Disorders of sex development
medical condition involving the reproductive system
Disorders of sex development (DSDs), also known as differences in sex development, variations in sex characteristics (VSC), sexual anomalies, or sexual abnormalities, are congenital conditions affecting the reproductive system, in which development of chromosomal, gonadal, or anatomical sex is atypical.
DSDs are subdivided into groups in which the labels generally emphasize the karyotype's role in diagnosis: 46,XX; 46,XY; sex chromosome; XX, sex reversal; ovotesticular disorder; and XY, sex reversal.
In the cases when a baby is born with an atypical anatomical sex, families often experience confusion and distress. Sexual and psychological development are influenced by numerous factors that include, but are not limited to, gender differences in brain structure, genes associated with sexual development, prenatal androgen exposure, interactions with family, and cultural and societal factors. Because of the complex and multifaceted factors involved, communication and psychosexual support are important.
A team of experts, or patient support groups, are usually recommended for cases related to sexual anomalies. This team of experts are usually derived from a variety of disciplines including pediatricians, neonatologists, pediatric urologists, pediatric general surgeons, endocrinologists, geneticists, radiologists, psychologists and social workers. These professionals are capable of providing first line (prenatal) and second line diagnostic (postnatal) tests to examine and diagnose sexual anomalies.
Overview
DSDs are defined as "any problem noted at birth where the genitalia are atypical in relation to the chromosomes or gonads". There are several types of DSDs, and their effect on the external and internal reproductive organs varies greatly.
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Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 7, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5282521. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Disorders of sex development” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.