A normal body hair is present in all people in certain areas of the body in a natural way. However, strong hairiness or increased body hairiness becomes disturbing when it is characterized by excessive hair growth.
What is strong hairiness (hirsutism)?
Heavy hair growth on the body is also hidden behind the terms hypertrichosis, hirsutism and virilization. The prefix hyper- denotes an excess. Heavy hairiness, hidden behind the term hypertrichosis, is characterized by the appearance of denser hair growth and excessive hairiness on atypical parts of the body. Increased hairiness is diagnosed when hair appears on the chest, thighs and as unfeminine beard hair. In male patients, increased hairiness is seen when there is excessive hair growth on the abdomen and back, especially on the neck. Women with increased hairiness also suffer from increased hair growth on the upper lip (see lady’s beard) as well as on the chin. Some women also have increased hair on the forearms and in the butt crease.
Causes
Only after a clear clarification of the symptoms can the causal relationships between increased hair and the actual triggers be concluded. In hypertrichosis, the causes are quite different from those of increased hairiness in hirsutism. Hypertrichosis as increased hairiness occurs when the affected person has a localized, more or less pronounced body hairiness distributed over the entire body. This can be genetically determined and resemble male hair. Causes of increased hairiness include circulatory disorders, hereditary diseases, blood disorders, hormone-secreting tumors, and various medications. A special form of increased hairiness is virilization. This is accompanied by other physical changes in women in terms of masculinization. The causes of increased hairiness in hirsutism are an excess of male sex hormones in women. Genetic predispositions as well as the use of anabolic steroids in doping also lead to increased hairiness in women and in men. Tumor-like growths on the adrenal glands or ovaries and androgen-containing drugs also promote increased hairiness.
Symptoms, complaints, and signs
Hirsutism presents as a male pattern of hair distribution in women. This can include different areas of the body, but usually refers to all areas of the body where increased hair growth is expected in men. For example, especially on the face, there is increased hair growth on the upper lip, sideburns and around the chin. Although light downy hair is also common on a woman’s face, hirsutism results in the transformation of this downy hair into stronger terminal hair. In addition, there is increased body hair in the area of the sternum and around the areolas. The forearms and lower legs are also more hairy. From the navel in the direction of the pubic hair comes to hair lines, which can be more or less zigzag. The pubic hair is more pronounced and leaves the triangular shape that is aesthetically considered ideal. The pubic hair rather merges into the thighs – and possibly into the hair there. In many cases, hirsutism cannot be distinguished from normal body hair. Thus the body hair in women also depends very much on genetic influences. A disease value receives the stronger body hair therefore only if it is very conspicuous or represents a problem for the affected woman herself.
Complications
The excessive body hair itself is usually associated with psychological rather than physical impairments. However, when it comes to the trigger for hirsutism, it can be a very serious disorder where complications are also to be expected. For example, hirsutism may be due to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCO), one of the most common hormonal disorders in women. In affected patients, there is an enlargement of the ovary due to cyst formation. This is due to the fact that although many eggs mature, ovulation does not ultimately occur.Therefore, the eggs remain in the follicles instead of migrating to the fallopian tube after ovulation. The follicles enlarge and develop cysts, which can lead to infertility. If hirsutism is a result of adrenogenital syndrome (AGS), there can be a number of very distressing accompanying symptoms. These include a strong masculinization up to the formation of pseudopenis, strong and rapid body growth in girls or the premature onset of puberty as well as an increased susceptibility to infections or regular hypoglycemia. Since a strong body hair is perceived as disfiguring by many affected persons, psychological problems, in particular depressions requiring therapy, must also be expected. Even suicide attempts occur in rare cases.
When should you see a doctor?
