[Transsexuality--standards of care]

After the description of transsexualism as a nosological entity by Harry Benjamin standards of care emerged which are useful and protective for patients and doctors involved in treatment. The diagnosis is established by the finding of an irreversibly transposed gender identity. This has to be confirmed by an expert who is competent in counselling gender identity problems. He will give his written opinion which is the indication for the hormonal treatment to be done at least for half a year prior to operation and which leads to virilization or effeminization and which is the preparation for genital surgery. Standards of female-to-male surgery are: 1. Breast-transformation 2. Colpohysterectomy with adnexectomy, possibly by the vaginal route. Surrogates for testes and phalloplasties are only in the experimental stage and not standard. Standards of male-to-female surgery are: 1. Castration by extirpation of testes. 2. Resection of penis shaft with total resection of the spongy bodies. 3. Neovagina by inverted penis-skin technique. 4. Plasty of labia majora and minora and a clitoris. 5. In case of insufficient gynecomastia breast-augmentation. After the operation, follow-up examinations are necessary by the surgeon until complete healing. A supportive psychological care by the expert who has evaluated the transposition of gender identity would be useful. It could be done also by the gynecologist who makes the follow-up examinations in male to female transsexuals. He is also competent for the life-long hormonal substitution.