ESPE Abstracts

Background: Decreasing age at the onset of puberty is observed worldwide, several countries report also increasing incidence trends of central precocious puberty (CPP), and some observed an importantly higher number of CPP cases during the COVID19 pandemic. Scarce data report also rising trends in isolated precocious adrenarche (IPA) and isolated precocious telarche (IPT).

Objectives: To determine the national incidence and incidence trends of CPP, IPA and persistent/progressive IPT in Slovenia.

Population and Methods: In a retrospective study, data were collected from the electronic system of the only national pediatric endocrinology referral center at University Children's Hospital in Ljubljana, using the corresponding MKB10 codes and verified by examining each individual medical documentation. The incidence was assessed annualy between 2011 and 2021 for CPP, and between 2014 and 2021 for IPA and persistent/progressive IPT. The risk population was defined as girls aged 7 years or younger and boys aged 8 years or younger living in Slovenia in a given year. The incidence was calculated as (new cases (in a given year)/at-risk population (in the same year)) X 100,000.

Results: The overall incidence of CPP was 23.11/100,000 in girls and 4.42/100,000 in boys. While 83% of girls had idiopathic CPP, 77% of boys had an organic cause of the disease. A balanced sex distribution of non-idiopathic CPP cases was noted (34 girls and 30 boys). In girls (but not in boys), the annual incidence was rising from 12.57/100,000 in 2011 to 34.31/100,000 in 2021. During the COVID19 pandemic the incidence trend was not further accelerated, incidence in 2019 being 29.62/100,000. The incidence of IPA was 37.82/100,000 in girls and 5.21/100,000 in boys, showing an increasing trend only in boys. The incidence of persistent/progressive IPT in girls was stable, being 6.38/100,000.

Conclusion: An almost 3-fold rise in the CPP incidence in girls was observed in only 11 years of observation. No such trends in girls were noted in IPA and persistent/progressive IPT, indicating that etiological factors associated with these conditions differ. During the COVID19 pandemic the CPP incidence in girls continued to rise; however, the trend did not seem to be further accelerated as compared to the previous years.