Two year old with pubic hair and body odour

[GS1990]

Hi, Im posting because I'm finding it really difficult to find information from parents who have experienced something similar. Hopefully someone has any information which can help. I'm just looking for some similar experiences and to know what happened at what age, symptoms, signs, outcomes etc - it may give me a teeny bit of reassurance while we wait for our appointment.
My daughter is two and we've noticed a few long dark pubic hairs when changing her nappy, she also has a significant body odour from under her armpits, similar to that of my teenage daughter in strength of smell, so quite unusual for a toddler.
We've seen her GP, who has referred to Paediatrics as urgent. However, I've been worrying myself sick because for about 3 weeks she has been complaining of tummy and back pain. Everything I read online points to premature adrenarche but the back pain is also a symptom of an adrenal tumor. She also has an acne/eczema type rash on cheeks and an itchy rash on torso which GP has said is just viral.
We were hopeful that her 'tummy pain' was just her glands being up from a virus but she's also persistent about her lower back aching and hurting (her vocabulary is excellent so she can tell us clearly).
The wait for an appointment is apparently 8 weeks so not until March, we're happy to pay privately and travel to be seen ASAP but again, anyone I speak to on NHS is unable to help refer or point us in right direction and I'm being told to wait. My fear is that if the cause was something sinister, the waiting period could be the difference between a positive or negative outcome for her. Any helpful, construcive advice would be appreciated. Thanks 🙂

Not sure what someone meant about hair products? But no, no unusual hair remover

That poster said Rogaine which is a hair growth product (for balding people). So I guess they meant did she get into that.

Wishing you all the best! Sounds very stressful.

Your poor DD. The Portland is a specialist private children’s hospital, I would imagine they would have a paediatric endocrinologist there. Or even see a general paediatrician there ASAP and they might be able to do some initial tests/scans. It could be very expensive though- in the thousands for tests. A consultation is about £250-300.

Excellent advice. Please go to a&e and get your daughter seen. 8 weeks is too long to wait.

@GS1990, did your DD have Soya milk when small? I ask because my niece had soya milk and then came off of it because she was heading for precocious puberty. As it was her periods started at 8. My sister was told it can happen more frequently in DD's who have soya milk.

Ah OP this must be very worrying for you. I can't offer advice on the immediate medical issues, but if your dd is diagnosed with PP and you want to chat to other parents, I'm always here. My dd had PP and was successfully treated with puberty blockers. She was quite a lot older than your dd, though. In your position I would be pushing VERY hard for an urgent consultation.

@caringcarer no she didn't have soya, it was a powdered milk called nutramigen but I'll check out if it links as well. Thanks.

@MadamWillYouTalk nobody uses those hormones here. She is with a childminder 3 days a week for me to work but has been since 9 months old and loves it there. I could check but it's doubtful, she's fantastic. Good to know though, thanks 🙂

@Unseenentity this is really helpful to have a better understanding of how the system works. With this in mind, I will be writing to my GP tomorrow, so that it's received Monday morning and push for the back pain complaint as an additional symptom. She hasn't had breast development either, just the hair and smell so again it points at the worse case, but I'm trying to be positive and tell myself it won't be. Getting private specialists is really hard for her and the advice from the GP Friday was that the paediatric team said they didn't recommend it as I wouldn't be seen any sooner. It's just a nightmare. Thanks for your post though. 😊

I am also in wales closer to Carmarthen and my daughter started puberty at 6
She had many blood tests to rule out the chance of a pituitary gland tumour she also had an ultrasound on her womb and ovaries to give us an indication of how close she was to starting her periods
The endocrinologist said that girls were starting puberty earlier he obviously didn’t mean 2 years old and that they would only recommend puberty blockers to children under the age of 6 she was 8 by the time she had seen him
But she also had no signs of pubic hair or body odour by then either hers was mainly breast development.

Op, I know this isn't comparable but just to give an idea of what they'll likely do. My daughter started puberty at 8. We saw an nhs endocrinologist within a month and had loads of blood tests, pelvic ultrasound and wrist X-ray (for bone age). As it happened, she didn't end up starting her period until 10y8m. I Hope everything turns out ok

@BeCyanSloth
@36and3
Thanks both for your replies. I'm just desperate for the tests to just know it's not a tumor. All the hormone stuff or risk of early puberty would be awful enough for her, but when you start thinking about the potential causes for her symptoms, it's terrifying.
Update from today, doc called and said her urine (dipped Fri at GP surgery) had protein and white blood cells in it. So they've sent an additional sample to the lab for testing and are calling with results tomorrow. I'm praying it comes back that she's got a UTI but I'm not holding my breath because she's got no pain when urinating and urine doesn't smell strong. Did look cloudy though...
Absolutely beside myself but am going to call again tomorrow and see if any cancellations.

