Syndrome of excessive hair growth in children. How dangerous is hypertrichosis in a child and methods for treating increased hairiness? A child has long hairs on his arms

Hello dear readers. Hair on the body of a newborn can scare new parents. In this article, you can learn about the causes of this manifestation, symptoms and methods of dealing with this phenomenon.

The baby was born with body hair

In fact, parents should not immediately panic and worry if they notice the presence of hair in the baby in places other than the head. Most often, this phenomenon occurs in children in the first twenty-eight days of life. And by the first month, there is no trace of them left. However, there are other options when increased hairiness is provoked by deviations in the development of the baby. Then, you need to seek help from a specialist, undergo an examination and identify the exact cause of this phenomenon.

When my son was born, he already had hair on his head, and black (now he is fair). In addition, when I unwrapped him, I saw that on the back along the spine there was a strip of dark hairs, they were so airy, well, just fluff. But then I didn’t know anything about lanugo and was terribly afraid that this was some kind of deviation. The doctor, who came for the examination, explained everything to me, straight from the heart was relieved. So, I, like no one, understand the feelings of mothers who are faced with the appearance of hair on the back or other parts of the baby's body. The fluff rolled out on our own, about three weeks after the birth.

Lanugo

Almost all cases of hair on the shoulders, back and ears of the little one are explained by such a phenomenon as lanugo. It turns out that when the baby is in the womb, his body is covered with such protective hairs. In some cases, especially if the baby was born before the expected time, this fluff does not have time to fall off or be erased. And the phenomenon is quite normal when it lasts up to two months. In such cases, it is too early to talk about pathology. But if nothing changes in the future, and attempts to help the gun roll out are unsuccessful or the hairs begin to become blacker and harder, then you should consult a doctor.

Causes of Hair

If hair grows on the back of a child, you need to know what reasons could cause such a phenomenon.

genetic predisposition. Especially if, in addition to the back, other parts of the body are dotted with hairs.
Increased testosterone levels.
If the child was born much earlier than expected, most likely such hair is the fluff of newborns, which simply has not had time to roll up yet.
Stigmas are deviations in the growth and development of hair.
If the child is already more than three months old, and the congenital fluff is still preserved, this is a symptom of pathology. You need to consult a doctor for advice. The specialist will be able to draw some conclusions already during the initial examination, and will also prescribe a number of tests, including genetic ones.
If the presence of hair on the body of the baby is not the original fluff, then their appearance can be caused by diseases such as hirsutism, hypertrichosis, or Corneli de Lango syndrome.
There are cases when doctors cannot immediately determine the causes of increased hair growth. Then the diagnosis of cacidiopathic hair growth is made.

Symptoms

The baby may show signs that indicate not only the presence of hair, which the mother may not have noticed yet, but also that their presence spoils the life of the crumbs, causing discomfort and even pain. Therefore, it is important to consult a doctor in such cases in time.

These are the signs:

The peanut cries "bitter tears", becomes irritable.
The baby loses his appetite, he begins to act up.
The child does not sleep well, both during the day and at night. Often wakes up, moping.
In the “lying on his back” position, he begins to arch, and maybe even cry.

Ways to get rid of lanugo

The most important thing is to observe the rules of personal hygiene. Daily bathing is important, wiping places with hair with a soft washcloth. After the water procedure, you can treat the areas of localization of hair on the body with a children's anti-inflammatory cream. Over time, the hairs will begin to become quite thin and soft, and they can be easily removed by running a cotton swab (slightly moistened) over the place of their growth.
The physical activity of babies is important. Parents need to stimulate the little one to turn or independently turn the baby from back to tummy and vice versa. In addition, you can not do without light gymnastics. Thus, you can contribute to the early fall of the gun.
In addition, some parents resort to folk methods of dealing with unwanted hair. They use honey or yeast, brown bread or even breast milk. Using these products, you need to massage in circular motions, thereby rolling up the fluff.

After reading this article, you came to the conclusion that the presence of hair on different parts of the baby's body does not always indicate the occurrence of pathology. The presence of a gun in a newborn in almost all cases indicates lanugo, and they disappear naturally. However, if the increased hairline worries the little one and even causes pain, then it is better to consult a specialist rather than self-medicate. In any situation, try to remain completely calm, because the little one feels his mother's mood very keenly.

