True hermaphroditism

✍ Scribed by G. Austin Gresham; J. Fairgrieve

• Book ID: 102768900
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1960
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 650 KB
• Volume: 48
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0007-1323
• DOI: 10.1002/bjs.18004820903

✦ Synopsis

ERRORS of sexual development in man are most often due to endocrine abnormalities. Occasionally testes can appear in genetic females, as for example in Klinefelter's syndrome. This may be explained by a gene-induced differential sensitivity of gonadal tissue (Danon and Sachs, 1957). The rare occurrence of a true hermaphrodite cannot be easily explained. Such cases have been reported recently (Armstrong, 1955; Bromwich, 1955; and Arneaud, Annamunthod, Pinkerton, and Cole, 1956) and raise many theoretical and practical problems.

T w o cases are reported here and they will be discussed mainly from the point of view of the aetiology of some ovarian neoplasms.

CASE REPORTS

Case I.-A schoolboy, aged 14 years, was brought to the out-patient department by his mother because of undescended testes and hypospadias. He also complained of gradual enlargement of the right breast during and at the age of 5 years and at 8 years attempts were