It was supposed to be a straightforward case: a 13-year-old Syrian refugee girl was brought by her mother for irregular menstrual cycles. The girl started menstruating 9 months earlier and had 2 periods since then. My colleague, who was attending to the case, was unsuccessful in convincing the mother of the futility of performing a workup at this stage; he offered seeking another opinion for reassurance.
After reviewing the history and clinical examination notes, I asked the mother why she wouldn’t let nature take its course. She hesitated and then explained that her daughter would be getting married in 4 months to her cousin who is older by 10 years, and that he has been working in Lebanon and has a stable place to live. The mother further elaborated that the registration process with the United Nations would speed up if her daughter became pregnant. This meant a guarantee of food coupons and other benefits for the family.