First of all, of course, this question interests the mothers of girls. First, let's understand the terms. There are 3 types of hair:

— lanugo(original fluff) is the fetal hair that appears in the third month of fetal development and falls out at about 36 weeks. With premature birth, a child may be born covered with primordial fluff;

— vellus hair- it is light, thin hair, no more than 1-2 cm in length, containing almost no pigment;

— rod hair- Coarse, dark, thick terminal hair.

There are several concepts associated with excessive hair growth. Hirsutism should be distinguished from hypertrichosis.
Hypertrichosis- this is congenital or acquired excessive hair growth, independent of the content of androgens - the male fraction of hormones (testosterone, androstenedione, etc.) that appears mainly outside androgen-dependent areas (pubis, thigh, axillary region, abdomen, etc.). The transformation of vellus hair into rod hair occurs under the influence of androgens! It is called hirsutism and occurs in androgen-dependent zones.

Very important - the quantity and quality of hair is influenced by many factors - ethnic characteristics, systemic factors, the level of sex hormones and individual skin sensitivity to androgens.

Let's take a look at some of the causes of excessive hair growth in children. :

1. If you start from the neonatal period, especially in premature babies, often the entire surface of the body is covered with vellus hair - lanugo. Such hair gradually falls out, but their focal growth can persist throughout life. Sometimes this phenomenon is combined with some malformations, which requires a closer examination of the child.

2. If the baby is fast-growing, growth hormone in this case is actively manifested by hair growth on the forearms, shins, and is not observed in androgen-dependent places (this is different from other forms of excessive hair growth). This is not a pathology.

3. The easiest option is hair growth constitutional when either fluffy or even rod-type hair actively grows, but this is a hereditary feature, and / or due to a certain nationality (typical for Jews, gypsies, residents of the Caucasus, Greeks, etc.).

4. Particularly close attention of the endocrinologist is drawn to the growth of hair in a girl in areas characteristic of the action of sex hormones - the pubic region, armpits, chest, abdomen, inner thigh (especially if hair growth begins before 8-9 years old, earlier, this is called premature adrenarche), and in these cases it is important to know how women passed along the line of the mother and the mother herself. With this nature of hair growth, the endocrinologist specifies, with the help of a hormonal examination, the causes of such hair growth - HKN (adrenal hyperplasia, when there is a genetic tendency to hair growth, expressed by premature maturation in the form of the appearance of excessive hair growth, then in the form of a violation of the cycle, the early appearance of acne) . Other causes are also excluded - PPR (premature puberty), hypothyroidism (lack of thyroid hormones), hyperprolactinemia, PCOS (formation of polycystic ovary syndrome), Cushing's syndrome (hyperproduction of adrenal hormones), acromegaly (hyperproduction of growth hormone), and are excluded of course, extremely rare tumors of the ovaries or adrenal glands, brain.

The examination is usually carried out by two doctors - a gynecologist and an endocrinologist.

5. Sometimes the cause of excessive hair growth is medication, such as corticosteroids (glucocorticoids), cytostatics, etc.

6. If the cause of excessive hair growth is not specified, then such a process is interpreted as idiopathic hair growth, and it requires observation, and re-sampling in 1-2 years.

The examination includes blood sampling for hormones: a fraction of male hormones (total testosterone, free testosterone, dihydrotestostreon, androstenedione, 17-OH-progesterone, DGA-S, GSPS, prolactin, TSH, T4 free, and with the onset of menstruation - for 2-4 days FSH, LH.
Ultrasound of the pelvic organs and adrenal glands is also performed. Determination of bone age (x-ray of the hands), since the increased amount of male hormones in a girl closes the growth zones.
Sometimes an MRI of the brain.

Excessive body hair at the appointment is assessed
according to the official scale Ferrimon-Gallway : (a score of more than 7 points is a sign of hormonal disorders):

Upper lip
1 point - single hairs along the outer edge,
2 points - small antennae along the outer edge,
3 points - mustache on half of the outer area,
4 points - mustache to the midline of the lip

Chin
1 point - single scattered hair,
2 points - scattered hair, but their growth is more abundant,

4 points - continuous hair growth is plentiful.

