Hirsutism: Diagnosis and management
Abstract Background: Hirsutism is defined as excess hair growth in androgen-dependent areas of the body in women. Objective: This article provides an updated review of hirsutism, focusing on the etiologies, clinical features, approach to diagnostic evaluation, and treatment options. Methods: The Pub...
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Published in | Gender medicine Vol. 7; no. 2; pp. 79 - 87 |
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Main Authors | , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
New York, NY
EM Inc USA
01.04.2010
Elsevier |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Abstract Background: Hirsutism is defined as excess hair growth in androgen-dependent areas of the body in women. Objective: This article provides an updated review of hirsutism, focusing on the etiologies, clinical features, approach to diagnostic evaluation, and treatment options. Methods: The PubMed database was searched for English-language articles published from 1981 to the present, using the terms hirsutism, polycystic ovarian syndrome, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, hirsutism diagnosis, and hirsutism treatment . Reference lists from review articles on hirsutism during this time period were also examined. Results: While there are many causes of hirsutism, the majority of patients have a benign process that may be idiopathic. In some circumstances, hirsutism is a sign of functional ovarian hyperandrogenism or congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Even more rarely, it is the presenting sign of an internal malignancy. Conclusions: Hirsutism clinically presents in women as excessive hair growth in androgen-dependent areas. It is a particularly important diagnosis to make, because it often significantly affects a woman's perception of her femininity and less commonly can be a sign of an underlying malignancy or a cutaneous manifestation of a condition with significant cardiovascular or other morbidity. A variety of treatments exist to help minimize the appearance of unwanted hair. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-3 content type line 23 ObjectType-Review-1 |
ISSN: | 1550-8579 1878-7398 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.genm.2010.04.002 |