The HSE is to review the use of puberty blockers in children experiencing gender dysphoria after the British NHS decided to limit their use of the drugs in the absence of research on their safety and effectiveness.
Psychotherapist Stella O’Malley welcomed the news but said that the move was ‘ten years too late,’
Delighted to see that the use of puberty blockers in the Irish children’s gender service is to be reviewed. 10 years too late of course, but great to finally see it happen https://t.co/oTAPpHmAJa
— Stella O'Malley (@stellaomalley3) June 27, 2023
The Irish Times reported that HSE is “reviewing this latest update and would establish a group this year to develop an updated model of care for the treatment of gender dysphoria.”
The NHS recently announced that puberty blockers – drugs given to children and adolescents to delay the onset of puberty – will now only be prescribed as part of clinical research.
The move was described by therapist James Esses, who has worked to highlight the issue, as “absolutely massive”, and a step that would prevent “irreversible harm”.
This UK decision was prompted by an expert review conducted by Dr. Hilary Cass which was initiated to examine the practices within the now largely disgraced Tavistock gender clinic to which 238 Irish children were referred since 2014.
The NHS had previously held that the effects of puberty blockers were reversible, but in a change of position it now says that, “Little is known about the long-term side effects of hormone or puberty blockers in children with gender dysphoria.”
“It’s also not known whether hormone blockers affect the development of the teenage brain or children’s bones. Side effects may also include hot flushes, fatigue and mood alterations,” the health authority adds.
As Gript previously reported growing controversies about puberty blockers being prescribed to children and teens include concerns that many children were placed on the drugs – with the Economist reporting that while little was known about the effects of puberty blockers “that has not stopped clinics prescribing them enthusiastically.”
Concerns have also been raised about the potential for the drugs to have permanent effects on fertility.
The NHS warns that gender dysphoria “may be a transient phase, particularly for pre-pubertal children, and that there will be a range of pathways to support these children and young people and a range of outcomes.”
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