Breast
1 point - hair around the nipple,
2 points - hair around the nipple and along the midline of the chest,
3 points - arched hair on ¾ of the chest,
4 points - continuous hair.

Upper back
1 point - separate scattered hair,
2 points - a significant amount of scattered hair,
3 points - continuous hair growth is insignificant,
4 points - continuous abundant hair,

Lower back
1 point - sacral bundle (on the lower back in the form of a triangle),
2 points - sacral bundle and some hair on the lateral surface of the back,
3 points hair on ¾ of the lower back,
4 points - continuous hair,

Upper abdomen
1 point - individual hairs along the white line,
2 points - abundant hair along the white line,
3 points - hair growth of ½ of the upper half of the abdomen,
4 points - continuous hair growth of the upper abdomen.

lower abdomen
1 point - individual hairs along the white line,
2 point - stripes of hair along the white line,
3 point - a wide strip along the white line,
4 point - hair growth in the form of a triangle

Shoulder
1 point - scattered hair over ¼ of the shoulder, 2 points - more abundant by ¼, but not full,
3 point - continuous insignificant,
4 points - continuous plentiful

Forearm

Hip
1 point and 2 points - continuous hair growth of the dorsum is insignificant,
3 points and 4 points - continuous abundant hair growth of the dorsal surface.

Shin
1 point and 2 points - continuous hair growth of the dorsum is insignificant,
3 points and 4 points - continuous abundant hair growth of the dorsal surface.

First of all, of course, this question interests the mothers of girls. First, let's understand the terms. There are 3 types of hair:
- lanugo(original fluff) is the fetal hair that appears in the third month of fetal development and falls out at about 36 weeks. With premature birth, a child may be born covered with primordial fluff;

- vellus hair- it is light, thin hair, no more than 1-2 cm in length, containing almost no pigment;

- rod hair- coarse, dark, thick terminal hair.

There are several concepts associated with excessive hair growth. Hirsutism should be distinguished from hypertrichosis.

Hypertrichosis- this is congenital or acquired excessive hair growth, independent of the content of androgens - the male fraction of hormones (testosterone, androstenedione, etc.) that appears mainly outside androgen-dependent areas (pubis, thigh, axillary region, abdomen, etc.).

The transformation of vellus hair into rod hair occurs under the influence of androgens! It is called hirsutism and occurs in androgen-dependent zones.

It is very important - many factors influence the quantity and quality of hair - ethnic characteristics, systemic factors, the level of sex hormones and individual skin sensitivity to androgens.

Let's take a look at some of the causes of excessive hair growth in children. :

4. Particularly close attention of the endocrinologist is drawn to the growth of hair in a girl in areas characteristic of the action of sex hormones - the pubic region, armpits, chest, abdomen, inner thigh (especially if hair growth begins before 8-9 years, before puberty , this is called premature adrenarche), and in these cases it is important to know how puberty took place in women along the line of the mother and the mother herself. With this nature of hair growth, the endocrinologist specifies, with the help of a hormonal examination, the causes of such hair growth - HKN (adrenal hyperplasia, when there is a genetic tendency to hair growth, expressed by premature maturation in the form of the appearance of excessive hair growth, then in the form of a violation of the cycle, the early appearance of acne) . Other causes are also excluded - PPR (precocious puberty), hypothyroidism (lack of thyroid hormones), hyperprolactinemia, PCOS (formation of polycystic ovary syndrome), Cushing's syndrome (hyperproduction of adrenal hormones), acromegaly (hyperproduction of growth hormone), and are excluded of course, extremely rare tumors of the ovaries or adrenal glands, brain.

The examination is usually carried out by two doctors - a gynecologist and an endocrinologist.

5. Sometimes the cause of excessive hair growth is medication, such as corticosteroids (glucocorticoids), cytostatics, etc.

6. If the cause of excessive hair growth is not specified, then such a process is interpreted as idiopathic hair growth, and it requires observation, and re-sampling in 1-2 years.

