Irreversible gender transition surgery performed on minors has “unknown and unknowable long-term risks,” according to the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.
Gender transition procedures include puberty blockers, sex hormones and surgery, the nonpartisan professional association noted in a Monday statement outlining its stance on “gender-affirming care” for children. Surgeries performed as part of gender transitioning include castration, mastectomies and penectomy, according to an AAPS statement.
Gender transition procedures are “generally irreversible and have a high probability of causing sterilization,” warned AAPS. The procedures also “commit a patient to a lifelong need for medical, surgical, and psychological care.”
Even doctors who believe gender transition surgery is medically supported should be constrained by ethical codes that prohibit care without informed consent.
“Physicians and medical professionals should refuse to be mandated or coerced to participate in procedures to which they have ethical or scientific objections or which they believe would harm a patient.”
Biological sex is determined at conception by genotype, declared the AAPS. Apart from rare anomalies, which result in ambiguous genitalia, sex is correctly identified at birth, the group added, noting an individual’s sex at birth is obvious.
“Through medical, surgical, and other interventions, it is possible to change the physical appearance of one’s body, the group acknowledges before noting, “Changing physical appearance does not change biological sex.”
Some states have begun attempts to ban gender-affirming procedures for minors. Gov. Tate Reeves, (R-MS) confirmed Tuesday plans to sign a bill banning gender-affirming care in his state for individuals younger than 18, according to an Associated Press report.
Mississippi’s move mirrors legislation approved by Utah and South Dakota governors. Similar legislation in Arkansas and Alabama have been blocked by judges, the report noted.
The AAPS statement follows by two days an open letter issued by the Gender Dysphoria Alliance. The group pleaded with more than 30 named medical groups to ensure health care free of politics and activists bent on cancelling gender dysphoria research.
“For the safety and well-being of all trans and gender dysphoric people, we need our healthcare, especially our mental healthcare, disentangled from a well-meaning yet misappropriated academic philosophy,” the open letter, electronically signed by people around the world, stated.
Scroll down to leave a comment and share your thoughts.
