Double or ambiguous genitalia is a rare condition in which the appearance of a newborn's genital organs is unclear, whether female or male. Double sex is not a disease, but rather a disorder of the development of sexual organs that affects the sexual development of children.
Double sex is not always immediately recognized by pregnancy examination or immediately after the baby is born. To ascertain the sex of the baby with multiple sexes, the doctor requires further examination after delivery.
Why Does Double Gender Occur?
This condition can be known through many terms, such as ambiguous genitalia, hermaphrody, or intersex. In general, a baby is called having multiple sex if:
- Having ovaries and testicles with external genitalia that are not clear, whether male or female.
- Having an ovary and external genitalia shape that resembles a penis.
- Having external female genitals (including vulva) and undescended testicles (so the testicular sac does not contain testicles).
Double sex can occur if during pregnancy there is something that does not work normally to interfere with the development of fetal sex organs, for example:
- Lack of or inadequate male hormones in male fetuses.
- Excessive male hormones in female fetuses.
- Mutations in certain genes.
- Chromosome and genetic disorders.
- Pregnant women consume certain drugs.
- The presence of tumors that affect the mother's hormones when she is pregnant.
Double sex signs
If your baby is genetically female, double sex signs that can be seen are:
- The clitoris is large enough to look like a small penis.
- The inner or outer labia or vaginal lips may coalesce and look like a scrotum.
- Sometimes there is a lump of tissue in the fused labia, making it look like a scrotum with the testes.
- The opening of the urethra (where urine comes out or the urinary hole) can be along, above, or below the surface of the clitoris.
- Babies are often considered to be male, but the testes do not go down.
If the baby is genetically male, dual sex can be seen from the following signs:
- Small penis size (less than 2 or 3 cm) to look like an enlarged clitoris and with the urethral opening closer to the scrotum.
- The urethral opening can be along, above, or below the penis. It can also be located in the perineum (the area between the anus and the scrotum or vulva) to make the baby look like a female.
- There may be a small scrotum that is separate and looks like a labia.
- The testicles do not descend and the scrotum is empty until it looks like a labia, accompanied by or without a small penis.
Double Gender Handling
Double sex can affect psychological and social well-being. Not only for parents, but also in children when they grow up. Therefore, this condition needs to be handled very carefully and pay attention to various factors. However, this case is classified as complex and rare, so it is necessary to form a special team of doctors to handle it.
Usually the team of doctors consists of several specialist doctors, namely pediatricians, pediatric urologists, newborn care specialists, pediatric surgeons, pediatricians, endocrine and glandular specialists, geneticists and psychologists.
Surgery is an option in handling multiple sex cases. This action may be continued with hormone therapy when they are teenagers. The point is to help them through puberty. No less important, counseling is needed to maintain the psychological and emotional health of parents and children themselves.
Treatment of multiple genitals is done not only for the social welfare or psychological condition of children, but also their physical health. Why? Because multiple sex can cause infertility, sexual function disorders, increase the risk of cancer, to the discomfort about gender identity.
Double sex can indeed be overcome by surgery. However, this should not be decided haphazardly and without careful consideration, because this concerns the lives of children from childhood to old age.
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