21/03/2024
A new report published in the scientific journal Cell Reports Medicine suggests that transmasculine people, who take testosterone in order to suppress female linked characteristics such as menstruation, might still require contraception if having a relationship with a man who was born male and produces sperm. This is because in a survey of fifty two transmasculine people, one third exactly were still ovulating even though not menstruating and could therefore become pregnant. Live Science magazine takes up the story, reporting that "the new study found that 33% of the participants showed signs that they were ovulating, irrespective of how long they'd been taking testosterone, how much of it was in their blood or whether they'd used testosterone gel or injections." "The physical and mental consequences of an unplanned and unwanted pregnancy are enormous," Joyce Asseler, the co-senior study author and a doctoral candidate at Amsterdam University Medical Centers, said in a statement. "It is important that transmasculine people and their healthcare providers are aware of this risk and act accordingly," she said. Future research will need to "delve deeper" into why ovulation occurs in some people who take testosterone and not others, Asseler told Live Science in an email. It is also unclear how this capacity for ovulation might translate into someone's chances of becoming pregnant, Asseler said. If you are concerned with any issues raised in this article, please contact your gender affirmative health care provider, or to speak with someone with an empathetic ear, please reach out for help and speak with the National LGBT+ Switchboard on 0800 0119 100 or TRUK Listens from the Team at Trans Radio UK on 0800 009 0584.
