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Intersex, in humans and other animals, is the presence of intermediate or atypical combinations of physical features that usually distinguish female from male. This is usually understood to be congenital, involving chromosomal, morphologic, genital and/or gonadal anomalies, such as diversion from typical XX-female or XY-male presentations, e.g., sex reversal (XY-female, XX-male), genital ambiguity, or sex developmental differences. An intersex individual may have biological characteristics of both the male and the female sexes.^[1] Intersexuality as a term was adopted by medicine during the 20th century, and applied to human beings whose biological sex cannot be classified as clearly male or female.^[2][3][4] Intersex was initially adopted by intersex activists who criticize traditional medical approaches to sex assignment and seek to be heard in the construction of new approaches.^[5][6]

Some people (whether physically intersex or not) do not identify themselves as either exclusively female or exclusively male. Androgyny is sometimes used to refer to those without gender-specific physical sexual characteristics or sexual orientation or gender identity, or some combination of these; such people can be physically and psychologically anywhere between the two sexes.^[7] This state may or may not include a mixture or absence of sexual orientation.^[8][9]

Language[link]

Research in the late 20th century has led to a growing medical consensus that diverse intersex physicalities are normal, but relatively rare, forms of human biology. Milton Diamond, one of the most outspoken experts on matters affecting intersex people, stresses the importance of care in the selection of language related to such people.

Hermaphrodite[link]

A hermaphrodite is a plant or animal that has both male and female reproductive organs.

Disorders of sex development[link]

"Disorders of sex development" (DSD) is a term that has both supporters and opponents. It is defined to include congenital conditions in which development of chromosomal, gonadal, or anatomical sex is atypical.

A number of critics of traditional terminology, including the Intersex Society of North America, intersex activists, and some medical experts have moved to eliminate the term "intersex" in medical usage, replacing it with disorders of sex development in order to avoid conflating anatomy with identity.^[11] Members of the Lawson Wilkins Pediatric Endocrine Society^[12] and the European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology^[13] accepted this term in their "Consensus statement on management of intersex disorders" published in the Archives of Disease in Children^[14] and in Pediatrics.^[15]

Other intersex people, activists, supporters, and academics have contested the adoption of the terminology and its implied status as a "disorder", seeing this as offensive to intersex individuals who do not feel that there is something wrong with them, regard the DSD consensus paper as reinforcing the normativity of early surgical interventions, and criticising the treatment protocols associated with the new taxonomy.^[16][17][18] Alternatives to categorising intersex conditions as "disorders" have been suggested, including "variations of sex development".^[19] Organisation Intersex International questions a disease/disability approach, argues for deferral of intervention unless medically necessary, when fully informed consent of the individual involved is possible, and self-determination of sex/gender orientation and identity.^[20]

Intersex people in society[link]

History[link]

Hermaphroditus, a colored engraving from a Pompeian fresco by French School c.1800.

Intersex people are treated in different ways by different cultures. In some cultures, such people were included in larger "third gender" or gender-blending social roles along with other individuals. In most societies, intersexed people have been expected to conform to either a female or a male gender role.^[21]

Whether or not they were socially tolerated or accepted by any particular culture, the existence of intersex people was known to many ancient and pre-modern cultures. An example is one of the Sumerian creation myths from more than 4,000 years ago. The story has Ninmah, a mother goddess, fashioning mankind out of clay.^[22] She boasts that she will determine the fate – good or bad – for all she fashions. Enki, the father god, retorts as follows.

Enki answered Ninmah: "I will counterbalance whatever fate – good or bad – you happen to decide." Ninmah took clay from the top of the abzu [ab = water, zu = far] in her hand and she fashioned from it first a man who could not bend his outstretched weak hands. Enki looked at the man who cannot bend his outstretched weak hands, and decreed his fate: he appointed him as a servant of the king.

... [Three men and one woman with atypical biology are formed and Enki gives each of them various forms of status to ensure respect for their uniqueness] ...

Sixth, she fashioned one with neither penis nor vagina on its body. Enki looked at the one with neither penis nor vagina on its body and gave it the name Nibru [eunuch(?)], and decreed as its fate to stand before the king."

