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Chapter 2 - Reproductive Puberty

from Section 1 - Physiology of Reproduction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2021

Eliezer Girsh
Affiliation:
Barzilai Medical Center, Ashkelon
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Summary

Puberty is a process in which a child’s body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction and involves physiologic, somatic, and constitutional changes associated with further development of the internal and external genitalia and secondary sex characteristics. On average, girls begin the process at the age of 10–11 and end puberty at around 15–17, while boys begin at around the ages of 11–12 and end at around 16–17. Puberty which starts earlier than average is known as precocious puberty and puberty which starts later than usual is known as delayed puberty. The onset of puberty is the consequence of a complex sequence of maturation in the central nervous system (CNS) that is not fully understood. A critical body mass is required before the CNS begins to activate puberty [1]. Two autonomous but associated processes, controlled by different mechanisms, but strictly linked temporally, are involved in the amplified secretion of sex steroids in the peripubertal and pubertal period.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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  • Reproductive Puberty
  • Edited by Eliezer Girsh
  • Book: A Textbook of Clinical Embryology
  • Online publication: 05 March 2021
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108881760.003
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  • Reproductive Puberty
  • Edited by Eliezer Girsh
  • Book: A Textbook of Clinical Embryology
  • Online publication: 05 March 2021
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108881760.003
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Reproductive Puberty
  • Edited by Eliezer Girsh
  • Book: A Textbook of Clinical Embryology
  • Online publication: 05 March 2021
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108881760.003
Available formats
×