A doctor does not need to be consulted in all cases of severe body hair. Under normal circumstances, body hair is something natural that has no disease value. Therefore, it is not necessarily a disease if the hair growth is more intense in different parts of the body than in other people. If the hair is perceived as unpleasant or annoying, it can be removed by regular shaving or depilation. A visit to the doctor is only necessary if the affected person experiences the hairiness as distressing. If psychological problems or a general feeling of discomfort occur, a doctor should be consulted. In the case of excessive hair growth occurring on unusual parts of the body, clarification of the cause with a doctor is advisable. There may be genetic, hormonal, but also other disorders of the organism, which must be diagnosed and treated. In case of hirsutism there is an excess of male hormones in a woman. Therefore, especially women should initiate a cause study in case of a strong hairiness in places like the upper lip. If there are also growths or swellings on the body, this confirms the suspicion of an irregular hormone balance. A blood sample is taken to determine the proportion of male sex hormones in the organism. In case of libido disorders or irregularities of the menstrual cycle, a doctor should also be consulted.
Treatment and therapy
To combat a strong hairiness, different therapeutic options can be considered. In addition to external treatments against increased hairiness through cosmetic and beauty procedures, drug treatments can also be offered. These result depending on the findings of the diagnostic clarification and the extent of the increased hairiness as well as the suffering of the affected person. Since patients are under enormous pressure of suffering and are often desperate in the case of increased hair growth, it is important to carry out diagnostics as quickly as possible and to initiate treatments against the increased hair growth as soon as possible. Short-term effective procedures for the elimination of increased hair growth are shaving, epilation and sclerotherapy of the hair roots by electric and usually laser-assisted epilation. In this context, the hair roots are killed so that increased hair can no longer appear in the treated areas. If the causes of increased hair growth are known as hirsutism or hypertrichosis, the therapy can be targeted. In the case of increased hairiness, discontinuation of the suspected medication may be helpful. Medications that promote increased hairiness can be replaced, if possible, with other drugs that achieve a similar effect but are not characterized by this side effect. As helpful drug treatments against increased hairiness, hormone therapies counteracting excessive hairiness are also useful. This variation aims to reduce the concentration of male sex hormones. If hormone-producing tumors are the triggers for increased hairiness, surgical treatment may promise success in stopping the excessive hair growth.
Prevention
As part of preventive measures, severe hair growth can be partially avoided. However, this is only possible if the triggers for increased hair growth are only due to external factors. Avoiding the intake of anabolic steroids by women and the administration of hair growth-triggering drugs is also important.In-depth diagnostic clarifications and the prescription of special medication against polycystic ovary syndrome by the gynecologist are recommended as a preventive measure, since the increased hair growth is already apparent during puberty.
Aftercare
Hirsutism, i.e. excessive body hair, depends on the causative disease in the aftercare and therefore varies greatly. If the causative disease can be successfully treated, hirsutism will completely disappear within a few weeks to months afterward, without the need for further measures. In the case of a hormone disorder, it may be necessary to take appropriate hormones for many years or for the rest of the patient’s life in order to at least reduce hair growth permanently. An endocrinologist, who can observe the hormone levels in the body and control them by regular examinations of the blood values, is particularly helpful here. Depending on the cause, it is not always possible to achieve a cure for hirsutism. In this case, the focus should not be on a mere aftercare, but the permanent symptomatic treatment. Long-term methods of hair removal such as laser treatments should be weighed up and considered by the patient. General practitioners and cosmetic studios in particular offer detailed consultations for this. Laser treatments are performed in several recurring sessions. Aftercare is mainly focused on skin care, other special measures are usually not necessary. In the case of hormonal changes, hirsutism may recur and treatment must be performed again in various ways.
This is what you can do yourself
A strong hairiness is usually not a medical problem but rather a cosmetic one. Affected people suffer psychologically from the changed appearance – especially if it can not be hidden by clothing. Avoidance of certain social situations often determines everyday life. Health insurance companies only pay for the treatment of severe hair loss in severe cases. However, sufferers can improve their situation themselves by taking various measures. Regular shaving of the affected areas is considered promising. However, visible recovery is short-lived. Already after a few days the body hair grows back. For a much longer period of time, the hairs disappear during waxing. Since the root is also pulled out, those affected do not suffer from the cosmetic problems for about four weeks. Equally suitable are epilation and bleaching. Both procedures promise smooth skin for over four weeks. Those who do not want to perform hair removal themselves can turn to a beauty salon. Self-treatment is not always advisable. If a strong hair growth suddenly appears, one should absolutely visit a doctor. Behind it may be a serious disease.