A photograph by Nadar of an intersex person displaying genitalia, one of nine-part series. The series may be the earliest medical photographic documentation of the condition.^[23]

During the Victorian era, medical authors introduced the terms "true hermaphrodite" for an individual who has both ovarian and testicular tissue, verified under a microscope, "male pseudo-hermaphrodite" for a person with testicular tissue, but either female or ambiguous sexual anatomy, and "female pseudo-hermaphrodite" for a person with ovarian tissue, but either male or ambiguous sexual anatomy. In Europe, the term 'intersexual' was first to be used before the Second World War.^[24][25] The first suggestion to replace the term 'hermaphrodite' with 'intersex' came from British specialist Cawadias in the 1940s.^[26] This suggestion was taken up by specialists in the UK during the 1960s, by both those who rejected Money's framework (then emerging from the USA),^[27] and those who endorsed that approach.^[28]

Since the rise of modern medical science in Western societies, some intersex people with ambiguous external genitalia have had their genitalia surgically modified to resemble either female or male genitals. Since the advancements in surgery have made it possible for intersex conditions to be concealed, many people are not aware of how frequently intersex conditions arise in human beings or that they occur at all.^[29] Contemporary social activists, scientists and health practitioners, among others, have begun to revisit the issue. Awareness of the existence of physical sexual variation in human beings has increased.

Some groups, such as ISNA, and some clinicians, such as those at University College Hospital London, have questioned the practice of performing genital corrective surgery on intersex children. Dialogue between what were once antagonistic groups of activists and clinicians has led to changes in medical policies and how intersex patients and their families are treated in some locations.^[30][31] There are intersex groups, such as OII, who argue that the various degrees of intersex are natural human variations that should not be subject to correction.

The writer Anne Fausto-Sterling coined the words herm (for "true hermaphrodite"), merm (for "male pseudo-hermaphrodite"), and ferm (for "female pseudo-hermaphrodite"), and proposed that these be recognized as sexes along with female and male. Her terms were "tongue-in-cheek"; she no longer advocates these terms even as a rhetorical device. The activist Cheryl Chase criticized these terms in a letter to The Sciences, also criticizing the traditional standard of medical care. Chase announced the creation of the Intersex Society of North America.^{[citation needed]}

Sociological approaches[link]

The first sociologist to work on 'intersexuality' was Harold Garfinkel in 1967 using a method derived from sociological phenomenology he called ethnomethodology. He based his analysis on the everyday commonsense understandings of 'Agnes', a woman undergoing social and surgical gender reassignment.^[32] Ethnomethodology was also used in 1978 by Kessler and McKenna, who argue that, while gender can be seen as a social accomplishment, cross-cultural studies render gender as problematic as they highlight how it is usually regarded as a fact, when it can be shown to be constructed in different ways. They point to different cultural approaches to gender roles, and how 'hermaphrodites' and 'berdaches' are incorporated socially, as disruptive to fixed ideas about sex, gender, and gender-roles. They argue that what we 'know' about gender is grounded in the 'everyday social construction of a world of two genders', where gender attribution seems more important than gender differentiation.^[33]

Recent debates[link]

Gender and sexual self-identification[link]

Some people with intersex conditions self-identify as intersex, and some do not.^[34][35]

Surgery[link]

Depending on the type of intersex condition, surgery may be performed not for protection of life or health but for aesthetic or social purposes. Unlike other aesthetic surgical procedures performed on infants, such as corrective surgery for a cleft lip (as opposed to a cleft palate), genital surgery may lead to negative consequences for sexual functioning in later life (such as loss of sensation in the genitals, for example, when a clitoris deemed too large/penile is reduced/removed), or feelings of freakishness and unacceptability, which may have been avoided without the surgery. In other cases, negative consequences may be avoided with surgery.

Opponents maintain that there is no compelling evidence that the presumed social benefits of such "normalizing" surgery outweigh the potential costs.^[36][37] Opponents claim this led to the degrading interpretation that females are essentially castrated males. This view overlooks the embryological origin of the penis/clitoris.

