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What is Excess Hair Growth
Excessive hair growth, as the term self explains, is the growth of more than normal body hair. If hair is growing in the usual places, that usually does not constitute a problem.
But excessive hair growth happens in places where it should not normally be, such as facial hair in women. It constitutes a problem which needs to be duly investigated and treated since it may be symptomatic of some more serious underlying medical condition.
Excessive hair growth can happen because of following reasons:
HirsutismHirsutism happens when a woman develops excess hair in the places only adult men usually have hair. In other words these women (described as hirsute women) have a male pattern of body hair. For most women, the tendency towards hirsutism is inherited. Hirsutism is usually noticed around puberty, or at menopause, but mild hirsutism can occur at any age.
Why it HappensMost commonly, the reason for Hirsutism is either excessive secretion of a group of hormones called androgens or ultra sensitivity of the hair growing structure (hair follicle) to these hormones. Androgen disorders occur in 5% to 10% of all women. Women with hirsutism may also have an increased secretion rate of testosterone and androstenedione from their ovaries or adrenal glands.
VirulismExcessive hair growth is one of many symptoms of this particular medical condition. Other symptoms include voice deepening, re-shaping of female body into male one, male pattern pubic hair in females, receding hairline, and clitoris enlargement.
Why it HappensVirulism is also caused by androgen hormone activity like hirsutism, but it is a more extreme problem that involves more symptoms than just excessive hair growth. Virulism happens because of very high levels of male hormones such as testosterone in females. Hirsutism is a problem just limited to excess hair growth and is associated with more moderate levels of "male-hormone" elevation or even normal levels.
HyperandrogenismThis is basically one of the causes behind hirsutism and virulism.
Why it HappensA female is said to have this condition when she has abnormally excessive levels of male sexual hormones. This may lead to such changes in body or hair patterns as seen in hirsutism and virulism.
HypertrichosisThis is an excessive hair growth condition that can affect both men and women. A person is said to have this when he/she has an excessive quantity of hair in a location on his/her body compared to other people having the same demographic properties such as, sex, age, and ethnic background.
It can be generalized, with excessive hair developing on most of the torso and limbs, or it can affect only one area of skin. As with most of the hair growth disorders it may be mild or it may present as a more severe form.
Why it HappensThere are a wide range of possible causes for hypertrichosis, however, androgen hormone activity is not involved as with hirsutism and virulism. Causes can include anything from injury and pressure induced hair growth to spinal defects or cancer.
When one talks about excessive hair it usually means hirsutism in a woman. Let’s see how a medical practitioner diagnoses this condition.
In most cases the doctor would check out the following.
Clinical Diagnostic Features of Hirsutism
The extent of hirsutism is evaluated using the Ferriman-Gallwey score which defines the amount and location of hair growth on a woman to come up with a score.
In this system the body is divided into nine regions and the extent of hair in each region is assigned a value ranging from 0 (no hair) to 4 (full male pattern hair). If the total score exceeds 8, the person is said to have hair growth over the limit of normalcy. If the total score exceeds 19, the person has a severe case of hirsutism.
Onset RateThe extent of hirsutism is evaluated using the Ferriman-Gallwey score which defines the amount and location of hair growth on a woman to come up with a score.
MenstruationMany patients with hirsutism may also suffer from some problem with menstruation. The more severe the problem the greater is the risk of it leading to the presence of something more serious.
WeightMany patients with hirsutism also suffer from an excessive weight problem. This significantly affects excess androgen hormone production and insulin resistance and excess weight also makes the body more resistant to treatment.
GeneticsIn reality, this excessive hair growth might be a consequence of ethnic/genetic factors. Some women have a family history of excessive hair growth and to some extent this can be traced to genetics and ethnicity. Some ethnic groups tend to have very little body hair growth, while others, such as Mediterranean peoples, have rather more.
Many women have what they think is excessive hair growth and they go for permanent laser hair removal treatment or some other remedy such as electrolysis or hormonal treatment.
All in all if somebody perceives herself to be suffering from an excess hair problem, she should consult a qualified medical practitioner as soon as possible as it might be indicative of something more serious.
Hair Biology Facts