Woman Went To Hospital With Ankle Injury And Found Out She Was Born Male And Intersex

She is 25 years old, lives in eastern China and has tried to get pregnant for over a year without success. Going to the hospital for an ankle problem revealed why: actually he was born a boy and is intersex, a genetic disease that manifests itself in the development of the sexual organs, reported the South China Morning Post.

The young woman, whose female external genitalia never forced her to question her gender, discovered the situation after an x-ray of an ankle that had been injured at a hospital in her hometown.

According to reports, when the doctor checked the x-ray film, he noticed that the bones were not fully developed and that she still had the bony features of a teenager, a fact that intrigued him, reports the RT website.

In a subsequent conversation with the professional, Pingping (the fictitious name given to the woman to protect her identity) revealed that I had never menstruated, something he hadn’t commented on before out of embarrassment.

“When I was young, my mother took me to the doctor. The doctor said I was developing more slowly than others sexually and could have my period in a few years, ”the woman said. And added, “After growing up, I found this problem quite embarrassing, so I didn’t take it seriously.”

During her consultation with an endocrinologist, Pingping consulted, “My husband and I have been trying to have a baby for a year, to no avail. Is it also related to my bone problem and not having a period? “

The results of various endocrine tests he had performed showed that he had high blood pressure and low levels of potassium in his blood, a typical symptom of a disease called Congenital adrenal hyperplasia, which could lead to impaired sexual development.

However, it was a genetic test that showed that the condition of his adrenal glands they were not responsible for your inability to get pregnant or your amenorrhea.

The real cause was at the chromosomal level, since the young woman is a carrier of male karyotype 46 XY, a condition known as disgenesia gonadal parcial, disorder of sexual development associated with abnormalities in the development of the reproductive organs which give rise to genital ambiguity, the degree of which varies in each patient.

This pattern – the 46 XY karyotype – is typically found in men who have genitals that are not clearly male or female, explained Dong Fengqin, an endocrinologist.

In this case, Pingping learned that, although she had no uterus or ovaries, she had neither male genitals nor Adam’s apple. “We couldn’t find any testicles hidden in her body. Maybe it’s because she is quite old and they have degenerated and atrophied,” Dong said. South China Morning Post.

From here

Now that his adrenal hyperplasia issues are under control, Pingping will need to decide what gender you want to identify with and assume your identity.

“It takes a long time to rebuild the social role and rebuild the family. It will be a laborious process, in which psychological intervention is necessary, ”said the deputy director of the mental health center of the hospital where she is being treated, while ensuring that the young woman has not yet requested psychological support. .