Unwanted hair growth

Every person has about 5 million hair follicles spread over his or her body. It is genetically determined how these hair follicles are spread over the body and what kind of hair grows out of them. Hair-growth is not pleasant for everyone and people can be ashamed of hair in certain places.

There is often unwanted body hair when there is hair in places where people prefer not to have it or when there is too much hair, i.e. excess hair. Whether there is undesired body hair, or excess hair, is mainly a personal opinion and is not medically established.

There are various forms of excess hair and problems with hair growth:

Hidradenitis suppurativa

When a hair follicle is closed off, a chronic inflammation of the skin occurs with the additional complaints. There is often hidradenitis suppurativa in places with lots of sweat glands and hair follicles, such as the inside of the labia, buttocks, armpits and groin.

Hirsutism

Hirsutism is unwanted excessive hair-growth in women according to a masculine hair pattern. So, hair grows in places where men normally have hair. Think of the upper lip, cheeks, chest, abdomen and on the legs. This type of hair is also often darker and thicker. The use of certain medicines or problems with the hormones are the main cause of Hirsutism.

Hypertrichosis

Hypertrichosis can occur in both men and women. This is an excess of hair in a certain place on the body. Sometimes it is congenital but can also develop spontaneously at a later age.

Ingrown hairs

Ingrown hair, also called Pseudofolliculitis Barbae, an inflammation that occurs as a result of shaving and sometimes other hair removal methods. A hair is blocked by the upper skin layer and starts to grow into the skin. This results in the inflammation.

Treatment

The removal of hair growth can take place for medical reasons but even more often it happens for cosmetic reasons.

Laser hair removal is an effective method to get rid of hair permanently. The laser emits a highly concentrated beam of light on the skin. The light from the laser is captured by the pigment present in the hair and converted into heat. This then causes the entire hair follicle to heat up and become inactive. No new hair can grow out of an inactive hair follicle.