-
Journal of Research on Adolescence :... Mar 2019Youth programs and policies provide opportunities for institutions and societies to support healthy adolescent development. Puberty education programs are universally... (Review)
Review
Youth programs and policies provide opportunities for institutions and societies to support healthy adolescent development. Puberty education programs are universally important, as they provide crucial knowledge and skills to help youth and their caregivers navigate the physical, emotional, and interpersonal changes of puberty with positive outcomes. However, few puberty programs have been rigorously evaluated, resulting in a lack of evidence-based knowledge and practice in this area. This review examines the status of research on puberty education and related programs and draws on the broader intervention literature and recent research findings on adolescence to identify program features that might improve program effectiveness. Implications for policy are also discussed. The need for rigorous program evaluation is emphasized throughout.
Topics: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Cross-Cultural Comparison; Female; Global Health; Health Promotion; Humans; Male; Policy Making; Program Evaluation; Puberty; Reproductive Health; Sex Education; Sexual Behavior; Sexual Maturation; Student Health Services; Students
PubMed: 30869838
DOI: 10.1111/jora.12452 -
Puberty Timing and Sex-Specific Trajectories of Systolic Blood Pressure: a Prospective Cohort Study.Hypertension (Dallas, Tex. : 1979) Aug 2022Sex differences in systolic blood pressure (SBP) emerge during adolescence but the role of puberty is not well understood. We examined sex-specific changes in SBP...
BACKGROUND
Sex differences in systolic blood pressure (SBP) emerge during adolescence but the role of puberty is not well understood. We examined sex-specific changes in SBP preceding and following puberty and examined the impact of puberty timing on SBP trajectories in females and males.
METHODS
Trajectories of SBP before and after puberty and by timing of puberty in females and males in a contemporary birth cohort study were analyzed. Repeated measures of height from age 5 to 20 years were used to identify puberty timing (age at peak height velocity). SBP was measured on ten occasions from 3 to 24 years (N participants, 4062; repeated SBP measures, 29 172). Analyses were performed using linear spline multilevel models based on time before and after puberty and were adjusted for parental factors and early childhood factors.
RESULTS
Mean age at peak height velocity was 11.7 years (SD, 0.8) for females and 13.6 years (SD, 0.9) for males. Males had faster rates of increase in SBP before puberty leading to 10.19 mm Hg (95% CI, 6.80-13.57) higher mean SBP at puberty which remained similar at 24 years (mean difference, 11.43 mm Hg [95% CI, 7.22-15.63]). Puberty timing was associated with small transient differences in SBP trajectories postpuberty in both sexes and small differences at 24 years in females only.
CONCLUSIONS
A large proportion of the higher SBP observed in males compared with females in early adulthood is accrued before puberty. Interventions targeting puberty timing are unlikely to influence SBP in early adulthood.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Blood Pressure; Body Height; Child; Child, Preschool; Cohort Studies; Female; Humans; Male; Prospective Studies; Puberty; Risk Factors; Young Adult
PubMed: 35587023
DOI: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.121.18531 -
Environmental Health and Preventive... Jul 2018Mothers who smoke during pregnancy or while their children are small were common in some populations. Epidemiological studies have tried to detect the effect of prenatal... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
OBJECTIVES
Mothers who smoke during pregnancy or while their children are small were common in some populations. Epidemiological studies have tried to detect the effect of prenatal tobacco smoke (PTS), and childhood environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) on puberty timing have not shown a consensus results. We aimed to examine current evidence and estimate the associations between PTS or/and ETS and puberty timing.
METHODS
Seven databases were searched from inception to May 2017. All the cohort studies examining the associations between PTS and/or ETS and puberty timing were identified. Two reviewers independently screened all studies, evaluated the quality of eligible studies, and extracted the data. The quality assessment of the eligible cohort studies was based on the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Risk ratio (RR), standard mean difference (SMD), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated and pooled by CMA (Version 2.0, Biostat, Inc., USA).
RESULTS
Compared with controls, girls with PTS and ETS exposure have an earlier age at menarche (SMD - 0.087, 95% CI 0.174 to - 0.000), and similar results were found in both PTS subgroup (SMD - 0.097, 95% CI - 0.192 to - 0.002) and prospective cohort subgroup (SMD - 0.171, 95% CI - 0.253 to - 0.090). And number of boys with early voice break in PTS group was significantly increasing than non-exposed boys (RR 1.34, 95% CI 1.29 to 1.40).
