Why Scotland Has Paused Puberty Blockers For Youngsters

Scotland’s solely gender clinic for younger individuals has paused prescribing puberty blockers for brand spanking new sufferers beneath 18 years outdated after the Nationwide Well being Service (NHS) in England banned kids from receiving the gender therapy final month.

Puberty blockers are used to delay puberty adjustments by stopping the physique from making intercourse hormones together with testosterone and estrogen. They are often prescribed to deal with gender dysphoria, the scientific time period for psychological misery that outcomes from an incongruence between one’s intercourse assigned at delivery and one’s gender id.

The Sandyford Clinic, primarily based in Glasgow, introduced that new sufferers aged 16 and 17 “will now not be prescribed gender affirming hormone therapy till they’re 18 years outdated,” the clinic wrote in an replace on its web site. Current sufferers at the moment receiving therapy is not going to be affected.

NHS Higher Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC), the nationwide well being department that oversees the clinic, stated in an announcement Thursday that it had contacted sufferers this week to advise that the prescription of puberty hormone suppressants and gender affirming hormones to younger individuals was paused following analysis findings of NHS England that had been revealed in March.

The impartial report made for NHS England, which was led by Dr. Hilary Cass, a advisor pediatrician and former President of the Royal School of Paediatrics and Youngster Well being, stated that there was inadequate long-term proof of what occurs to youth who’re prescribed puberty blockers. Consequently, the NHS banned kids in England from receiving puberty blockers, solely offering the prescription to youth participating in scientific analysis trials.

NHSGGC and NHS Lothian, one other space in Scotland, stated that “on scientific recommendation,” they’d deferred beginning new sufferers on these therapies in mid-March in response to the place taken by NHS England and whereas ready for the publication of the Cass Overview. After the evaluate was revealed and with the assist of the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland, Sir Gregor Smith, the well being boards formally paused therapy.

Current sufferers “will proceed on therapy with shut monitoring and assist, as they want to and as guided by particular person scientific assessments inside every service,” the native well being companies confirmed.

Dr. Emilia Crighton, NHSGGC Director of Public Well being, stated in an announcement that the Cass Overview findings are vital, and the following step is to “work with the Scottish Authorities and educational companions to generate proof that allows us to ship secure take care of our sufferers.” 

“We echo the views of Dr. Hilary Cass that toxicity round public debate is impacting the lives of younger individuals in search of the care of our service and doesn’t serve the groups working exhausting to care and assist them,” Crighton stated. 

Each the well being companies and the Sandyford Clinic stated in statements that they had been dedicated to supporting younger individuals in search of gender therapy. 

“We’re dedicated to offering the very best scientific take care of younger individuals accessing and understanding the misery that gender incongruence could cause,” the Sandyford Clinic stated. “Whereas this pause is in place, we are going to proceed to offer anybody who’s referred into the Younger Folks Gender Service the psychological assist that they require whereas we evaluate the pathways according to the findings.” 

TIME has reached out to NHSGGC and the Sandyford Clinic for remark and additional info.