Rethinking Youth Gender Medicine
Remarkably Weak Evidence in Youth Gender Medicine
There is no longer any serious scientific debate about the state of evidence underlying the field of youth gender medicine. Previous claims of proven benefits have been invalidated through multiple systematic evidence reviews, while concerns about harms mount.
But evidence has not settled the societal debate over whether these life-changing interventions should continue to be offered to children and young people.
Where Do We Go From Here?
This November 5-7 in Washington, DC, the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine (SEGM) will bring together leading researchers and clinicians—along with patients, parents, and legal experts—for three days of thoughtful discussion of what the evidence shows, where genuine uncertainty remains, and what ethical and responsible care should look like now and in the future.
Conference Speakers
Agenda
Previous SEGM Conferences
Impressions from SEGM | CAN-SG 2026 Conference in London
2026 Rethinking Youth Gender Medicine | London, UK
We’re delighted to announce a conference on Rethinking Youth Gender Medicine: First Do No Harm jointly organised by the Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender and the Society for Evidence Based Gender Medicine.
2025 Youth Gender Distress | Berlin, Germany
Our Berlin conference brought together researchers, clinicians, and academics from more than 20 countries, representing a range of specialties and viewpoints. With over 40 speakers, the event facilitated thoughtful discussion and debate on how to understand and support gender-dysphoric young people.
2024 Psychotherapeutic Approaches | Athens, Greece
The Questioning Gender: Psychotherapeutic Approaches to Youth Gender Dysphoria Conference brought together researchers and clinicians from 19 countries to explore youth gender distress through the lens of adolescent development, co-occurring mental health conditions, and evidence-based practice.
2023 International Perspectives | New York City, USA
The International Perspectives on Evidence-Based Treatment for Gender Dysphoric Youth conference featured more than 30 experts from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Together, these renowned speakers explored the deep divide over how best to support children and adolescents experiencing gender dysphoria.
Other Events
2026 International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (IACAPAP) | Hamburg, Germany
In July 2026, IACAPAP hosted seven symposia on the topic of pediatric gender dysphoria, for the first time acknowledging significant risks and uncertainties associated with endocrine and surgical “affirming” approaches, and discussing the potential for psychotherapy to serve as the primary treatment model for adolescents. SEGM advisors presented on several panels.
2025 Collaboration with European Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry | Strasbourg, France
In the summer of 2025, SEGM helped organize five symposia at the European Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry's conference in Strasbourg, France, in collaboration with the ESCAP Policy Division.
2024 Collaboration with L’Observatoire La Petite Sirene | Paris, France
SEGM co-sponsored a June 2024 conference in Paris with L’Observatoire La Petite Sirene on the subject of The child at the centre of anthropological change: Can the child still grow up?
2023 Collaboration with Tampere University | Tampere, Finland
In June 2023, in partnership with Riittakerttu Kaltiala, Professor of Adolescent Psychiatry and Faculty of Medicine and Health Science Technology, SEGM helped to organize a conference at Tampere University in Finland on the subject of psychotherapeutic approaches to youth gender dysphoria.