Puberty and Adolescence Flashcards
What are the 3 stages of adolesence?
Early adolescence: 11-13 years
Middle adolescence: 14-17 years
Late adolescence: 18-21 years
Define puberty
How long is this process usually?
What is it inititated by?
Biological changes of adolescence
Most adolescents complete puberty within 3-5 years
Initiated by the beginning of pulsatile release of gonadotrophic releasing hormone from the hypothalamus, which stimulates LH and FSH release from the anterior pituitary which stimulates testosterone, oestrogen and progesterone production.
What occurs in the adolescent growth spurt?
When does the growth spurt usually begin for girls and boys?
Rapid increase in height and weight
Long bone growth
Usually starts at around age 10 in girls, age 12 in boys; ends around age 18-19 in girls, 20-22 years in boys.
How does bone mineral mass differ between adolescent boys and girls?
What causes the increase in bone mineral mass?
Bone mineral mass the same between males and females until sexual maturation:
- Increases more in boys due to the fact that their period of growth is longer than girls’.
Bone mineral mass increases due to increase in bone size with little change in density.
What is the significance of bone tissue accummulate by girls between the ages of 11 and 13?
Equals that lost in the 30 years post-menopause
What occurs during female puberty?
Breasts develop
Pubic and axillary hair begins to grow
Growth spurt
Pelvis widens
Increased fat deposited in subcutaneous tissue, especially around hips and breasts
What occurs in Tanner’s stage 2 of female puberty?
Stage 2:
- Breast bud forms
- Areola enlarges
- Papilla and areola elevate as small mound
- Sparse, straight, downy, slightly pigmented hair grows along labia.
What occurs in Tanner’s stage 3 of female puberty?
Stage 3:
- Continued enlargement of breast bud elevates papilla
- Areola enlarges
- No breast contours
- More pigmented, curly, sparse distribution of pubic hair across entire pubis
What occurs in Tanner’s stage 4 of female puberty?
Stage 4:
- Areola and papilla separate from breast contour to form secondary mound
- Denser pubic hair, adult distrubution but less abundant. Restricted to pubis only (extends to thighs in stage 5)
What occurs during male puberty?
- Earliest sign is growth of the testicle
- Increase in height and weight
- Increase in bone and muscle mass
- Larynx enlarges and voice deepens and breaks
- Hair grows on face, axillae, pubis, chest and abdomen
- Scrotum, penis and prostate gland increase in size
- Seminiferous tubules mature and spermatozoa are produced
- Spermarche- onset of sperm emissions
What occurs in Tanner’s stage 2 of male puberty?
- Enlargement of testes (> or = 4ml) and reddening of scrotum
- Few darker hairs at base of penis
What occurs in Tanner’s stage 3 of male puberty?
- Enlargement of penis length
- Testes further enlarge to 6-10ml
- Curly pigmented hairs across pubis
What occurs in Tanner’s stage 4 of male puberty?
- Broadening of glans penis
- Testes grow to 10-15 ml
- Small adult configuration of pubic hair, no growth on thighs
What is precocious puberty?
Is it most common amongst girls or boys?
Early onset of puberty:
- Before 8 years in girls
- Before 9.5 years in boys
5x more common in girls
What occurs in adolescent brain development?
What effects does this cause?
Just before puberty (girls aged 11) boys (12 yrs) there is exuberant synaptogenesis. Then, during early puberty there is synaptic pruning, whereby 3% of grey matter in the brain is lost; this occurs especially in the prefrontal cortex. This has the effect of changes in:
- Impulse management
- Executive functioning
- Personality
- Reward perception
- Decision making
- Social decision making
The limbic system which is responsible for percieving reward from risk increases in activity in early adolescence, which can be responsible for increased risk taking behaviour.
Cognitive ignition takes place:
- Abstract thinking
- Meta-cognition
- Logical thought processes
- Advanced reasoning
