Orthopedics - Oleksa A.P. 2006

Metabolic Bone Diseases
Effects of Sex Hormones on the Skeleton
Hypergenitalism

Hyperfunction of the Gonads leads to precocious Puberty and the premature development of secondary sexual characteristics (such as body Hair), which rapidly progress to adult levels (Fig. 92). X-rays may reveal the premature appearance of ossification centers, initially resulting in even excessive bone growth. However, these intense processes trigger the premature Ossification of the epiphyseal growth plates, halting longitudinal bone growth.

Consequently, in gonad hyperfunction, premature bone synostosis results in disproportionately short limbs, lacking the typical overall proportions of an adult.

Hyperfunction of the gonads during the growth period is most commonly caused by benign or malignant tumors of these glands, Disorders of the Adrenal Glands, — or the Pineal Gland in boys — as well as following diseases and INJURIES OF THE Testes.

Class="center">

Fig. 92. Precocious puberty due to hypergenitalism in a 4.5-year-old girl.

If the ROOT cause of precocious puberty is eliminated, as noted by Sherishevsky N.A. (1946) and Reinberg S.A. (1964), a reversal process may begin, and the prematurely appeared ossification centers can disappear.

Therefore, Treatment depends on the identified underlying cause of gonadal hyperfunction.



Last update: 10/08/2026

Editorial and Educational Adaptation: This material has been compiled based on the primary/original source text. The project team performed an editorial review, corrected technical inaccuracies, structured sections, and adapted the content for an educational format.

What was processed:

  • elimination of formatting defects (OCR errors, structural breaks, corrupted characters);
  • editorial organization of content;
  • standardization of terminology in accordance with academic sources;
  • verification of factual statements against the original source text.

All mentions of the author, publication year, and origin of the primary text have been preserved in accordance with the source.