Defenders of the practice argue that it is necessary for individuals to be clearly identified as male or female in order for them to function socially. However, many intersex individuals have resented the medical intervention, and some have been so discontented with their surgically assigned gender as to opt for sexual reassignment surgery later in life. The Declaration of Montreal first demanded prohibition of unnecessary post-birth surgery to reinforce gender assignment until a child is old enough to understand and give informed consent. This was detailed in the context of existing UN declarations and conventions under Principle 18 of The Yogyakarta Principles, which called on states to:

B. Take all necessary legislative, administrative and other measures to ensure that no child’s body is irreversibly altered by medical procedures in an attempt to impose a gender identity without the full, free and informed consent of the child in accordance with the age and maturity of the child and guided by the principle that in all actions concerning children, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration;

C. Establish child protection mechanisms whereby no child is at risk of, or subjected to, medical abuse;

— The Yogyakarta Principles

Intersex advocates and experts have critiqued the necessity of early interventions, citing individual's experiences of intervention and the lack of follow-up studies showing clear benefits. Specialists at the Intersex Clinic at University College London began to publish evidence in 2001 that indicated the harm that can arise as a result of inappropriate interventions, and advised minimising the use of childhood surgical procedures.^{[38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47]}

Experience of medical procedures and photography[link]

Individuals report experiences of the trauma associated with intervention.^[48] The experiential similarities of medical interventions and child sexual abuse have been discussed.^[49][50][51]

Photographs of intersex children's genitalia are circulated in medical communities for documentary purposes; an example of this appears in the medical section 3.2.1 below. Problems associated with experiences of medical photography of intersex children have been discussed^[52] along with the ethics, control and usage.^[53]

"The experience of being photographed has exemplified for many people with intersex conditions the powerlessness and humiliation felt during medical investigations and interventions".^[53]

Gender dysphoria[link]

The proposed revisions for DSM-5 include a change from using Gender Identity Disorder to Gender Dysphoria. This revised code now specifically includes intersex people as people with Disorders of Sex Development.^[54] This move has been criticised by one intersex advocacy group in Australia,^[55] and criticism from the intersex community has been lodged with the appropriate DSM5 subcommittee.^[56]

Intersex in popular culture[link]

Books[link]

Intersex was discussed on British TV for the first time in 1966, and became a topic of interest for broadcast TV and radio in the United States and other countries from 1989. Jeffrey Eugenides' novel Middlesex (2002) is narrated by an intersex character who discusses the societal experience of an intersex person.^[57] The Japanese manga series I.S., first published in 2003, features intersexual characters and how they deal with intersex-related issues and influence the lives of people around them.

Film[link]

The 2007 Argentine film XXY centres around a young intersex person who is assisted in presenting as a girl with medication. The film deals with discrimination, sexuality and gender identity.

More recently (2010), Australian documentary-maker, Phoebe Hart, directed an autobiographical documentary of her personal experience as an Intersex. The film, Orchids, My Intersex Adventure, explores the various social scenarios faced by many Intersex individuals.

Intersexion - award winning documentary (2012) hosted by Mani Bruce Mitechell, CEO of the first Intersex Trust in the world (ITANZ), directed by Grant Lahood. The film follows Mani as s/he visits intersex people in America, Ireland, Germany, South Africa and Australia.

Education[link]

In secondary schools, biology and sex education instructors often place most emphasis on the most common XX and XY genotypes. Thus, people nowadays may be more likely to look towards the sex chromosomes than, for example, the histology of the gonads. However, according to researcher Eric Vilain at the University of California, Los Angeles, "the biology of gender is far more complicated than XX or XY chromosomes".^[58] Many different criteria have been proposed, and there is little consensus.^[59]

Notable intersex people[link]

