Medical Intervention for Intersexed Children: Gender Unknown Essay

Medical Intervention for Intersexed Children: Gender Unknown What makes a person male or female? Who has the right to choose what sex a person should be? These are some common questions that parents have to face when their child is born as an "intersexed". "Intersex is a general term used for any form of congenital (inborn) mixed sex anatomy." A person who is considered intersexed has some parts of their sexual anatomy that look female and some that look male (Dreger). In the United States, "intersexed" is a taboo. Most people don't like to talk about sex, let alone, abnormalities having to do with sexual anatomy. Dreger stated, "1 in 2,000 children [are] born with genitals that are pretty confusing..." That means that being intersexed is more common than a well known medical condition, cystic fibrosis (2004). It makes one wonder that since this particular condition happens so often, why doesn't society speak more freely about it? When a child is first born and the gender is not quite clear, doctors will test the infant in many ways to determine which sex the baby should be. Some of the tests include, chromosomal, hormonal, and anatomical. The doctors also factor in the ability to create "functional" genitalia with the tissue that is already present. "Functional" usually means, "the ability to use the genitals for penetrative intercourse"(Yronwode). However, doctors usually choose to make the baby into a female because female genitalia is easier to construct (Beh & Diamond). Holmes wrote, "Invasive surgeries are thus carried out on children who are either pre-linguistic or unable to speak for themselves as legal minors." A child has a right to their body just as every human being does. He/she just does not have a v... ...Alice D. Ph.D (n.d.). What is Intersexuality. Retrieved March 16, 2004, from http://www.pflagdetroit.org /what_is_intersexuality. Htm Greenberg, Julie A. (1998, Feb.). ISNA's Amicus Brief on Intersex Genital Surgery. Retrieved March 16, 2004, from, http://www.isna.org/drupal/book/view/97?PHPSESSID=eeac2c6a4d64c46 410e664b3f75d 424a Holmes, Morgan. (1995). Queer Cut Bodies: Intersexuality & Homophobia In Medical Practice. Retrieved March 27, 2004, from, http://www.usc.edu/isd/archives/ queerfrontiers/queer/papers/holme s.long.html Laurent, Bo. (1994 Nov.). Sexual scientists question medical treatment of hermaphroditism. Retrieved March 27, 2004, from http://inquirer.gn.apc.org/intersex.html Yronwode, Althaea.(n.d.).Intersex Individuals Dispute Wisdom Of Surgery On Infants. Retrieved March 27, 2004, from, http://www.luckymojo.com/tkintersex. html