Hypertrichosis is excessive hair growth on any parts of the body, including those where hair growth is not caused by the action of androgens. Unlike hirsutism, which is observed only in women, hypertrichosis is diagnosed in both sexes in different age categories. The cause may be congenital mutations caused by various adverse effects on the fetus during pregnancy. Pathology can develop in some diseases, as a result of TBI, with the use of a number of medications. Diagnosis of hypertrichosis implies a comprehensive dermatological and hormonal examination of the patient. Treatment depends on the etiology of hypertrichosis. Removal of excessively growing hair is possible by electroepilation.
ICD 10
L68 Hypertrichosis
Meaning
Hypertrichosis is excessive hair growth on any parts of the body, including those where hair growth is not caused by the action of androgens. Unlike hirsutism, which is observed only in women, the disease is diagnosed in both sexes in different age categories.
Causes
Genetic mutations, in which the structure of epithelial cells changes and they acquire the ability to transform into epidermal cells, are a common cause of this pathology. The mutations are caused by the incorrect course of pregnancy, infectious diseases in the first trimester, in the future the mutated gene is fixed in the genome and becomes the cause of hypertrichosis in subsequent generations.
Modern observations in the field of trichology suggest that the symptoms of the disease may appear due to the awakening of hair follicles, which is a harbinger of malignant tumors. Sometimes disease is detected several years before the appearance of the tumor and 90% of patients eventually reveal various oncological processes.
The use of drugs from the group of streptomycins, cephalosporins, penicillins, corticosteroids and psoralenovyh, have a side effect in the form of signs of hypertrichosis. The disease is one of the symptoms of traumatic brain injuries, dermatomycosis, epidermolysis bullosa. With nervous exhaustion and anorexia nervosa, the symptoms can be especially pronounced.
After injuries, including thermal ones, local hypertrichosis may occur at the site of the scar. At the same time, the remaining parts of the body have normal hair. Traumatic hypertrichosis can occur due to constant pulling of hair in the face area. As a result, fluffy hair becomes coarser, thicker and darker, their more pronounced growth is noted.
Malformations of the bone system, for example, splitting of the vertebral arch and malformations of the psyche are often combined with clinical manifestations of this disease.
Symptoms of hypertrichosis
Excessive hair growth manifests itself in places where it is not considered the norm, taking into account age, gender and ethnicity. Thus, the growth of hair on the legs and thighs in Mediterranean women is the norm.
In men, excess hair growth manifests on the back and shoulders and is a symptom of atavism. In the form of atavism, hypertrichosis manifests itself immediately after birth. The baby has a large amount of long or fluffy hair. At the same time, the face and palms may also be covered with hair. Previously, such children were killed, but now this condition is being treated quite successfully.
Children are more often diagnosed with nevi. Limited hair growth in children and adults can manifest itself in the form of eyebrow fusion. In men, it manifests itself in the form of excessive hair growth on the face, back and legs.
Diagnosis and treatment
For an accurate diagnosis, manifestations alone are not enough. It is necessary to exclude the hormonal nature of the disease and hirsutism. In addition to visiting a dermatologist, you will need to be examined by an endocrinologist and gynecologist. As a result, an individual treatment regimen is selected.
If hormonal disorders are not detected, then the treatment consists in hair removal. Self-correction in the face area with tweezers and wax plates leads to increased symptoms. The only reliable method of therapy is electric hair removal.
In particular, in children before the end of puberty, hair bleaching with 3% hydrogen peroxide is used for correction, or excess hair is removed with special creams.
For the period of correction with the help of electric hair removal, it is necessary to abandon other methods of hair removal. A needle bent at right angles is inserted deep into the follicle and an electric discharge is applied to the hair bulb. They also act on several nearby hairs. After removing the needle, the hairs are carefully removed with tweezers. They must come out on their own without any effort, otherwise the procedure must be repeated. The electroepilation session takes about half an hour. In one session, from several to several dozen hairs are removed, depending on the sensitivity of the patient to the procedure. So during the year they do about 60 procedures, epilation of the area above the upper lip will take from three months to six months, after which the symptoms will disappear without a trace. Many people resort to this procedure for hirsutism, but this is ineffective, since the pathology occurs due to hormonal disorders, and the hair grows back.
If epilation is painful, then resort to local anesthesia. Edema and minor erythema after the procedure disappear during the day. For the entire period of electroepilation, it is necessary to use sunscreens to prevent spot hyperpigmentation.
Since the main cause of the disease is a gene mutation, research in the field of genome correction will help develop new treatment methods in which future generations will be spared the likelihood of its occurrence.
Literature
- Lorette G., Maruani A. Acquired hypertrichosis lanuginosa // N Engl J Med. — 2006. — № 25. — Р. 2696. link
- Yohannan M. D., Hilgeman J., Allsbrook K. Barber-say syndrome: a confirmed case of TWIST2 gene mutation // Clinical Case Reports. — 2017. — № 7. — Р. 1167–1169.link
- Pavone Р., Praticò A. D., Falsaperla R. et al. Congenital generalized hypertrichosis: the skin as a clue to complex malformation syndromes // Ital J Pediatr. — 2015. — Vol. 41. — P. 55.ссылка
- Saleh D., Yarrarapu S. N., Cook C. Hypertrichosis // StatPearls Publishing. — 2022.link
- Ferriman D., Gallwey J. D. Clinical assessment of body hair growth in women // J Clin Endocrinol Metab. — 1961. — Vol. 21. — Р. 1440–1447. ссылка
