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Scalp hair diameter increases during pregnancy
Author(s) -
Nissimov J.,
Elchalal U.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
clinical and experimental dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.587
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1365-2230
pISSN - 0307-6938
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2230.2003.01331.x
Subject(s) - scalp , pregnancy , hair shaft , medicine , cabello , vellus hair , anatomy , hair follicle , endocrinology , biology , genetics
Summary The hair diameter major‐axis has been shown to decrease normally toward the scalp in individual fibres. In this report sharp increases, rather than decreases, of hair‐shaft major‐axis diameters during pregnancy are described. Mean major‐axis hair diameters of 15–20 fibres from each of 12 pregnant and 13 nonpregnant women were measured from the scalp distally at regular 6‐mm intervals. Sample diameters were normalized relative to putative times of conception or a distance from the scalp equivalent to full term pregnancy, for the pregnant and nonpregnant women, respectively, and averaged. Major‐axis diameter increases toward the scalp in hair of pregnant women were found to start at the beginning of pregnancy with a slope measuring 0.58%/cm, which is highly significant ( r = 0.99, P < 0.0001). Hair diameters of the nonpregnant women, on the other hand, decreased toward the scalp during analogous times to the pregnancy, with a slope measuring −0.66%/cm, also highly significant ( r = −0.97, P < 0.0001), and in good agreement with previously published data. To our knowledge this is the first description of hair diameter increases during a normal physiological process.