Chemical castration

Chemical castration is castration via anaphrodisiacdrugs, whether to reduce libido and sexual activity, to treat cancer, or otherwise. Unlike surgical castration, where the gonads are removed through an incision in the body, chemical castration does not remove organs and is not a form of sterilization.

Chemical castration is generally reversible when treatment is discontinued, although permanent effects in body chemistry can sometimes be seen, as in the case of bone density loss increasing with length of use of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA). In men, chemical castration reduces sex drive and the capacity for sexual arousal, side effects of some drugs may include depression, suicidal ideation, hot flashes, anemia, infertility, increase in body fat and higher risks of cardiovascular diseases and osteoporosis. In women, chemical castration acts by decreasing testosterone levels in order to lower their sex drive, side effects include the deflation of breast glands, expansion of the size of the nipple and shrinking of bone mass.

Several papers have discussed studies of chemical castration as a treatment for paraphilic disorders and hypersexuality. These conditions (commonly diagnosed in sex offenders) are believed to contribute toward offenders' recidivism. Studies showed reduction of criminal behavior, with several critics arguing for bias in study design. Medroxyprogesterone acetate-based drugs for this treatment remains an off-label use.

In the 1990s and beyond, state legislatures in the United States of America have authorized prison and parole authorities to impose chemical castration (via DMPA or equivalent antiandrogen) as a condition of parole or supervised release for sex offenders (particularly those targeting children). The measures are adopted under pressure to deliver "law and order" policies. However, due process and medical ethics concerns led correctional officials in the states that authorized chemical castration in the 1990s to admit they rarely use this authority, with medroxyprogesterone acetate one of several potential psychopharmacological treatments offered to parole-eligible convicts before release. Two states that first approved chemical castration in the 1990s (Oregon and Georgia) later revoked authorization.