Excessive body hair at the appointment is assessed
according to the official scale Ferrimon-Gallway : (a result of more than 7 points is a sign of hormonal disorders):

Upper lip
1 point - single hairs along the outer edge,
2 points - small antennae along the outer edge,
3 points - mustache on half of the outer area,
4 points - mustache to the midline of the lip

Chin
1 point - single scattered hair,
2 points - scattered hair, but their growth is more abundant,
4 points - continuous hair growth is plentiful.

Breast
1 point - hair around the nipple,
2 points - hair around the nipple and along the midline of the chest,
3 points - arcuate hair growth ¾ of the chest,
4 points - continuous hair growth.

Upper back
1 point - separate scattered hair,
2 points - a significant amount of scattered hair,
3 points - continuous hair growth is insignificant,
4 points - continuous abundant hair,

lower abdomen
1 point - individual hairs along the white line,
2 point - hair strips along the white line,
3 point - a wide strip along the white line,
4 point - hair growth in the form of a triangle

Shoulder
1 point - scattered hair over ¼ of the shoulder, 2 points - more abundant by ¼, but not complete,
3 point - continuous insignificant,
4 points - continuous plentiful

Forearm

Hip
1 point and 2 points - continuous hair growth of the dorsal surface is insignificant,
3 points and 4 points - continuous abundant hair growth of the dorsal surface.

Shin
1 point and 2 points - continuous hair growth of the dorsal surface is insignificant,
3 points and 4 points - continuous abundant hair growth of the dorsal surface.

Young parents often wonder why a child was born with back hair. Are there reasons for concern or is this situation normal?

Why does a child grow hair on his back?

Many babies are born with lanugo hairs, which develop from the twelfth week in the womb. Gradually, the hairs die off, but are replaced by others.

The hairs gradually become thinner and less visible. For this reason, lanugo cannot be dangerous, because the main task is to protect delicate skin. Initially, the hairs retain a special substance secreted by the baby's body and allow it to successfully develop in the womb.

At the same time, the hair on the back of the child may appear after birth. Is such a situation the basis for strong experiences? Before answering this question, it is important to understand why a baby can grow back hair after birth.

Causes of hair growth on the back of babies:

if a newborn was born with a large number of hairs on the back and other parts of the body, one can suspect the influence of heredity and the predominance of the hormone - testosterone, which is responsible for such processes;
the causes of anomalies in the development of the hairline can only be determined by a doctor after an examination. To date, medicine does not identify specific reasons for such deviations;
premature birth of a baby. If the baby is not full-term, the lanugo hairs have not had time to completely fall out;
pathology. This reason can only be discussed if the hairs persist several months after the birth of the baby. In such circumstances, you should contact a physician who can diagnose and prescribe an effective course of treatment.

Vellus hair on the body of a newborn is not a typical disease, despite the fact that the baby is able to experience discomfort and pain.

How does vellus hair develop in a newborn? After the birth of a child, the appearance of redness of delicate skin is expected, and this process is commonly called physiological erythema. After a couple of months, the phenomenon disappears, but it is replaced by peeling of the skin, after which small hairs are found.

Such hair on the body of a newborn is fluffy, but you can feel it if you stroke the delicate body of the child.

How to remove hair on the back of a newborn?

Unfortunately, vellus hairs on the back can lead to discomfort. For this reason, you need to know and understand how to act, alleviating the possible suffering of the baby. If the child is feeling anxious, certain suggestions can help improve the situation.

The decoction of herbs must be filtered and cooled.

Bathing in herbs is recommended in the bath

What to do if there is hair on the back of a newborn:

it is advisable to bathe the child in herbs;
after bathing, you should lubricate the skin with a special baby cream;
increased attention should be paid to the choice of clothing, as fleecy things can twist the hairs and cause unnecessary pain to the little man.

In most cases, such a hairline is the remains of thick hair that was before birth, and dead skin cells, secretions of the sebaceous glands.

Poor care leads to the fact that the hairs are able to roll and resemble bristles. Wanting to carry out prevention, most often they advise daily bathing in herbs and lubricating the child's body with a special cream with a greasy consistency.

If, nevertheless, hair appeared on the back of newborns, it is advisable to pay increased attention to the baby and observe his condition.

