Study Suggests Transgender Surgery Does Not Benefit Mental Health

A study from the American Journal of Psychiatry (AJP) suggests that “gender-affirming surgery” does not reduce the need for mental health services.

The Swedish study analyzed the effectiveness of gender-affirming hormone treatments and surgeries on antidepressants and anti-anxiety prescriptions for mental health, doctor visits for those with mood or anxiety disorders, and post-suicide attempts.

The latest study is a correction after first being published in 2019, when its conclusion suggested that transgender surgeries do offer a benefit to mental health.

Reporting from The Public Discourse:

The AJP correction is significant, but the study still suffers from numerous problems. This has been a win for patients insofar as sex-reassignment surgery has been demoted from improving mental health to having no effect. The reanalysis on the other hand showed an increase in treatment for anxiety after surgery. Why was there not also an expected increase in post-surgical depression, as Drs. Malone and Roman argued in their letter to the editor? Increased post-surgical anxiety without an accompanying increased depression rate is a highly unusual finding. Were these subjects also lost to follow-up?

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