Dermatologists have defined the normal changes in the scalp, facial and body hair of postmenopausal women, helping endocrinologists to identify when the alterations might reflect a hormonal anomaly or serious disease.
A study based in British general practices recruited 758 women who were older than 45 and did not have a history of thyroid disease, oophorectomy or premature menopause. They completed a questionnaire on changes they had noticed in the distribution and density of hair.
About one in four (26%) reported diffuse, generalised hair loss from the scalp. Another 9% said they had experienced a loss of scalp frontal hair.
Facial hair growth was very common, reported by 39% of respondents, and most commonly affecting the chin (32%).
“These findings suggest the chin is...
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