Early puberty in Williams syndrome

Pubertal development was evaluated in nine males and 16 females with Willia ms syndrome (WS). Our results indicate that puberty in WS occurred earlier than in published population controls; specifically, 90% of menstruating fe males reached menarche and 83% of pubertal males showed Tanner III pubic ha ir development prior to the age of 12 years. The sequence of pubertal devel opment was normal, bone age was always consistent with, or in excess of, ch ronological age, and there was evidence of central (hypothalamic-pituitary mediated) activation as the cause of early puberty in a subset of subjects. Clin Dysmorphol 8: 117-121 (C) 1999 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.