Etiopathogenetic Hypotheses of Transsexualism

Abstract

Although the condition of transsexualism has existed throughout history, the etiology remained obscured and has spawned debate. With the advent of sophisticated new technologies, brain activity and structure can be envisaged, and hormone-related genetic variants can be analyzed. Thus, older psychosocial theories have been largely discarded in light of new and tantalizing clues that point to a biological mechanism in the formation of atypical gender identity.