CONCLUSIONS
PTS exposure possibly decrease age of menarche of girls, and studies on boys were urgent needed. Appropriate and comprehensive outcome measures using unified criteria to classify puberty should be reported in future studies.
Topics: Aging; Environmental Exposure; Female; Humans; Menarche; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Puberty; Smoking; Tobacco Smoke Pollution
PubMed: 30021511
DOI: 10.1186/s12199-018-0722-3 -
Indian Pediatrics Nov 2023Linear growth, onset of and progress through puberty are all adversely affected by chronic diseases during childhood and adolescence. Peak bone mass accrual by the end...
Linear growth, onset of and progress through puberty are all adversely affected by chronic diseases during childhood and adolescence. Peak bone mass accrual by the end of adolescence determines adult fracture risk. Given that half of total lifetime bone mass is accrued during the pubertal years under the influence of sex hormones, normal timing of pubertal onset, with attention to completion of feminization for girls or virilization in boys is integral to achievement of optimal bone mass, which in turn will reduce adult fracture risk for those who have a chronic relapsing, remitting or persistent illness.
Topics: Male; Adult; Adolescent; Female; Humans; Bone Density; Bone and Bones; Puberty; Chronic Disease; Recurrence
PubMed: 37260064
DOI: No ID Found -
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology... Nov 2023The melanocortin 3 receptor (MC3R) has recently emerged as a critical regulator of pubertal timing, linear growth, and the acquisition of lean mass in humans and mice....
CONTEXT
The melanocortin 3 receptor (MC3R) has recently emerged as a critical regulator of pubertal timing, linear growth, and the acquisition of lean mass in humans and mice. In population-based studies, heterozygous carriers of deleterious variants in MC3R report a later onset of puberty than noncarriers. However, the frequency of such variants in patients who present with clinical disorders of pubertal development is currently unknown.
OBJECTIVE
This work aimed to determine whether deleterious MC3R variants are more frequently found in patients clinically presenting with constitutional delay of growth and puberty (CDGP) or normosmic idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (nIHH).
METHODS
We examined the sequence of MC3R in 362 adolescents with a clinical diagnosis of CDGP and 657 patients with nIHH, experimentally characterized the signaling properties of all nonsynonymous variants found and compared their frequency to that in 5774 controls from a population-based cohort. Additionally, we established the relative frequency of predicted deleterious variants in individuals with self-reported delayed vs normally timed menarche/voice-breaking in the UK Biobank cohort.
RESULTS
MC3R loss-of-function variants were infrequent but overrepresented in patients with CDGP (8/362 [2.2%]; OR = 4.17; P = .001). There was no strong evidence of overrepresentation in patients with nIHH (4/657 [0.6%]; OR = 1.15; P = .779). In 246 328 women from the UK Biobank, predicted deleterious variants were more frequently found in those self-reporting delayed (aged ≥16 years) vs normal age at menarche (OR = 1.66; P = 3.90E-07).
CONCLUSION
We have found evidence that functionally damaging variants in MC3R are overrepresented in individuals with CDGP but are not a common cause of this phenotype.
Topics: Adolescent; Humans; Female; Animals; Mice; Receptor, Melanocortin, Type 3; Prevalence; Hypogonadism; Puberty, Delayed; Puberty; Growth Disorders
PubMed: 37339320
DOI: 10.1210/clinem/dgad373 -
American Journal of Medical Genetics.... Jun 2020Klinefelter syndrome is highly underdiagnosed and diagnosis is often delayed. With the introduction of non-invasive prenatal screening, the diagnostic pattern will... (Review)
Review
Klinefelter syndrome is highly underdiagnosed and diagnosis is often delayed. With the introduction of non-invasive prenatal screening, the diagnostic pattern will require an updated description of the clinical and biochemical presentation of infants with Klinefelter syndrome. In the first months of life, the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG)-axis is transiently activated in healthy males during the so-called minipuberty. This period represents a "window of opportunity" for evaluation of the HPG-axis before puberty and without stimulation tests. Infants with Klinefelter syndrome present with a hormonal surge during the minipuberty. However, only a limited number of studies exist, and the results are contradictory. Further studies are needed to clarify whether infants with Klinefelter syndrome present with impaired testosterone production during the minipuberty. The aim of this review is to describe the clinical and biochemical characteristics of the neonate and infant with Klinefelter syndrome with special focus on the minipuberty and to update the clinical recommendations for Klinefelter syndrome during infancy.
