Evaluation of Premature Pubarche Cases: A Single Center Experience

The study retrospectively evaluated 117 cases of premature pubarche (PP), primarily in girls, with an average follow-up of 16.2 months. It found that over half of the children were overweight, and 21% had low birth weight. Elevated serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate levels were present in 76.5% of patients. Initial diagnoses included classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia in 2 patients and carrier status in 9. During follow-up, 12 girls were diagnosed with central precocious puberty. Ultimately, 80% of cases were diagnosed as premature pubarche, 11% as central early puberty, 7.3% as congenital adrenal hyperplasia carriers, and 2.7% as classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia. The study concluded that differential diagnosis should be carefully reviewed both initially and during follow-up, and that moderately advanced bone age did not negatively impact target height.