Summary

WPATH's Standards of Care version 8 (2022) is the most widely cited guideline in transgender medicine, used by clinics, insurers and courts. Written by 119 mostly WPATH-member authors, it backs access to hormones and surgery for adults and, after assessment, for teenagers. It is based on expert agreement, not a careful, complete review of the evidence. It says such a review for teens was "not possible", and it does not say how strong the evidence is behind each piece of advice. Independent checks using a standard tool for judging guidelines rated how carefully it was made, and how independent it was, as low. Court documents later showed that minimum ages were removed at the last minute, after pressure from the American Academy of Pediatrics and US health officials. They also showed WPATH controlled whether the evidence reviews it had ordered from Johns Hopkins got published.

Key findings

• 지침은 18개 장과, WPATH 회원에 외부 단체 출신 16명을 더해 선정한 최종 저자 119명으로 이루어졌으며 2012년 판을 대체합니다.
• 조언은 최소 75%의 동의가 필요한 투표 단계를 거쳐 합의되었고, 각각의 근거가 얼마나 강한지는 밝히지 않은 채 ‘권고’ 또는 ‘제안’으로만 표시되었습니다.
• 청소년 장은 10대에 대한 치료 결과의 전체적이고 신중한 검토가 ‘불가능하다’고 하며, 대신 짧은 일반 개요를 제공합니다.
• 청소년에 대해서는 되돌리기 어려운 치료 전에 철저한 평가와 ‘수년간’ 지속된 성별 불쾌감을 요구하지만, 18세 이전의 음경 성형 수술을 하지 말라는 조언 외에는 최소 연령을 정하지 않습니다.
• 2021년 12월 초안은 호르몬 14세, 유방 제거 15세, 유방 보형물과 얼굴 수술 16세, 생식기 수술 17세의 최소 연령을 제안했으나, 발표 전에 삭제되었습니다.
• 새 장은 논바이너리 사람들과 환관으로 정체화하는 사람들을 다루며, 그들의 거세 접근도 포함합니다.
• 표준 지침 평가 도구를 이용한 독립적 점검은 낮은 점수를 매겼습니다. 잉글랜드 캐스 보고서를 위한 요크 검토에서 얼마나 신중하게 만들어졌는지는 약 35%, 2026년 점검에서는 신중함 39~47%, 독립성 43~44%였습니다.

Abstract

Background: Transgender healthcare is a rapidly evolving interdisciplinary field. In the last decade, there has been an unprecedented increase in the number and visibility of transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people seeking support and gender-affirming medical treatment in parallel with a significant rise in the scientific literature in this area. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) is an international, multidisciplinary, professional association whose mission is to promote evidence-based care, education, research, public policy, and respect in transgender health. One of the main functions of WPATH is to promote the highest standards of health care for TGD people through the Standards of Care (SOC). The SOC was initially developed in 1979 and the last version (SOC-7) was published in 2012. In view of the increasing scientific evidence, WPATH commissioned a new version of the Standards of Care, the SOC-8. Aim: The overall goal of SOC-8 is to provide health care professionals (HCPs) with clinical guidance to assist TGD people in accessing safe and effective pathways to achieving lasting personal comfort with their gendered selves with the aim of optimizing their overall physical health, psychological well-being, and self-fulfillment. Methods: The SOC-8 is based on the best available science and expert professional consensus in transgender health. International professionals and stakeholders were selected to serve on the SOC-8 committee. Recommendation statements were developed based on data derived from independent systematic literature reviews, where available, background reviews and expert opinions. Grading of recommendations was based on the available evidence supporting interventions, a discussion of risks and harms, as well as the feasibility and acceptability within different contexts and country settings. Results: A total of 18 chapters were developed as part of the SOC-8. They contain recommendations for health care professionals who provide care and treatment for TGD people. Each of the recommendations is followed by explanatory text with relevant references. General areas related to transgender health are covered in the chapters Terminology, Global Applicability, Population Estimates, and Education. The chapters developed for the diverse population of TGD people include Assessment of Adults, Adolescents, Children, Nonbinary, Eunuchs, and Intersex Individuals, and people living in Institutional Environments. Finally, the chapters related to gender-affirming treatment are Hormone Therapy, Surgery and Postoperative Care, Voice and Communication, Primary Care, Reproductive Health, Sexual Health, and Mental Health. Conclusions: The SOC-8 guidelines are intended to be flexible to meet the diverse health care needs of TGD people globally. While adaptable, they offer standards for promoting optimal health care and guidance for the treatment of people experiencing gender incongruence. As in all previous versions of the SOC, the criteria set forth in this document for gender-affirming medical interventions are clinical guidelines; individual health care professionals and programs may modify these in consultation with the TGD person.

Conclusion

The SOC-8 guidelines are intended to be flexible to meet the diverse health care needs of transgender and gender diverse people globally. While adaptable, they offer standards for promoting optimal health care and guidance for the treatment of people experiencing gender incongruence. As in all previous versions, the criteria for gender-affirming medical interventions are clinical guidelines, and individual health care professionals and programs may modify them in consultation with the TGD person. Statement 2.1 recommends that health care systems provide medically necessary gender-affirming health care. For adolescents, SOC-8 recommends a comprehensive biopsychosocial assessment and several years of persistent gender incongruence before less reversible treatments, but sets no minimum ages except advising against phalloplasty under 18.