2D:4D Suggests a Role of Prenatal Testosterone in Gender Dysphoria

Gender dysphoria (GD) reflects distress caused by incongruence between one’s experienced gender identity and one’s natal (assigned) gender. Previous studies suggest that high levels of prenatal testosterone (T) in natal females and low levels in natal males might contribute to GD. Here, we investigated if the 2D:4D digit ratio, a biomarker of prenatal T effects, is related to GD. We first report results from a large Iranian sample, comparing 2D:4D in 104 transwomen and 89 transmen against controls of the same natal sex. We found significantly lower (less masculine) 2D:4D in transwomen compared to control men. We then conducted random-effects meta-analyses of relevant studies including our own (k = 6, N = 925 for transwomen and k = 6, N = 757 for transmen). In line with the hypothesized prenatal T effects, transwomen showed significantly feminized 2D:4D (d ≈ 0.24). Conversely, transmen showed masculinized 2D:4D (d ≈ − 0.28); however, large unaccounted heterogeneity across studies emerged, which makes this effect less meaningful. These findings support the idea that high levels of prenatal T in natal females and low levels in natal males play a part in the etiology of GD. As we discuss, this adds to the evidence demonstrating the convergent validity of 2D:4D as a marker of prenatal T effects

Identifying Opportunities for Collaboration Across the Social Sciences to Reach the 10-10-10: A Multilevel Approach.

BACKGROUND:The national and global strategy to combat HIV, often referred to as the "90-90-90," aims to diagnose 90% of people living with HIV, get 90% of those diagnosed onto antiretroviral treatment (ART), and achieve viral suppression in 90% of those on ART. The remaining 10-10-10 who will be undiagnosed, not on ART, or not virally suppressed, include vulnerable persons and populations most affected by social determinants of health. Given their foci on the social determinants of health at the individual, social, and structural levels, social scientists are in a prime position to help reach the 10-10-10. A potentially effective way for social scientists to achieve this goal is to examine the issues that affect the 10-10-10 using a multilevel framework, to understand at what levels their own approaches fit within such a multilevel framework, and to seek intentional collaborations with other social scientists who may work at different levels but whose approaches may complement their own within multilevel collaborations. APPROACH:The present article describes how a multilevel framework can guide collaboration across disciplines within the social sciences toward the common goal of reaching the 10-10-10. CONCLUSIONS:Within a multilevel framework, social scientists can work collaboratively to address the needs of individuals among the 10-10-10 within the social and structural contexts (eg, social norms, stigma, poverty, and barriers to care) that affect their health. Such an approach draws on the unique strengths and approaches of different social-science disciplines while also building capacity for individuals most affected by social determinants of health

Bound to the dual-sex/gender system: (trans) gendering and body modification as narcissistic self regard

This chapter looks at the way that transsexuals neotiate their body projects, by balancing their ego ideals, bodily intactness and social roles. I draw on a reconstituted notion of (positive) narcissism to eplain the various modalities of transsexual body modification

Franky Reborn : discourses on the first transgender character in the Flemish soap Thuis

This paper argues through a textual and contextual analysis of the first trans character in the Flemish soap opera Thuis that in Flanders, trans identities and practices are rendered intelligible trough inherently homogenizing and normative discourses. While these identities and practices are diverse by definition, this research shows that only a very specific configuration of them is validated and privileged – such as post-op transwomen – while all others – like transmen and genderqueer identities – are symbolically annihilated. Specifically, discourses on trans identities subscribe to hegemonic conceptions of gender, prescribing a full surgical transition from one monolithic gender to the other, while denying the possibility of a radically subversive queer space in between. This gender conformity is further enforced by the construction of physical beauty as the defining feature of a successful transition, and the representation of trans identities as simply “longing to be on the other side.” Finally, the apparent positive representation of trans identities collide with articulations of homonationalism – or transnationalism – that construct Flanders as a safe space for transpeople, while relegating all internal instances of transphobic violence to ethnic-cultural minorities

Intersectional Discrimination Is Associated with Housing Instability among Trans Women Living in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Trans women face numerous structural barriers to health due to discrimination. Housing instability is an important structural determinant of poor health outcomes among trans women. The purpose of this study was to determine if experiences of intersectional anti-trans and racial discrimination are associated with poor housing outcomes among trans women in the San Francisco Bay Area. A secondary analysis of baseline data from the Trans *National study (n = 629) at the San Francisco Department of Public Health (2016-2018) was conducted. Multivariable logistic regression was used to analyze the association between discrimination as an ordered categorical variable (zero, one to two, or three or more experiences) and housing status adjusting for age, years lived in the Bay Area, and gender identity. We found that the odds of housing instability increased by 1.25 for every categorical unit increase (1-2, or 3+) in reported experiences of intersectional (both anti-trans and racial) discrimination for trans women (95% CI = 1.01-1.54, p-value < 0.05). Intersectional anti-trans and racial discrimination is associated with increased housing instability among trans women, giving some insight that policies and programs are needed to identify and address racism and anti-trans stigma towards trans women. Efforts to address intersectional discrimination may positively impact housing stability, with potential for ancillary effects on increasing the health and wellness of trans women who face multiple disparities

