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April 6, 2006
Hair, there, everywhere
Superfluous hair growth is a socially and psychologically traumatic condition for women. Known medically as hirsutism, it has been on the rise in recent years, writes Afia Zahoor
Farheen is a 23-year-old girl who feels extremely embarrassed with the heavy hair growth on her chin and eyebrows. “Since the past two years I have experienced a rapid hair growth on my face and body which is beyond my control. I have to wax my chin every week and in between have to live with a thick stubble that must grow long enough to be waxed. I hate my looks and have developed a habit of keeping my chin covered with either my dupatta or my hand.”
Superfluous hair growth is a socially and psychologically traumatic condition for women. Known medically as hirsutism, the condition has been on the rise in recent years.
Women with this problem experience coarse and thick hair growth on the different parts of the body. The most common occurrence of hirsutic hair is on the chin, followed by the cheeks and upper lips.
An estimate in the USA has revealed that 10 per cent of the women there are affected by this disorder, and while there are no confirmed figures for Pakistan, the thriving trend of the laser treatment for removing unwanted hair might give a clue to the statistics.
While superfluous hair growth in women differs among the various races –– being minimal in Europeans and more in Asians –– it is the growth of thick dark hair on the face which causes concern. Often women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCO) have an increased hair growth accompanied by obesity. Treatment for such women is often difficult, painful, and temporary. In many cases the condition resurfaces when medical treatment is stopped.
Detailed medical investigation has revealed that women suffering from irregular menstrual periods, immense stress and anxiety, or ovarian complications are highly prone to hirsutism.
Women who experience a rapid and progressive hair growth accompanied by any of the symptoms mentioned above should immediately consult a gynaecologist and a dermatologist. Timing is important in the treatment of the syndrome as therapy can be prolonged. Often the best recourse is a blend of medical and cosmetic treatments. However, in severe cases, there is no permanent treatment unless the underlying hormonal imbalance is treated or therapy removes the stress factors that worsen the condition.
Hormone therapy targets the increased levels of hormone androgen which stimulates thick hair growth on the body.
Stress relief therapy is crucial as hirsutism often traps the patient into a vicious circle of being obsessed with unwanted hair hence causing more hair growth. Constant worrying about the condition often leads the patient into taking desperate and ineffective measures for hair removal which can further compound the problem.
Dr Seema Zia, a dermatologist agrees that cases of hirsutism are on the rise primarily due to the increase in PCO. Explaining the condition, she says, “Nearly 70 per cent of the cases for women with hirsutism are hereditary or familial. Of the remaining 30 per cent, PCO is a big contributing factor and this condition has been prevalent since the past 20 years. As a dermatologist, I treat the patients for PCO in combination with a prescribed treatment by a gynaecologist.”
Women with hirsutism have immense psychological pressures to deal with. Zia further adds, “As the ideal perception of female beauty does not involve coarse facial hair, the patients feel socially stigmatised. They usually exhibit a low self-esteem and have a heightened awareness and consciousness towards their condition in a negative way. More often, if a patient herself does not feel overly conscious, she is made to feel so by the people.”
Some experts believe that the rise in the condition is due to the changes in the lifestyle over the past decade. Rising inflation and pressure to maintain good standards of living have brought more women into the work-force. It has delayed their marriageable age by several years and more married women prefer to wait for a while before starting a family. Conversely, in the previous generations women got married early and most cysts were treated with the early pregnancies. These days females are also more vulnerable to work related stress which is a contributing factor.
Cosmetic procedures for hair removal include threading and plucking which are temporary and usually result in open pores, hence thickening the hair growth further and eventually leading to pigmentation. Shaving is unadvisable as it creates rashes and can aggravate the problem. Waxing can slow down the hair growth in many cases and does work well for many women, but it can also be painful.
Laser treatment should be acquired from a highly skilled cosmetologist as high frequency beams can leave scars. It, however, reduces the hair growth permanently in most of the cases and in severe hirsutism can decrease the hair growth and its thickness by at least 50 per cent. However, laser therapy can be painful for women with severe hirsutism. Electrolysis is considered as the best available alternative especially for severe hirsutism, however, this therapy requires time, numerous sittings and endurance to pain.
Hirsutic women must understand that cosmetic therapies without medical treatment from a gynaecologist are useless as the growth comes back again with the onset of cysts or stressors.n
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