Topics: Humans; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System; Infant, Newborn; Klinefelter Syndrome; Male; Noninvasive Prenatal Testing; Puberty
PubMed: 32476267
DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.c.31794 -
Seminars in Reproductive Medicine Jul 2019Puberty is a critical period of development regulated by genetic, nutritional, and environmental factors. The role of () in the regulation of pubertal timing was... (Review)
Review
Puberty is a critical period of development regulated by genetic, nutritional, and environmental factors. The role of () in the regulation of pubertal timing was revealed when loss-of-function mutations were identified in patients with central precocious puberty (CPP). To date, mutations are the most common known genetic cause of CPP. MKRN3 is a member of the makorin family of ubiquitin ligases, together with MKRN1 and MKRN2. The genes have been identified in both vertebrates and invertebrates and show high evolutionary conservation of their gene and protein structures. While the existence of Mkrn orthologues in a wide spectrum of species suggests a vital cellular role of the makorins, their role in puberty initiation and endocrine functions is just beginning to be investigated. In this review, we discuss recent studies that have shown the involvement of Mkrn3 and other makorins in the regulation of pubertal development and other endocrine functions, including metabolism and fertility, as well as their underlying mechanisms of action.
Topics: Animals; Conserved Sequence; Endocrine System; Evolution, Molecular; Humans; Puberty; Ribonucleoproteins; Sexual Maturation; Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
PubMed: 31972861
DOI: 10.1055/s-0039-3400965 -
Journal of Research on Adolescence :... Mar 2019Decades of puberty research have yielded key scientific discoveries. Building on the field's rich history, we highlight four understudied populations: youth of color,... (Review)
Review
Decades of puberty research have yielded key scientific discoveries. Building on the field's rich history, we highlight four understudied populations: youth of color, boys, sexual minority youth, and gender minority youth. We explore why scientific study has been slow to evolve in these groups and propose paths forward for exciting new work. For ethnically racially diverse youth, we discuss the need to incorporate culture and context. For boys, we highlight methodological issues and challenges of mapping existing conceptual models onto boys. For sexual and gender minority youth, we discuss unique challenges during puberty and suggest ways to better capture their experiences. With an eye toward a new era, we make recommendations for next steps and underscore the importance of transdisciplinary research.
Topics: Adolescent; Adolescent Health; Community-Based Participatory Research; Cultural Competency; Ethnicity; Female; Humans; Male; Psychology, Adolescent; Puberty; Sexual Maturation; Sexual and Gender Minorities
PubMed: 30869847
DOI: 10.1111/jora.12402 -
Neuroendocrinology 2021Traditionally sex hormones have been associated with reproductive and developmental processes only. Since the 1950s we know that hormones can have organizational effects... (Review)
Review
Traditionally sex hormones have been associated with reproductive and developmental processes only. Since the 1950s we know that hormones can have organizational effects on the developing brain and initiate hormonal transition periods such as puberty. However, recent evidence shows that sex hormones additionally structure the brain during important hormonal transition periods across a woman's life including short-term fluctuations during the menstrual cycle. However, a comprehensive review focusing on structural changes during all hormonal transition phases of women is still missing. Therefore, in this review structural changes across hormonal transition periods (i.e., puberty, menstrual cycle, oral contraceptive intake, pregnancy and menopause) were investigated in a structured way and correlations with sex hormones evaluated. Results show an overall reduction in grey matter and region-specific decreases in prefrontal, parietal and middle temporal areas during puberty. Across the menstrual cycle grey matter plasticity in the hippocampus, the amygdala as well as temporal and parietal regions were most consistently reported. Studies reporting on pre- and post-pregnancy measurements revealed volume reductions in midline structures as well as prefrontal and temporal cortices. During perimenopause, the decline in sex hormones was paralleled with a reduction in hippocampal and parietal cortex volume. Brain volume changes were significantly correlated with estradiol, testosterone and progesterone levels in some studies, but directionality remains inconclusive between studies. These results indicate that sex hormones play an important role in shaping women's brain structure during different transition periods and are not restricted to specific developmental periods.
Topics: Cerebral Cortex; Contraceptives, Oral; Female; Gonadal Steroid Hormones; Gray Matter; Human Development; Humans; Menopause; Menstrual Cycle; Postpartum Period; Pregnancy; Puberty; White Matter
PubMed: 32155633
DOI: 10.1159/000507083 -
Tidsskrift For Den Norske Laegeforening... Sep 2020
Topics: Age Factors; Body Mass Index; Humans; Puberty
PubMed: 32900174
DOI: 10.4045/tidsskr.20.0043