Intersex and intersections

[nightengalesknd]

I went to a talk this week on intersex conditions. Actually I went to a talk and a workshop. The talk was largely aimed at pediatric residents and addressed some of the recent research in the field. The talk presented a good overview, mostly of information which was not new to me but was likely new to most of the audience. The workshop was

Comments

[glynhogen]

I have sometimes wondered if we'd have gotten different medical advice if the hypospadias had been more severe and/or if we didn't already know about the presence of a Y chromosome. We got the very matter of fact diagnosis in the OR, before we even got to cuddle the baby--plenty of we've-seen-this-before comfort, less specific follow-up than I might have expected, though that might've been because we were known to be urology-bound already. I don't think anyone we talked to mentioned the word "intersex," though it comes up quickly if you're doing your own research. And I feel comfortable not applying it in this particular case, and I would like to think that the medical professionals didn't apply it for similar reasons rather than avoiding it because they were afraid the parents might freak out.

[nightengalesknd]

It is my impression that no one knowledgeable in the field considers hypospadias an intersex condition or anything beyond a relatively straightforward surgical one. Certainly not anything to summon what I'm terming a "gender response team" over. At some point along the continuum, hypospadias occurs along with questions of size, and then other ambiguities, and then intersex or DSD or whatever term du jour starts coming up and then people besides urologists get called and then things beyond relatively simple surgical repairs start getting discussed.

Of course, I would also like to think that medical professionals in this day and age would be able to discuss things with patients and families in a sensitive way and not avoid difficult topics just because they are difficult. Of course, I would also like to buy a bridge, in Brooklyn. . .

[ericaceous]

I love this post. IF you are interested in this topic, I think that you would really like Alice Dreger's advocacy and academic work, if you don't already know it.
http://www.alicedreger.com/home.html (look at her "Sex and gender" stuff)