Trans teenagers just as likely to get pregnant as cisgender peers
New research shows trans young people have similar pregnancy rates to other adolescents.
A new study has revealed that transgender teenagers are just as likely to get pregnant as other people their age.
Dr Jaimie Veale – Waikato University lecturer in Psychology – led the research, which used data from the 2014 Canadian Transgender Youth Health Survey.
Looking at 540 sexually active trans people aged 14-25, the study found that 26 young people (5%) had “been involved in pregnancy” at least once in their lives.
The figure mirrored British Columbia’s pregnancy rate of about 5% per cent among sexually active cisgender young people.
Veale – who is trans – said the public often assumed that transgender youth were not sexually active.
She said another misconception was that because trans people receive hormones, that they had reduced fertility, could not get or get someone pregnant.
“This study shows otherwise,” she said.
Senior author of the study and UBC nursing professor Elizabeth Saewyc said the research proved that more support was needed for transgender young people when it came to sex education.
“Clinicians should ask trans or non-binary youth about their sexual health and behaviours,” she said.
“They should ensure this group know how to protect themselves from unintended pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections.”
Meanwhile, in the UK, a NHS Trust recently announced plans to terminate a Gender Identity Service contract amid trans health turmoil.
The Gender Identity Clinic at Charing Cross has been helping transgender people since 1966, and is governed by West London Mental Health Trust.
However, following repeated warnings about spiralling backlogs in the sector as demand for trans services booms, the Trust recently announced that it is planning to terminate its contract. NHS England is expected to seek a new provider.
The news comes just months after the UK’s health watchdog recommended an urgent expansion of the service, warning that patients were being let down by limited capacity.
