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Sexual maturation of Greek boys
A Papadimitriou1, N Stephanou, K Papantzimas
1First Department of Paediatrics, Penteli Children's Hospital, Athens, Greece. lix@ath.forthnet.gr
Background:
Sexual maturation is dependent on genetic and environmental factors, therefore each ethnic group has to have its own normative data.
Aim:
This study describes the sexual maturation of Greek boys.
Subjects And Methods:
We examined cross-sectionally 1266 healthy boys, aged 8-16 years. Pubertal staging in each boy was assessed according to Tanner's classification. Our data were also compared with those of a study performed in 1968.
Results:
The first pubertal sign was genital enlargement (G2) that occurred at a mean age of 11.0 (+/- 1.3) years followed by pubic hair development (PH2) at 11.5 (+/- 1.5) years of age. There was no clear change in pubertal maturation from the 1968 study.
Conclusions:
The age at which genital development occurs in Greek boys is no different from that of other Caucasian populations. However, pubic hair in Greek boys develops significantly earlier.