Good luck over the next few days, thinking of you as my son is the same age. I sincerely have everything crossed for you 🙏🏼

Op can you just present to a&e?

Hi, I've spoken to GP and she said they won't do anything for us because it has to be a specialist doctor. In wales AandE is so bad, people waiting nearly two days on chairs to be seen. It's shocking at our hospital.
Update now is the protein urine is clear but the white blood cells are there so urine being sent for culture testing.
I just pray they hurry up. I'm a college teacher and can't focus on anything right now. I'm not convinced they're going to find infection as no pain to wee and no strong smelling urine.
If nothing else they said she may be seen quicker though.

There is a website called A&E live which can show you the average wait times for your local hospital in Wales. I'd keep an eye and see if you see anywhere with a wait time you think you can manage. Children's A&Es usually have much much shorter waiting times.

I'd be concerned the possible urine infection is a red herring. They want to find out if she has a UTI or not, whereas that's not the testing you want to know. If you're struggling and can't think of anything else I'd still be going to A&E even with the silly wait times to put your mind at rest. Early mornings mid-week are the quietest normally.

Update: They told me yesterday that nothing was grown from the urine and that the sample wasn't large enough to do more tests. I went back to GP as emergency because I was just freaking out. She said I needed to do a clear catch sample from potty instead of using cotton wool from nappy (which two previous GPs had instructed us to do). Anyway, got her a clean sample this morning, went back and she dipped it at surgery and showed me it's clear against her stick. They've sent it off anyway to double check white blood cells and bacteria and I'll know Monday morning.
Also called and got appointment from peads for 21st March. But I'm first on list for a cancellation 🫤
Obviously not happy about the wait but Im feeling relieved that the urine was clear in surgery. Also I pressed GP for information and paeds have told GP they think it's precious puberty... Not even sure how they can say what it is without running tests.
Trying to be positive because she's healthy, happy and running about like nothing is wrong so I'm still in limbo really but I feel calmer as GP was much more thorough, checked her back, lungs, ears etc. Did also say her back complaints could be pain from coughing as she's had a virus/cough on and off since New Year.

Handhold xx

WTF?? I bf my dd until she was 3 and none of this happened. I have never seen this listed as being a result of bfing! I'd be v wary of this.

@Wish44 hiya, I did not breast feed her for long as she couldn't take to my milk or.usual powder milk. She had medicated milk. I don't think this is a result of what she had as a baby food wise, it's just happened. And Yes completely bizarre, I agree. She's my third and I'm the eldest of four and I've never experienced anything like this before.

Any update OP?

Hope you managed to get some answers OP. My DD is 10 and had some symptoms (acne and excessive sweating) from age 3… we did see the paediatric endocrinologist at the Portland who ran several exams and ruled out anything serious. I was told it’s not unheard of for glands to start working that early - he also warned us there could be early pubic hair and smelly armpits due to this problem.

Hiya sorry all. Not added anything because we're still waiting to be seen. Shes grown a couple more hairs but is well in herself. No weight loss or pain, (virus and sick bugs).
Her urine sample, fresh catch was clear so her kidney function is looking to be normal.
We've an appointment with a paediatric endocrinologist on 21st March so may have a proper update then. I did get a second GP opinion and she put my mind at ease as she said that the paeds think its precocious puberty, but let's see what becomes of the appointment. 🙏🏻

@GS1990
@Sillysaussicon has given very good advice here, particularly on how to get your daughter seen and diagnosed quickly.

The lengths parents have to go to when they know something is wrong with their dc are very disturbing. It shouldn't require so much strength and tenacity to be a proactive guardian for a child. You reached out for help and it's great that Mumsnet is available, but not everyone has access to or will use resources like a parenting message board. Why does the system make it so hard to advocate for your child?

OP, I hope you get definitive answers and real help for your dd's pain and symptoms very soon. It's hard to read that your 2-year-old is capable of telling you what hurts; trying to explain to her has to be very painful.
Sending prayers and hugs.

@GS1990 I was wondering if there is an update on how your daughter is doing now.