| Abstrakt: |
Secular trends in puberty refer to the changes observed over time in the onset and progression of puberty in populations. One of the most notable secular trends in recent years it is the declining age of puberty timing. The secular trend in early breast development (thelarche) refers to the observed phenomenon of girls entering puberty at progressively younger ages over successive generations. The aim of this study is to assess the breast development stages among girls, comparing four ethnicities in the northwestern part of North Macedonia. Material and methods: An assessment of breast development stages was conducted, which included the cross-sectional study evaluation of 480 sampled girls aged 6-13 years from four different ethnicities. Breast development was assessed using Tanner and Whitehouse method which categorizes breast development into five stages (B1 to B5) based on specific physical characteristics. Results: The prevalence of breast development stages according to age shows that B2 increased gradually from 2.6% at 6+ years to 8.0% at 7+, 13.5% at 8+, and 30.6% at 9+. The highest prevalence was observed at 10+ years with 43.1% and at 11+ years with 25.8%. The mean age of reaching breast development stage B2 in the entire sample of girls was 9.38 +/- 1.3 years. Among the four ethnicities, the lowest average age was observed among Roma girls (9.11 +/- 1.19 years), followed by Turkish girls (9.13 +/- 0.63 years), Macedonian girls (9.41 +/- 1.22 years), and Albanian girls (9.43 +/- 1.44 years). Conclusion: At our study the prevalence of stage B2 breast development at 6 and 7 years, is worth emphasizing because the occurrence of secondary sexual characteristics before the age of 8 may indicate a possible sign of early onset of puberty. Early thelarche, occurring before the age of 8, has become a topic of interest due to its potential psychological, social, and long-term health implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
