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Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffSeveral factors may influence your likelihood of developing hirsutism. These include:
- Family history. Several conditions that cause hirsutism, including congenital adrenal hyperplasia and polycystic ovary syndrome, run in families.
- Ethnicity. Women of Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and South Asian ancestry are more likely to develop idiopathic hirsutism than are women of other ethnicities.
References
- Hirsutism (excess hair). American Academy of Family Physicians. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/hormone/210.html. Accessed Nov. 14, 2008.
- Bulun, S, et al. Physiology and pathology of the female reproductive axis In: Kronenberg HM, et al., eds. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 11th ed. St. Louis, Mo.: W.B. Saunders; 2008.
- Evaluation and treatment of hirsutism in premenopausal women: An Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline. Chevy Chase, Md.: The Endocrine Society. http://jcem.endojournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/93/4/1105. Accessed Nov. 14, 2008.
- Chang J, et al, eds. The Hormone Foundation's patient guide to the evaluation and treatment of hirsutism in premenopausal women. The Hormone Foundation. http://www.hormone.org/Resources/Patient_Guides/upload/Hirsutism_Patient_Guide.pdf. Accessed Nov. 14, 2008.
- Hirsutism. The Merck Manuals Online Medical Library: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec10/ch124/ch124c.html?qt=hirsutism&alt=sh#sec10-ch124-ch124c-989. Accessed Nov. 14, 2008.
- Hormones and the skin. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/media/background/factsheets/fact_hormones.html. Accessed Nov. 14, 2008.
- Azziz R. Hirsutism. In: Goldman L, et al., eds. Goldman: Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:1853.
- Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.4woman.gov/faq/polycystic-ovary-syndrome.cfm. Accessed Nov. 14, 2008.
