Woolly hair

Woolly hair
Woolly hair and other symptoms of Naxos syndrome
SymptomsHair: difficult to brush, tight locks, short, lighter colour[1]
Usual onsetBirth, infancy[1]
TypesFamilial, hereditary, woolly hair nevus[2]
Risk factorsMay run in families[1]
Diagnostic methodMicroscopy, trichoscopy, dermoscopy, electron microscopy[2]
PrognosisMay improve with age[1]
FrequencyRare[1]

Woolly hair is a difficult to brush hair, usually present since birth and typically most severe in childhood.[1] It has extreme curls and kinks, occurs in black people and is distinct from afro-textured hair.[3] The hairs come together to form tight locks, unlike in afro-textured hair, where the hairs remain individual.[1] Woolly hair can be generalised over the whole scalp, when it tends to run in families, or it may involve just part of the scalp as in woolly hair nevus.[2]

The presence of woolly hair may indicate other problems such as with the heart in Naxos–Carvajal syndrome.[4] Diagnosis is suspected by its general appearance and confirmed by scanning electron microscopy.[5]

The condition is rare.[1] Alfred Milne Gossage coined the term woolly hair in 1908.[6][7] Edgar Anderson distinguished woolly hair from afro-textured hair in 1936.[8]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h James, William D.; Elston, Dirk; Treat, James R.; Rosenbach, Misha A.; Neuhaus, Isaac (2020). "33. Diseases of the skin appendages". Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology (13th ed.). Edinburgh: Elsevier. p. 767. ISBN 978-0-323-54753-6.
  2. ^ a b c Gomes, Tiago Fernandes; Guiote, Victoria; Henrique, Martinha (15 January 2020). "Woolly hair nevus: case report and review of literature". Dermatology Online Journal. 26 (1): Article 7. doi:10.5070/D3261047188. ISSN 1087-2108. PMID 32155026.
  3. ^ Pavone, Piero; Falsaperla, Raffaele; Barbagallo, Massimo; Polizzi, Agata; Praticò, Andrea D.; Ruggieri, Martino (2 November 2017). "Clinical spectrum of woolly hair: indications for cerebral involvement". Italian Journal of Pediatrics. 43 (1): 99. doi:10.1186/s13052-017-0417-1. ISSN 1824-7288. PMC 5667512. PMID 29096685.
  4. ^ Hernandez-Martin, Angela; Tamariz-Martel, Amalia (2021). "8. Cardiocutaneous desmosomal disorders". In Salavastru, Carmen; Murrell, Dedee F.; Otton, James (eds.). Skin and the Heart. Switzerland: Springer. pp. 114–116. ISBN 978-3-030-54778-3.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Swamy2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Orfanos2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Gates1948 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference McKusick was invoked but never defined (see the help page).