DESCRIPTION OF HIRSUTISM
Hirsutism is the existence of hair in women in typically male areas (beard, moustache, sideburns, cleavage, linea alba, areolas).
Hirsutism is a manifestation of androgenic hyperactivity but sometimes it is hard to decide whether hair in a certain area is normal or not due to racial variability (what is considered normal or pathological varies from culture or race to the next).
It is essential to diagnose the cause of abnormal hair growth in women.
It is also important to detect rare cases in which hirsutism is a clinical manifestation of an underlying disease, which may be serious. Diagnosis can be established by several medical specialties which are dermatology, gynaecology and endocrinology.