Transwomen and the Prison Industrial Complex

As one of the fastest growing populations in the prison system, transwomen have a unique relationship with the prison system and the Prison Industrial Complex. These systems work to further the marginalization of transwomen by subjecting them to psychological and sexual violence. Transwomen’s bodies are criminalized in ways that naturalizes the violence they experience both in the prisons and in the court systems. This paper aims to provide an overview of the ways in which transwomen are dehumanized in their encounters with the criminal justice system (i.e. mis-gendering, the physical and sexual abuse they experience) by contextualizing their experiences. Through contextualization, I aim to illustrate the interlocking systems of oppression that construct transwomen as socially deviant bodies, that leads to their encounters with the Prison Industrial Complex. Additionally, I explore how these interlocking systems of oppression continue to function within the context of the Prison Industrial Complex and how that reduces transwomen to Agamben’s conceptualization of bare life and as ‘non- citizens’ within the carceral state

Transwomen in the Workplace

Society continues to devalue the work of women while simultaneously devaluing the existence of transgender people. The combined result is the devaluing of transwomen and their work. This project looks at the implications of transwomen in the workplace.https://digitalcommons.tacoma.uw.edu/gender_studies/1011/thumbnail.jp

Breast development in transwomen after 1 year of cross-sex hormone therapy : results of a prospective multicenter study

Context: Breast development is a key feature of feminization and therefore important to transwomen (male-to-female transgender persons). It is not exactly known when breast development starts after initiating cross-sex hormone therapy (CHT) and how much growth may be expected. Objective: To investigate breast development in transwomen during their first year of CHT and whether clinical or laboratory parameters predict breast development. Design: This study was performed as part of the European Network for the Investigation of Gender Incongruence, which is a prospective multicenter cohort study. Setting: Gender clinics in Amsterdam, Ghent, and Florence. Participants: Transwomen who completed the first year of CHT (n = 229). Intervention: CHT. Main Outcome Measures: Breast development in centimeter and cup size. Results: The median age of the included transwomen was 28 years (range, 18 to 69). Mean breast-chest difference increased to 7.9 +/- 3.1 cm after 1 year of CHT, mainly resulting in less than an AAA cup size (48.7%). Main breast development occurred in the first 6 months of therapy. Serum estradiol levels did not predict breast development after 1 year of CHT (first quartile, 3.6 cm [95% confidence interval (CI), 2.7 to 4.5], second quartile, 3.2 cm [95% CI, 2.3 to 4.2], third quartile, 4.4 cm [95% CI, 3.5 to 5.3], and fourth quartile, 3.6 cm [95% CI, 2.7 to 4.5]). Conclusion: This study shows that, after 1 year of CHT, breast development is modest and occurs primarily in the first 6 months. No clinical or laboratory parameters were found that predict breast development

Bone mineral density increases in trans persons after 1 year of hormonal treatment : a multicenter prospective observational study

Sex steroids are important determinants of bone acquisition and bone homeostasis. Cross-sex hormonal treatment (CHT) in transgender persons can affect bone mineral density (BMD). The aim of this study was to investigate in a prospective observational multicenter study the first-year effects of CHT on BMD in transgender persons. A total of 231 transwomen and 199 transmen were included who completed the first year of CHT. Transwomen were treated with cyproterone acetate and oral or transdermal estradiol; transmen received transdermal or intramuscular testosterone. A dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) was performed to measure lumbar spine (LS), total hip (TH), and femoral neck (FN) BMD before and after 1 year of CHT. In transwomen, an increase in LS (+3.67%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.20 to 4.13%, p < 0.001), TH (+0.97%, 95% CI 0.62 to 1.31%, p < 0.001), and FN (+1.86%, 95% CI 1.41 to 2.31%, p < 0.001) BMD was found. In transmen, TH BMD increased after 1 year of CHT (+1.04%, 95% CI 0.64 to 1.44%, p < 0.001). No changes were observed in FN BMD (–0.46%, 95% CI –1.07 to 0.16%, p = 0.144). The increase in LS BMD was larger in transmen aged ≥50 years (+4.32%, 95% CI 2.28 to 6.36%, p = 0.001) compared with transmen aged <50 years (+0.68%, 95% CI 0.19 to 1.17%, p = 0.007). In conclusion, BMD increased in transgender persons after 1 year of CHT. In transmen of postmenopausal age, the LS BMD increased more than in younger transmen, which may lead to the hypothesis that the increase in BMD in transmen is the result of the aromatization of testosterone to estradiol