STRIVE for Kids Program

The STRIVE for Kids Program combines expertise from an interdisciplinary team of endocrinologists, psychologists, geneticists and more to support comprehensive care for people with differences in sex development (DSD), variations in sex characteristics (VSC) and other conditions that may affect genitourinary (GU) development or reproduction.

Your child may be referred to the STRIVE for Kids Program at CHOP if they have features or symptoms that could be related to DSD, VSC, pubertal concerns (i.e., lack or stalled puberty) or other endocrine and urologic concerns. This clinic, the Supportive Team approach to ReproductIVE (STRIVE) variations program, combines the expertise from the Division of Endocrinology, the Adrenal and Puberty Center, Psychology, Urology, and the Roberts Individualized Medical Genetics Center.

Why Choose Us?

The STRIVE for Kids Program at CHOP is one of the busiest programs in the country working with children with differences in sex development (DSD) and genitourinary (GU) development.

Conditions We Treat

  • Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome
  • 46, XY or 46, XX Gonadal Dysgenesis (Ambiguous genitalia)
  • Sex chromosome differences (sex chromosome chimerism, mosaic Turner syndrome, mixed gonadal dysgenesis)
  • 46 XX, SRY+
  • Ovotesticular DSD
  • Pituitary differences: Ectopic Pituitary, or Hypopituitarism that also results in hypogonadotropic hypogonadism or microphallus  
  • 5-alpha Reductase Deficiency
  • Intersex traits
  • Rare genetic conditions that affect testosterone biosynthesis
  • Severe hypospadias (also called penoscrotal hypospadias)
  • Microphallus (also called micropenis)
  • Clitoromegaly
  • Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome
  • Testicular regression syndrome (bilateral vanishing testis)
  • Persistent Müllerian duct syndrome
  • Absent or delayed puberty: hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, Kallmann syndrome, testicular failure, primary amenorrhea, primary ovarian failure, hypergonadotropic hypogonadism
  • Anti-Müllerian hormone deficiency

Some people consider girls with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) or Turner syndrome and boys with Klinefelter syndrome as part of DSD. At CHOP, we have separate dedicated programs for children with these disorders.

Our Team

The STRIVE for Kids Program is made up of an interdisciplinary team of professionals from Endocrinology, the Adrenal and Puberty Center, Genetics, Urology and others work together to ensure a continuity of care and individualized treatments for your child with differences of sex development.

Effective management of disorders of sex development requires a multidisciplinary team of professionals from endocrinology, genetics, urology, social work, psychology, nursing and others all working together to ensure a continuity of care – from counseling before birth to treatment into adulthood. To do this, we have our STRIVE for Kids clinic members work closely with many other divisions of the hospital to ensure optional care for our patients and families. Our core team is included below.


Next Steps
Endocrinology Appointments and Referrals
Urology Appointments and Referrals