• Le Van Duyet, Nguyen Dynasty general and high-ranking mandarin.^[60]
• Herculine Barbin—the 19th century memoirs of this French intersex person were published by Michel Foucault in 1980.^[61]
• Sir Ewan Forbes, 11th Baronet, formerly Elizabeth Forbes-Sempill—in 1968 the Scottish courts confirmed Ewan Forbes' intersexuality cited in the correction of his birth certificate, placing him as the male heir to the family title, making him the 11th Baronet of Craigievar.
• Georgina Somerset (née Turtle), first openly intersex person in the UK; she was active in the media from the mid-1960s.^[62]
• Cheryl Chase, intersex activist.^[63]
• Erik Schinegger, alpine skier.^[64]
• Jim Sinclair, autism rights activist.^[65]
• Lady Colin Campbell, British aristocrat and author of Guide to Being a Modern Lady.^[66]
• Edinanci Silva, judoka and Gold medalist in the woman's half-heavyweight division at the Pan-American games.^[67]
• James Barry, British military surgeon who gave the first successful caesarean section in Africa by a British surgeon. Portrayed by Patricia Duncker in her novel "James Miranda Barry", in which Barry is a girl reared as a boy by her parents to protect her from gender discrimination.^[68]
• Del LaGrace Volcano, visual artist and speaker on queer and intersex issues (e.g. the Critical Sexology Seminars, London).^[69] Describes his intersexuality as self-constructed.^[70]
• Santhi Soundarajan, Indian athlete who competes in the middle distance track events. She was stripped of a silver medal won at the 2006 Asian Games after failing a sex verification test, disputing her eligibility to participate in the women's competition.
• Mauro Cabral, Argentine intersex activist, writer, Co-director of GATE (Global Action for Trans Equality)
• Cr Tony Briffa JP, Australian intersex and human rights activist, former President of the AIS Support Group Australia, and Deputy Mayor of the City of Hobsons Bay in Melbourne, Australia

Discussion in media and on internet[link]

• There has been intense speculation about Caster Semenya, the South African middle-distance runner, being intersex. The way she has been dealt with by the sporting community and the media has itself been the subject of debate in the media.^[71][72][73] Tests she was subjected to included what were described as humiliating genital photography.^[74]

Noted researchers on intersex development[link]

• John Money
• Milton Diamond, professor of neurology, Univ. of Hawai'i at Manoa
• Anne Fausto-Sterling

Intersex organizations[link]

• Organisation Intersex International^[75][76]
• AIS Support Group UK & International^[77]
• AIS Support Group Australia
• Intersex Trust Aotearoa New Zealand (ITANZ)
• Accord Alliance
• Advocates for Informed Choice (AIC)

Intersex conditions and scope[link]

Adult (38), Klinefelter's 46,XY/47,XXY mosaic diagnosis (19): gynecomastia.

Male adult: hypogonadism, gynecomastia and micropenis.

Sax's strict definition of intersex is most relevant to family practice and psychological research. Other interest groups serve different communities and concerns and so broaden the definition of intersex in these fields.

For instance, the Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) definition states that the following conditions "sometimes involve intersex anatomy":^[78]

• 5-alpha reductase deficiency
• androgen insensitivity syndrome
• aphallia
• clitoromegaly
• congenital adrenal hyperplasia
• gonadal dysgenesis (partial & complete)
• hypospadias
• Klinefelter syndrome
• micropenis
• mosaicism involving sex chromosomes
• ovo-testes (formerly called "true hermaphroditism")
• partial androgen insensitivity syndrome
• progestin-induced virilisation
• Swyer syndrome
• Turner syndrome

See also

• 17-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase deficiency
• cryptorchidism

Prevalence[link]

The prevalence of intersex depends on which definition is used.

According to the ISNA definition above, 1 percent of live births exhibit some degree of sexual ambiguity.^[79] Between 0.1% and 0.2% of live births are ambiguous enough to become the subject of specialist medical attention, including surgery to disguise their sexual ambiguity.

According to Fausto-Sterling's definition of intersex,^[80] on the other hand, 1.7 percent of human births are intersex.^[80] She writes,

According to Leonard Sax the prevalence of intersex "restricted to those conditions in which chromosomal sex is inconsistent with phenotypic sex, or in which the phenotype is not classifiable as either male or female" is about 0.018%.^[81]

Signs[link]

There are a range of variations between female and male types of genitalia; the Prader scale demonstrates this^[82] and is well illustrated here.^[83]

Ambiguous genitalia[link]

Ambiguous genitalia in infant autopsy

Ambiguous genitalia appear as a large clitoris or small penis and may or may not require surgery.

