Psychological outcomes of gender-affirming medical treatment in transgender youth

Abstract

The evaluation and management for transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) youth is multidisciplinary, and treatment involves social support, mental health care, and gender affirming medical care such as use of puberty suppression and/or gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAH). Gender-affirming medical care has been proven to improve psychosocial outcomes in TGD youth. This includes decreased rates of depression and anxiety and decreased suicidal ideation. Furthermore, youth who receive GAH have improvements in experienced body dysphoria, general well-being, and quality of life. Available studies show that rates of regret are low. The goal of this article is to highlight the most significant research on the effects of gender-affirming medical treatments on the psychosocial health of TGD youth.