Excessive Facial Hair In Women - Causes And Treatment

Hirsutism (HUR-soot-iz-um) is a condition of unwanted, male-pattern hair growth in women. Hirsutism results in excessive amounts of stiff and pigmented hair on body areas where men typically grow hair — face, chest and back.

The amount of body hair you have is largely determined by your genetic makeup. Hirsutism may arise from excess male hormones called androgens, primarily testosterone. Hirsutism may also be due to a family trait.


A combination of self-care and medical therapies provides effective treatment for many women with hirsutism.

 Causes

At puberty, a girl's ovaries begin to produce a mix of female and male sex hormones. This causes hair to grow in the armpits and pubic area. Hirsutism can occur if the mix becomes unbalanced with too high a proportion of male sex hormones (androgens).
Hirsutism can be caused by:

• Polycystic ovary syndrome. This common condition is caused by an imbalance of sex hormones that may result in irregular periods, obesity, infertility and sometimes multiple cysts on your ovaries.
• Cushing's syndrome. Cushing's syndrome occurs when your body is exposed to high levels of the hormone cortisol. It can develop when your adrenal glands make too much cortisol, or it can occur from taking medications such as prednisone over a long period of time.
• Congenital adrenal hyperplasia. This inherited condition is characterized by abnormal production of steroid hormones, including cortisol and androgen, by your adrenal glands.
• Tumors. Rarely, an androgen-secreting tumor in the ovaries or adrenal glands may cause hirsutism.
• Medications. Some medications can cause hirsutism. One such drug is danazol, which is used to treat women with endometriosis.

Sometimes, hirsutism can occur with no identifiable cause. This happens more frequently in certain populations, such as women of Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and South Asian ancestry.

 Treatment

Treatment for hirsutism often involves a combination of self-care methods, hair-removal therapies and medications.

Medications

Medications taken for hirsutism usually take several months before you see a significant difference in hair growth. Medications may include:

• Oral contraceptives. Birth control pills or other hormonal contraceptives, which contain the hormones estrogen and progestin, treat hirsutism by inhibiting androgen production by your ovaries. Oral contraceptives are a common treatment for hirsutism in women who don't want to become pregnant. Possible side effects include dizziness, nausea, headache and stomach upset.
• Anti-androgens. These types of drugs block androgens from attaching to their receptors in your body. The most commonly used anti-androgen for treating hirsutism is spironolactone (Aldactone). Because these drugs can cause birth defects, it's important to faithfully use contraception while taking them.
• Topical cream. Eflornithine (Vaniqa) is a prescription cream specifically for excessive facial hair in women. It's applied directly to the affected area of your face and helps slow new hair growth, but doesn't get rid of existing hair.

Procedures

To remove unwanted hair permanently, options include:

• Electrolysis. This treatment involves inserting a tiny needle into each hair follicle. The needle emits a pulse of electric current to damage and eventually destroy the follicle. Electrolysis is an effective hair-removal procedure, but it can be painful. A numbing cream spread on your skin before treatment may reduce this discomfort.
• Laser therapy. In this procedure, a beam of highly concentrated light (laser) is passed over your skin to damage the hair follicles and prevent hair from growing. You may have some skin redness and swelling after laser therapy to remove hair. Laser therapy for hair removal also carries a risk of burns and skin discoloration. Laser treatments are also expensive.

mayoclinic.org