of one or more pituitary hormones). 