skin disorders
Hairiness
Treatment of Hairiness
Treatment of the underlying condition, including stopping or changing drugs that cause hairiness Bleaching or hair removal for cosmetic enhancement Hormone therapy The underlying condition is treated or corrected. For example, drugs that may cause hirsutism are stopped or changed. Treatment for the excess hair is unnecessary unless women wish to minimize or remove it for cosmetic reasons. If excess hair growth is not related to increased levels of male hormones, physical methods are used to remove the hair. If increased levels of male hormones are the cause, hormone therapy is needed in addition to physical methods. Several methods are available. Depilationremoves the part of the hair above the surface of the skin. Methods include shaving and over-the-counter creams, which may containbarium sulfateand/or calcium thioglycolate. involves removing intact hairs with their roots. Methods to temporarily remove hairs include tweezing, plucking, waxing, and epilating devices used at home. Some methods have longer-lasting, sometimes permanent effects, but the treatments often must be repeated. These methods include electrolysis, thermolysis, and Other methods . Usually, hormones used to treat hirsutism must be taken for a long time because most of the disorders that cause high male hormone levels cannot be cured. These hormones include birth control pills and drugs that block the effects of male hormones, such asfinasterideorspironolactone. Women who are pregnant or who could become pregnant should not take a drug that blocks male hormones because it can cause feminine characteristics to develop in a male fetus. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists (such asleuprolide) can be used if the ovaries are producing extremely high levels of male hormones, but use of these drugs requires close supervision by a gynecologist or an endocrinologist. Corticosteroids can be used to reduce levels of male hormones produced by adrenal gland tumors. Bleachingis an alternative to hair removal. It is inexpensive and works well when women have only a small amount of excess hair. Bleaches lighten the color of the hair, making it less noticeable. Several types of hair-bleaching products are available. Most products containhydrogen peroxide. Eflornithinecream,applied twice a day, slows the rate of hair growth and, with long-term use, may increase the amount of time between hair removal treatments. 