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

[felttippens]

She's a baby :( !!!!

Crikey! didn't realise putting a bit of cream on a sore patch of my small daughter would cause such a storm. Thanks all for sticking up for me. Rather stunned that anyone would think she should have been doing this herself "years ago"...how many years I wonder? I also have a six year old dd who is prone to getting an irritated vulva, she has sometimes needed to see the GP. If my dds weren't comfortable discussing their bodies with me, and want me to look at it if something is feeling painful to them, then needing a GP to check it would be pretty stressful . It is really hard to look at your own vulva properly! Never mind to get a blob of nappy rash cream in the right spot. How can it be ok for my GP, a relative stranger, to do this, but not her own mother? What if I was a nurse? Its very silly. Glad it was only one poster. My 8 year old can't tell the difference between being a bit sore and something that might need to see a GP.

Not an adequate response from the GP, IMO. They should be checking whether is is precocious puberty, or premature adrenarche, as true precocious puberty might need treatment.

OP, my dd had the following tests done:

1. Ultrasound scan of womb and kidneys to check for tumours on adrenal glands or advanced development of womb
2. Blood test (poor dd) to check hormone levels

She has premature adrenarche and will be seen by the consultant 2-3 times a year until she reaches age 8 or so, when puberty can be classed on the young side of normal. I've been told to tell them immediately if she starts to show any signs of bleeding or breast development - the other symptoms, such as pubic hair, underarm hair or increased body odour, are increased sensitivity to the sex hormones (sorry, I'm paraphrasing the consultant), but not indicators of true puberty.

It's a shock, but do push for a referral, for your peace of mind.

xylem8 this is the girls mother not the next door bloody neighbour. You honestly sound insane.

frogwatch I completely agree with you. You articulated what I was also feeling really well.

Xylem you are being very silly. My friend's ds, at the age of 18 years old, said "look mum I know it's gross but I am terrified that there is something really wrong with me down there, please will you look for me". She did look at his genitals to help him out. Some sort of rash or something. - do you think I should report them for incest?! Or could you accept that she was just helping him? Just as the op is helping her dd?

Op - either see another gp in your surgery or re register to a different one in order to get a referral to a paediatric unit.

Xylem - You sound suspiciously like Marietta Higgs, and as many will know that did not end well

I would be seriously concerned if you were a HCP working with children. You are the type of person who makes the most normal parents feel as though they are doing some wrong.

Some things shock me if my 8 year old asked me to look at her i would she's not going to know if it needs a doctor or not my dd is 3 and i look at her bits whenever she's in the bath discreetly obviously when i had my daughter i thought i had an infection but couldn't service with a mirror midwife asked if there was anyone else who could check so i asked my mum because she's my mum lol lucky she did i had to go the hospital it not wrong

I have something that would make xylem explode. My mum once helped me put a tampon in aged 13 when I wanted to go to a swimming party but couldn't manage the tampon.

The first time I got drunk aged 17 she helped me remove on.

She is a social worker.

Someone I know has a daughter of 7 who is experiencing this have a chat with gp

Just wanted to reassurect this old thread to say I'm still very concerned

DD is now 7 has grown tremendously since I last posted (9-10 in clothes now)

She has many more pubic hairs, a few under her arms, a few zit type spots and just recently ive noticed she has started to smell like a 16 year old boy after running a marathon if she gets hot and sweaty

I took her back to the doctors once more , no referral made.

Should I try again or just accept it ?

I'm sorry you're still so concerned. I am surprised at your GP, it's really not on. She needs a referral. I think you should insist.

Did they at least run some basic bloods?

I remember this thread from first time round. Yes! Try again (& again & again) tell them explicitly that you are there to be referred. Isolated pubic hair can happen early and not mean anything but does need investigating.
don't let them fob you off if you are worried

I would get it checked but my DD who had exactly the same is now 10 and while she is very hairy and has small boobs has not started periods etc. We saw the consultant when she was younger and they said they were not too concerned unless there was breast buds and that the hair was normal and a sign of a child who could have earlier periods but not precocious. My DD is tall like yours and has a bit of puppy fat we were told to watch her weight as this can speed things up.

There is a serious condition called CAH which needs very careful treatment. This can cause early development of pubic hair due to excess hormones. You need a referral to a paediatric endocrinologist to rule this and other conditions out. We had to push quite hard for a referral and the gp was dismissive.

I think that hormones flood little girls around that age and can cause some startling changes. I do think you should see another doctor, but it may not be anything unduly sinister.

I remember my dd had a friend who because of medical treatment started her periods at the age of five. She was given special treatment for this because otherwise they stop growing.

Please, go back to your GP, and keep going until they refer you. Make sure to request a referral each time, very clearly, and state your reasons why (unusual symptoms that have proven to be progressive in nature). If you have no luck, try writing to a particular Endocrine consultant at your local hospital, listing her symptoms and mention your GPs reluctance to refer. They may well pick it up and reassure you, or write to request bloods etc.

Please also ignore the ignorant fools in life who feel the need to make basic parenting sound like perversion. I hope my children will always ask me to inspect anything that is worrying them, and to feel comfortable telling me about it, like your dd obviously does.
Good Luck, I hope all turns out well.

We saw a GP when DD (only 7) had BO and sore nipple.....it is definitely hormonal for her but does not mean precocious puberty/early periods etc, we were reassured that precocious puberty is v unusual, but you must get it checked out. Hormones do surge and can cause early puberty signs....interestingly in DD now 8, the breast bud comes and goes and the BO has stopped for now too. Everything will be fine ????

Definitely go back to doctor and demand a second opinion from an endocrine consultant.
My DD (7) sounds very similar to yours -135cm and in 9-10 clothes and is receiving treatment for precocious puberty.she has injections & checks every 3 months. We have been told to contact our consultant if we notice underarm hair developing in between appointments. If it is PP is is vital she gets checked out as can be symptomic of other hormone imbalances such as thyroid etc.

OP, you must ask for a second opinion. Your GP sounds quite frankly nuts.
When my DD4 was in hospital (for an unrelated matter) the pediatrician noticed she had what he called, 'breast buds' and as she was very tall, referred her to a specialist.

Anyway, fast forward and basically they thought she had Precocious Puberty . She had ultrasounds, blood tests etc and it was found she had various (though harmless) cysts in her womb.
Then when she was 6 she had her first period. It was such a worrying time but she then had a scan on her wrist to determine her true bone age and as it was only 11 months out it was decided to 'wait and see' and if any other symptoms arrived, they would start hormones to halt puberty.

Although I wasn't very happy at the time, things did settle down but I still think it's important to get these things checked out.

felttip please do push and push for a referral. I posted on your thread 2 years ago, and do urge you to keep going until you see a paed. endocrinologist (NOT just a paediatrician).

Please also do consider phoning the helpline of the child growth foundation (linked to in one of my posts above). They are lovely, approachable and helpful.

My child's condition has increased likelihood of precocious puberty and they can give drugs to suppress it until the child is older.

Please please do keep going. I know it is very tough.

felttip you must push for a referral to an endocrine specialist/ paediatric endocrinologist as if it can be slowed etc time is of the essence and it could profoundly affect DD in terms of peer relationships and wellbeing; also if there are any underlying endocrine issues some of these require addressing. It could just be early and otherwise normal but its timing alone warrants a referral.