Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many children have been prescribed puberty blockers in each of the last 10 years.

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists or ‘puberty blockers’ are used to treat several medical conditions in children and young people. These include precocious puberty, some forms of cancer, endometriosis and gender dysphoria. Information on the clinical indication for which these medications have been prescribed is not held centrally.

The following table shows the number of identifiable patients where gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists for all purposes for children aged under 18 years old has been prescribed and dispensed in primary and secondary care prescribing and dispensing in the community in England in each year from 2015/16 to September 2022. Data is not held prior to April 2015.

Source: NHS Business Services Authority

Note:

Prescriptions have only been included where a National Health Service number has been identified during processing and an age has been recorded. The same patients may appear in multiple years.