Pubarche
Sign in to savePubarche () refers to the first appearance of pubic hair at puberty. It is one of the earliest physical changes of puberty and can occur independently of complete puberty. It is usually the second sign of puberty, after thelarche in females and gonadarche in males (though in females, it can also happen before thelarche, but this is less common).
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Article
15 sectionsContents
- Assessment
- Average age
- Environmental exposures
- Geographical location and nutritional needs
- Premature pubarche
- Clinical examination
- Treatment
- Delayed pubarche
- Adrenal insufficiency
- Turner syndrome
- Hypogonadotropic hypogonadism
- Treatment
- See also
- References
- External links
Pubarche () refers to the first appearance of pubic hair at puberty. It is one of the earliest physical changes of puberty and can occur independently of complete puberty. It is usually the second sign of puberty, after thelarche in females and gonadarche in males (though in females, it can also happen before thelarche, but this is less common).
The early stage of sexual maturation, also known as adrenarche, is marked by characteristics including the development of pubic hair, axillary hair, adult apocrine body odor, acne, and increased oiliness of hair and skin. The Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Health corresponds SMR2 (sexual maturity rating) with pubarche, defining it as the development of pubic hair that occurs at a mean age of 11.6 years in females (range 9.3–13.9 years) and 12.6 years in males (range 10.7–14.5 years). It further describes that pubarche's physical manifestation is vellus hair over the labia or the base of the penis. See Table 1 for the entirety of the sexual maturity rating description.