Because there is variation in all of the processes of the development of the sex organs, a child can be born with a sexual anatomy that is typically female, or feminine in appearance with a larger-than-average clitoris (clitoral hypertrophy), or typically male, masculine in appearance with a smaller-than-average penis that is open along the underside. The appearance may be quite ambiguous, describable as female genitals with a very large clitoris and partially fused labia, or as male genitals with a very small penis, completely open along the midline ("hypospadic"), and empty scrotum.

Fertility is variable. According to some,^[84][85] the distinctions "male pseudohermaphrodite", "female pseudohermaphrodite" and especially "true hermaphrodite"^[86] are vestiges of outdated 19th century thinking. According to others, the terms "male pseudohermaphrodite", and "female pseudohermaphrodite" are used to define the gender in terms of the histology (microscopic appearance) of the gonads.^[87]

"True hermaphroditism"[link]

With some conditions of intersex, even the chromosomal sex may not be clear. A "true hermaphrodite" is defined as someone with both male gonadal tissue (testes) and female gonadal tissue (ovarian tissue).

In 2003, researchers at UCLA published their studies of a lateral gynandromorphic hermaphroditic zebra finch, which had a testicle on the right and an ovary on the left. Its entire body was split down the middle between female and male, with hormones from both gonads running through the blood.^[88] This is an example of mosaicism or chimerism.

This extreme example of hermaphroditism is quite rare.

Ovotestes[link]

Though naturally occurring true hermaphroditism in humans is unknown, there is, on the other hand, a spectrum of forms of ovotestes. The varieties include having two ovotestes or one ovary and one ovotestis, often in the form of streak gonads. Phenotype is not determinable from the ovotestes; in some cases, the appearance is "fairly typically female"; in others, it is "fairly typically male," and it may also be "fairly in-between in terms of genital development."^[89]

Intersex activist Cheryl Chase is an example of someone with ovotestes.^[63]

Other diagnostic signs[link]

In order to help in classification, methods other than a genitalia inspection can be performed:

For instance, a karyotype display of a tissue sample may determine which of the causes of intersex is prevalent in the case.

Management[link]

Clinical management of intersex can be categorized into one of the following two:^[90]

1. Treatments: Restore functionality (or potential functionality)
2. Enhancements: Give the ability to identify with “mainstream” people, e.g., breast enlargement surgery

However, there are other categorisation systems of management of intersexed, which falls into neither category.^[91]

In any case, the most common procedure is surgery.

Surgery[link]

The exact procedure of the surgery depends on what is the cause of a less common body phenotype in the first place. There is often concern as to whether surgery should be performed at all. A traditional approach to the management of intersexuality has been socially motivated surgery. However, some^[91] (Alice Dreger) say that surgical treatment is socially motivated and, hence, ethically questionable; without evidence, doctors regularly assume that intersexed persons cannot have a clear identity. This is often taken further with parents of intersexed babies advised that without surgery their child will be stigmatized. Further, since almost all such surgeries are undertaken to fashion female genitalia for the child, it is more difficult for the child to present as male if they later select a male gender identity. 20-50% of surgical cases result in a loss of sexual sensation (Newman 1991, 1992).

As convention, surgery is performed at birth. Intersex advocates such as Anne Fausto-Sterling in her Sexing the Body argue surgery on intersexed babies should wait until the child can make an informed decision, and label operation without consent as genital mutilation.

Causes[link]

Typical sex development[link]

The common pathway of sexual differentiation, where a productive human female has an XX chromosome pair, and a productive male has an XY pair, is relevant to the development of intersexed conditions.

During fertilization, the sperm adds either an X (female) or a Y (male) chromosome to the X in the ovum. This determines the genetic sex of the embryo.^[92] During the first weeks of development, genetic male and female fetuses are "anatomically indistinguishable," with primitive gonads beginning to develop during approximately the sixth week of gestation. The gonads, in a "bipotential state," may develop into either testes (the male gonads) or ovaries (the female gonads), depending on the consequent events.^[92] Through the seventh week, female and male fetuses appear identical.

