Definitions of intersex in the context of "Intersex"

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⭐ Core Definition: Definitions of intersex

Various criteria have been offered for the definition of intersex, including ambiguous genitalia, atypical genitalia, and differential sexual development. Ambiguous genitalia occurs in roughly 0.05% of all births, usually caused by masculinization or feminization during pregnancy, these conditions range from full androgen insensitivity syndrome to ovotesticular syndrome.

1.7% of people are born with a disorder of sexual development (DSD) as defined by the DSD consortium, such as those with Klinefelter's syndrome. The DSD was specifically made to be as inclusive to all atypical sexual development; not all conditions within the DSD cause sexual ambiguity or affect individuals to the same extent. In other estimates, Definitions are limited to ambiguous conditions in which typical chromosomal categorization patterns is inconsistent with phenotypic sex, or in which the phenotype is not easily classifiable as either male or female," with the prevalence of about 0.018%.

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Definitions of intersex in the context of Intersex people

Intersex people are those born with any of several sex characteristics, including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies". The opposite of intersex is endosex, which describes persons born with sex characteristics that are seen as typically male or female at birth.

Sex assignment at birth usually aligns with a child's external genitalia. The number of births with ambiguous genitals is in the range of 1:4,500–1:2,000 (0.02%–0.05%). Other conditions involve the development of atypical chromosomes, gonads, or hormones. The portion of the population that is intersex has been reported differently depending on which definition of intersex is used and which conditions are included. Estimates often range from 0.018% (one in 5,500 births) to 1.7%. The difference centers on whether conditions in which chromosomal sex matches a phenotypic sex which is clearly identifiable as male or female, such as late onset congenital adrenal hyperplasia (1.5 percentage points) and Klinefelter syndrome, should be counted as intersex. Whether intersex or not, people may be assigned and raised as a girl or boy but then identify with another gender later in life, while most continue to identify with their assigned sex.

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