Puberty Flashcards
First sign of puberty in males
Testicular growth ~12 years
First sign of puberty in females
Breast development ~11.5 years
Maximum height spurt in males
14
Maximum height spurt in females
12
Age of menarche
11-15
Tanner staging of breast development
B1 - Prepubertal
B2 - Breast bud
B3 - Juvenile with smooth contour
B4 - Areola and papilla project above breast
B5 - Adult
Tanner staging of male genital development
G1 - Prepubertal, testicular volume <1.5ml
G2 - Penis grows in length only, testicular volume 1.5-6ml
G3 - Penis grows further in length and circumference, testicular volume 6-12ml
G4 - Development of glans penis, darkening of scrotal skin, testicular volume 12-20ml
G5 - Adult genitalia, testicular volume >20ml
Tanner staging of pubic hair development
PH1 - Pre-adolescent no sexual hair
PH2 - Sparse, pigmented, long, straight, mainly along labia or at base of penis
PH3 - Dark, coarser, curlier
PH4 - Filling out towards adult distribution
PH5 - Adult in quantity and type with spread to medial thighs in males
Define ‘precocious puberty’
Development of secondary sexual characteristics before 8 years in females and 9 years in males
Classification of precocious puberty
Gonadotrophin dependent (‘central’, ‘true’)
Gonadotrophin independent (‘pseudo’, ‘false’)
Cause & hormone levels in gonadotrophin dependent precocious puberty
Due to premature activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis
FSH & LH raised
Cause & hormone levels in gonadotrophin independent precocious puberty
Gonadotrophin independent (‘pseudo’, ‘false’)
Due to excess sex hormones
FSH & LH low
Define ‘delayed puberty’
No pubertal development by the age of 15 in boys and 14 in girls
Most common cause of delayed puberty
Constitutional delay of growth and puberty - ‘late bloomers’
Eventually reach full normal height & development
Causes of delayed puberty with short stature
Turner’s syndrome
Prader-Willi syndrome
Noonan’s syndrome