At around eight weeks of gestation, the gonads of an XY embryo differentiate into functional testes, secreting testosterone. Ovarian differentiation, for XX embryos, does not occur until approximately Week 12 of gestation. In normal female differentiation, the Müllerian duct system develops into the uterus, Fallopian tubes, and inner third of the vagina. In males, the Müllerian duct-inhibiting hormone MIH causes this duct system to regress. Next, androgens cause the development of the Wolffian duct system, which develops into the vas deferens, seminal vesicles, and ejaculatory ducts.^[92] By birth, the typical fetus has been completely "sexed" male or female, the hormones and genital development remaining consistent with the genetic sex.

Conditions[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2010)

The final body appearance does not always correspond with what is dictated by the genes. In other words, there is sometimes an incongruity between genotypic (chromosomal) and phenotypic sex. Citing medical research regarding other factors that influence sexual differentiation, the Intersex Society of North America challenges the XY sex-determination system's assumption that chromosomal sex is the determining factor of a person's "true" biological sex.^[93]

Complications[link]

In the cases where nonfunctional testes are present, there is a risk that these develop cancer. Therefore, doctors either remove them by orchidectomy or monitor them carefully. This is the case for instance in androgen insensitivity syndrome.

See also[link]

• 17-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase deficiency
• Declaration of Montreal
• Disorders of sex development
• Gender roles
• Gender identity
• Gynandromorph
• Hypogonadism
• Sexual differentiation
• Sex differences in humans
• Third sex
• Transsexualism
• Yogyakarta Principles

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Beh, Hazel Glenn, Milton Diamond. 2000. An Emerging Ethical and Medical Dilemma: Should Physicians Perform Sex Assignment on Infants with Ambiguous Genitalia?. Michigan Journal of Gender & Law, Volume 7 (1): 1–63, 2000.
• A Human Rights Investigation into the medical "normalization" of intersex people – a report of a hearing of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission (PDF format)

• Blackless M, Charuvastra A, Derryck A, Fausto-Sterling A, Lauzanne K, Lee E (2000). "How sexually dimorphic are we? Review and synthesis". Am J Hum Biol 12 (2): 151–166. DOI:10.1002/(SICI)1520-6300(200003/04)12:2<151::AID-AJHB1>3.0.CO;2-F. PMID 11534012. http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/issuetoc?ID=69504032. 

• Dreger AD, Chase C, Sousa A, Gruppuso PA, Frader J; Chase; Sousa; Gruppuso; Frader (2005). "Changing the nomenclature/taxonomy for intersex: a scientific and clinical rationale". J. Pediatr. Endocrinol. Metab. 18 (8): 729–33. DOI:10.1515/JPEM.2005.18.8.729. PMID 16200837. 

• Dreifus, Claudia (2001-01-02). "A CONVERSATION WITH – Anne Fausto-Sterling; Exploring What Makes Us Male or Female; New York Times (January 2, 2001)". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DE2D6143BF931A35752C0A9679C8B63. Retrieved 2007-12-09. 

• Sax, Leonard. How common is intersex? A response to Anne Fausto-Sterling. J Sex Research 39:174-9, 2002

• Schultheiss, Dirk; Herrmann, Thomas; Jonas, Udo (March 2006). "Early Photo-Illustration of a Hermaphrodite by the French Photographer and Artist Nadar in 1860". The Journal of Sexual Medicine 3 (2): 355–360. DOI:10.1111/j.1743-6109.2005.00157.x. 

• (2004) The Evolution of Self-Fertile Hermaphroditism: The Fog Is Clearing. PLoS Biol 3(1): e30.

External links[link]

• Accord Alliance
• Advocates for Informed Choice (AIC)
• Organisation Intersex International (OII)
• Intersex South Africa (ISSA)
• Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome Support Group (AISSG)
• Bodies Like Ours
• Consortium on the Management of Disorders of Sex Development
• Intersex Society of North America
• Intersex Initiative
• Male and Female Sign (Symbol for Intersexuality in character encoding standard Unicode)
• Channel4 (UK), 4Health: Intersexuality – Breaking the Taboo
• GeneReviews/NCBI/NIH/UW entry on 46,XX Testicular Disorder of Sex Development
• GeneReviews/NCBI/NIH/UW entry on 46,XY Disorder of Sex Development and 46,XY Complete Gonadal Dysgenesis

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