Metabolic consequences of gender-affirming hormone therapy in transgender adult persons

As more individuals seek to align their physical characteristics with their gender identity, transgender health care is a growing medical field which is no longer the remit of a few selected clinicians. Gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT) is a mainstay treatment in gender reassignment and its medium- to long-term metabolic sequelae are gradually emerging. Although hampered by the scarcity of prospective controlled studies involving large diverse cohorts, evidence suggests a potential adverse impact for at least some cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. If left unmanaged, this could manifest in a higher CVD events rate for this treatment group. Increased vigilance and awareness among health care professionals about the consequential risks of GAHT are important for proactive mitigation of this. Copyright (c) 2023 John Wiley & Sons.