What if the child is 4 months old and has a lot of body hair? Mothers of children may be interested in the following question: the child is already a few months old, but there is still a lot of hair on the body. Modern medicine cannot reliably explain such circumstances, and there are no even approximate ideas. If a bunch of hair on the child’s back is still present, you need to understand in what situations it is desirable to take care of additional actions.

Certain actions are desirable to take if:

the child becomes anxious;
night sleep is disturbed;
the baby is constantly crying;
pediatricians cannot explain the cause of the pathological process.

Only in this case, you can try to remove hair on the back of a newborn yourself, remembering that not all methods are suitable.

How to roll out hair on the back of babies?

When bathing, it is allowed to steam out the shoulders and back of the child, after which - to use folk remedies. With this approach, a bristle should appear on the body, which signals the possibility of removing unwanted hair.

The following folk remedies are used for rolling out:

black bread;
fresh yeast;
ordinary yeast dough;
breast milk.

Excessive hairiness in a child is called hypertrichosis in medicine. It is customary to talk about the disease only if hair growth is noted in those places where this is not provided for by the ethnicity of the child and nature. The first signs can be observed in a baby after birth or appear at an older age. Both boys and girls of any age are equally affected by hypertrichosis.

Causes of the problem

Neonatal hypertrichosis can have the following causes:

pathology of a pregnant woman, mutations during the development of the fetus;
genetic predisposition;
maternal infections or medications.

The cause may be the child's illness:

brain injury, tumors;
bullous epidermolysis;
local hair growth can be caused by trauma to a specific area of the body;
dermatomycosis (fungal skin infection);
anorexia, disturbances in the work of the central nervous system, epilepsy;
endocrine pathologies.

It is believed that the sudden appearance of excessive hairiness is a harbinger of the development of a malignant tumor, especially if the cause of the disease has not been identified.

Characteristic symptoms

The main symptom of hypertrichosis is a large amount of hair on the body, even in places where they should not be in principle: palms, neck, stomach. However, it is necessary to distinguish the norm from the pathology. So, for girls under 9–10 years old, a large amount of hair in the legs is not the norm and can be considered a symptom of hypertrichosis. The same applies to the area of the armpits, the pubic part. Normally, hair should appear there after 10 or even 12 years.

A newborn may be born with fairly long hair, but it is soft and light (fluffy). This is not a symptom of the disease, such a fluff falls out very quickly. For a young man, hair in the region of the upper lip, on the ears, and chin is a variant of the norm, and for a girl, it is a symptom of the disease.

The ethnicity of the child is also important. For example, for the Mediterranean type, fused eyebrows are the norm, for the Asian type it is already the primary sign of hypertrichosis. Dark-skinned children have genetically more body hair than fair-skinned children (northern type).

Types of disease

Depending on the part of the child's body, abundantly covered with hair, we can talk about the types of the disease:

local hypertrichosis. It can be prothoracic, lumbar.
General - implies total body hair. Basically, this pathology is congenital: a lot of hair on the baby’s body is not replaced by “new”, but continues to grow and become tougher.

Hirsutism is a separate subspecies - this is a "female" disease, which is manifested by body hair against the background of an excess of male hormones. May be accompanied by baldness, increased muscle mass, amenorrhea in girls.

Treatment Methods

If signs of excessive hairiness are found in a child, it is necessary to consult a dermatologist, endocrinologist and pediatric gynecologist (for girls). Primary examinations are aimed at determining the level of hormones and endocrine pathologies.

For the treatment of hypertrichosis, it is necessary to establish the exact cause of the occurrence and eliminate it. Drug treatment is prescribed for hormonal failure. If the disease is caused by heredity or intrauterine malformations, the treatment consists in mechanical hair removal. The most popular and safest method today is recognized as electrolysis. It consists in the destruction of the hair follicle, which subsequently guarantees the absence of hair growth in the treated areas. The procedure is carried out in several sessions. For example, to completely remove hair from the chin, you need to spend about 60 sessions during the year.

This procedure can only be used in adolescents after the end of puberty. Children under this age are prescribed special depilatory creams or hair bleaching with ordinary hydrogen peroxide.

The increased hairiness of the baby should alert parents in order to identify developmental deviations in time. But not always it is a symptom of hypertrichosis. Take a closer look at the child's relatives: if many of them also have extra body hair, most likely the child simply inherited this feature.