Sexual maturation in East German girls

Abstract

According to the internationally accepted classification (Tanner, 1962; van Wieringen, 1971), sexual maturation was investigated in 8703 healthy East German girls by means of the status quo method and probit regression analysis. The third, 50th and 97th centiles were calculated for the development of breasts, axillary and pubic hair, and the shape of the hips. The findings were compared with those of recent studies from different European countries. Special attention was paid to the stages at the beginning and at the end of sexual maturation, e.g. B2/B5, AH2/AH3, etc.