Totally freaked out, just found pubes on my 5 year old dd

[felttippens]

She's a baby :( !!!!

yes go to another gp and get a referral, just say you want a referral as you are not happy with being told to google precocious puberty, as when you do it actually says a referral is the norm.

utterly ridiculous.

i can sympathise SO much with the feeling you have right now.

Absolutely ask for a second opinion and a referral even if they don't think it's necessary - to put your mind at rest.

You could also try for a school nurse referral - your council should have contact details for them outside of the academic year.

I agree with everyone saying you should ask for a second opinion, and that your daughter probably needs to see a paediatric gastroenterologist.

I recommend looking at the child growth foundation site which has a section on premature sexual maturation and precocious puberty. (It is also a wonderfully supportive charity for parents of affected children. They will help with things like seeing the right doctors if you have trouble getting referred etc.) They have a Facebook page too, if you're on that.

Good luck, it must be very worrying for you.

I agree with pps. You need another appointment with a different gp.

I also wanted to add support for you.

Give Yoni a break! If the OP had said her DD had shown her some pubes (which is what happened) it would have sounded very different to 'I JUST FOUND PUBES' which does sound like a crotch inspection!

Yoni's post was unhelpful, to say the least, xylem8. As was yours.

OP, you've had good advice from others re seeing another GP and pushing for a referral to a paediatric endocrinologist.

I think it was fairly obvious surely that I dont generally inspect my childrens genitals, and if I did Im sure I wouldnt publically post about it on mumsnet

Whatever the terminology I used, I came on here for support as it had been a big shock, maybe I could have termed it better but tbh I had just 'found' them after my daughter mentioning something and then me 'inspecting her crotch'

That aside, I feel unsure about pushing for referral after the GP made it seem as if it was almost normal for a little five year old girl to have sprouting black pubes? its not is it? it was as if because she doesnt have a full bush of hair and 34Bs there was nothing to worry about.

I dont want endocrinologist to be annoyed at my wasting their time if I insist on referral ??

You won't be wasting their time at all and no it's not normal. It's not unheard of but is unusual.

I really think after the mixed messages from your gp that a second opinion and push for referral is the only way to set your mind at rest.

Does your husband use testosterone cream? Because I read about a case where a man who did managed to give his children public hair through ordinary day-to-day contact...

treading - referrals are no big deal, they are the proper, accepted way forward when something presents which is out of the ordinary and beyond the scope of the GP. From what you have said about the GP you saw, I don't see how you can have confidence in her reading of the situation and her response. She may be right, but the point is she's not an expert, she hasn't dealt with the situation in a way that alleviates your worries or fully answers your questions, and a referral to a specialist is the correct and sensible way forward in this instance. You are absolutely NOT wasting anyone's time, and don't take any notice if you feel that that is being implied to you by the GP or the practice.

There may be a simple diagnosis here, or it may be something more complicated which will affect your daughter and you as a family and will need experts to manage it. The point is, at the moment you do not know which it is, and you owe it to your little girl (as well as yourself and the rest of your family) to make sure that it is dealt with as promptly and effectively as possible. Good luck - and if they say no initially for any reason, just find your inner tiger mother and insist.

Treading - if I was you, I'd call the surgery tomorrow and request a GP to call you back (not necessarily the one you saw) and explain quite clearly that you have taken the GP's advice and read the information on google as advised and wish for your dd to be referred to a specialist to check hormones and confirm either way.

I would be very firm that a GP (General Practitioner) cannot possible say this is normal for a 5 year old, or to compare to an Asian child, when she is blonde and fair, without checking her hormone levels.

Please follow it up. I had premature menopause (not the same but a unusual diagnosis, hormone related at 16 years old). I didn't get a blood test to check hormones until I was 16 but wished my DM had pushed for more tests when I was 14 when I knew something wasn't right.

OP I found my dds hairs when putting some cream on her vulva, she was a bit sore there after a long time in a car seat. I pulled what seemed to be a large hair stuck in the cream and found it was attatched! My dd is 8 but I do sometimes need to "inspect" her downstairs if she is sore or itchy.

I agree that it's not an adequate or reassuring response to your DDs situation. It is something that warrants a referral. The response to my DD by one pediatrician was similar because she doesn't have any breast development. However I have pushed for testing due to her age & the results are a surprise to them. No definite diagnosis yet as she doesn't fit into any of their boxes but I've had to push for investigations.

Please do not be fobbed off or worry about wasting time with a referral. It may well be something very mild & even transitory but its worth checking in case it needs treatment.

gp's aren't there for anything more than more general health matters op.

It is your right to ask to see a specialist, in matters so obvious that it's beyond them.

Do not let one gp make you feel as tho you making a fuss. You could have just as easily seen a gp who said 'yes i agree it is worth you being referred'

That is mine and many others experience of the inconsistency of gp care, due to what ever reasons. Not a pop at gp's but i have had enough experience of doctors talking very different advice for the same presentation.

Treading, another one here saying you should get a referral to an endocrinologist who will do tests to rule out the less good things that can cause this. FWIW, it is entirely possible that it is just an isolated thing (Dds doctor described it as a variant of normal). But best to be sure and I think easiest and best for the tests to be ordered and results reviewed by a specialist.

Definitely pester for a referral. I found some pubes on my baby when he was a few months old, imagine that! So freaky! Got a referral and loads of tests done including bone scans. One blood test showed slightly raised levels of androgens I think but not hugely raised, which ruled out more serious conditions. She said that she suspected they would just disappear eventually, which they did within a few months, but I still felt funny about grandparents changing his nappy etc till they went. I was told that some babies take on more of their mother's hormones in the womb which can have some unusual effects like the pube growth. I myself have polycystic ovary syndrome - cant remember whether the consultant said there was a connection between my hormone condition and my son's now - all seems so long ago. He is 7 now and still hair-free!

I would definitely push for some tests.

Doh! 'paediatric gastroenterologist'

Of course, I meant paed endocrinologist. Mixed up the two docs my son sees. Sorry.

I understand your reticence; we always worry we're 'making a fuss' don't we, but like PPs have said, it definitely sounds like she needs to be assessed by a specialist.

Can't thank you enough for the supportive messages - think ill definitely push for referral - even if its nothing and we waste ten minutes consultant time I can have peace of mind
I'll keep this thread updated x

Deinutely a referral. And Asian babies are NOT born with any hair near their genitals - just like all other babies. What a ridiculous thing to say.

Good luck.

I found my dds hairs when putting some cream on her vulva...she is 8

You really shouldn't be doing this at that age 8 years old.She should have been doing this sort of thing for herself years ago.

Are you kidding xylem8?

What the hell is the matter with people on this thread? Stop looking for inappropriate behaviour where there blatantly is none. Jesus Christ

xylem, it's perfectly normal behaviour - unless they have a mirror, most children would not be able to accurately place cream on a sore vulva. They are children.

An eight year old would need supervising for application of creams for medical reasons for example. There are some people with over dramatic imaginations on here.

What lougle said. I don't have girl DC but i would have thought that was a perfectly reasonable thing to do.