Pseudofolliculitis - How To Get Rid Of Ingrown Hairs In The Bikini Area, On The Legs, On The Body

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-07 17:49

Pseudofolliculitis - how to get rid of ingrown hairs?

Pseudofolliculitis is a disorder characterized by impaired hair growth on various parts of the body. In this case, the hair shaft does not come out from under the skin, but remains inside it and begins to germinate.

Most often, pseudofolliculitis develops in those places where a person seeks to get rid of unwanted hair and removes it regularly. Several zones are most susceptible to the disease: pubic and axillary, cervical and facial, as well as the skin of the lower extremities. When hair begins to grow inward, a small swelling forms on the person's skin, which turns red and itchy.

If a woman has a bump on her skin in the bikini area, this may indicate an ingrown hair. The inflammation is of varying intensity. Sometimes you can find purulent contents that are visible under the skin, and sometimes they are invisible, however, this does not mean that the inflammatory process is absent. The response of the body will be triggered in any case, since the hair growing deep into the skin is a foreign body that must be removed.

Content:

• Risk group
• Ingrown hair reasons
• Signs of pseudofolliculitis
• How to remove ingrown hairs in a healthcare setting?
• Self-removal of ingrown hair
• Pseudofolliculitis prevention - how to deal with hair ingrowth?
• Professional removal of unwanted hair

Risk group

It is worth noting that not all people are faced with pseudofolliculitis, although almost every man shaves his face, and a woman uses various methods of epilation.

As a result of skin trauma, ingrown hairs will be more common in those at risk. First of all, this applies to people belonging to the Negroid race, and those who have coarse and curly hair. Dry skin also increases the risk of ingrown hairs.

Another category of people susceptible to this disease is those whose follicle angle is too sharp in relation to the skin. This fact also contributes to the development of pseudofolliculitis.

Ingrown hair reasons

• Depilation without preparation. Shaving without prior preparation will be a stress factor for the skin. If the skin has not been softened and moisturized in advance with the help of special products, then this may well lead to subsequent ingrowth of hair. In addition, skin irritated after the depilation procedure must be soothed. There are also special care products for this.

• Hair removal at home. Fighting unwanted hair with a razor (razor or electric equivalent), special cream or wax strips is not reliable. These methods allow you to remove only the visible part of the hair that protrudes above the surface of the skin. In this case, the bulbs themselves remain in the same place, that is, inside. The more often the hair is shaved, the thinner it becomes. The skin, on the other hand, coarsens and becomes thicker due to microtraumas. The epidermis becomes keratinized and becomes unable to slough off. In this case, the follicular orifices are closed. A weakened and thinned hair cannot break through the existing obstacle and, as it grows, begins to twist in the form of a spiral. At the same time, the direction of its growth changes. Therefore, hair that grows in, even after depilation, becomes noticeable after two days. If this problem occurs regularly, then superficial hair removal with hot wax or a razor should be abandoned. It is possible that a woman is more suitable for another method of depilation, for example, using sugar paste (shugaring).
• Hyperkeratosis. Sometimes in people there is too rapid keratinization of the epithelium, as a result of which it thickens and coarsens, which leads to difficulties during the outward growth of the hair.
• Failure to comply with the technique of shaving hair. Using a dull blade or shaving against hair growth, and shaving it with extreme care, can lead to ingrown hair. The risk is also increased by applying too much pressure and pulling on the skin during shaving and with frequent shaving.
• Wearing tight or tight-fitting clothing that irritates shaved skin.

Signs of pseudofolliculitis

Signs of ingrown hair include:

• Hyperemia - after the depilation procedure, the skin swells and turns red. This symptom appears even before ingrowth has occurred;
• After 2 or 3 days after shaving or depilation, local painful sensations develop, the skin begins to itch. The site of ingrowth becomes denser, a papule forms;
• If suppuration occurs, then the contents of the papule can shine through the skin. It looks like a yellowish bump;
• Sometimes hair is visible through the upper layers of the epidermis, or rather, its tip or loop;
• Milia formation is another symptom of ingrown hair. They form a week or two after the hair shaft has grown into the skin. Milia appear as whitish nodules that are firm to the touch;
• If the ingrowth process is complicated, then ulcers and abscesses may occur. Most often, infection is provoked by staphylococci and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The symptomatology of the further development of the disease depends on the characteristics of the course of the pathological process:

• The hair shaft can break through on its own. In this case, the inflammation gradually self-destructs;
• An attempt to independently open the existing node with improvised means (tweezers, needles, nails) can lead to the addition of an infection. In this case, a purulent pustule is formed, after a while a keloid scar will appear in its place, the damaged area will remain pigmented for a long time;
• If the problem is eliminated in a medical institution or in a beauty salon, then an insignificant wound will remain at the site of the ingrown hair. After a short time, it will heal, hyperpigmentation in this case quickly disappears.

When you find the characteristic symptoms of pseudofolliculitis, it is important not to confuse this disease with other skin pathologies.

The following diseases are manifested by similar signs:

• Pyoderma;
• Acne vulgaris;
• Folliculitis;
• Follicular hyperkeratosis;
• Ostiofolliculitis.

How to remove ingrown hairs in a healthcare setting?

When a seal forms on the site of an ingrown hair in a person, inside which purulent masses are collected, this requires an appeal to a doctor. In addition, you should not postpone a trip to a dermatologist if there is a threat of further spread of the inflammatory process, as well as in case of suppuration as a result of an independent attempt to remove ingrown hair.

The doctor will do the following:

• Opens up an abscess with sterile instruments (needle or scalpel);
• Removes existing hair and pus;
• Will perform antiseptic measures, most often hydrogen peroxide or Chlorhexidine is used for this;
• Apply antibacterial ointment and cover the treated area with a sterile dressing.

Medical manipulations are quite simple. However, when conducting them on their own at home, people often forget about observing the conditions of sterility at each stage of the procedure. As a result, an infection is often carried under the skin. Do not open up pus-filled pus on your face or neck yourself. This is because because of the abundance of blood vessels in these areas, the infection can spread much faster.

Self-removal of ingrown hair

If the inflammation is at the aseptic stage, that is, there are no purulent masses, then you can try to remove the ingrown hair yourself. However, the methods listed below are not suitable for getting rid of pseudofolliculitis in the neck and face.

Non-invasive therapy

An ointment with antibacterial properties should be applied to the site of inflammation. For this purpose, a tool based on clindamycin, for example, Dalacin gel, as well as on erythromycin or benzoyl peroxide, for example, Baziron, is suitable. This will make it possible to relieve redness and eliminate puffiness.

After a day or two, the skin must be steamed and the dead epidermis removed. This is done using a scrub:

• To prepare a salt exfoliating composition yourself, you will need a pound of salt, vegetable oil (200 ml) and turmeric (1 pack);
• Ready-made salt scrubs are sold in pharmacies;
• To prepare a coffee scrub, you need about 100 g of sugar, 2 cups of ground coffee and vegetable oil (3 teaspoons), all components are mixed and used as intended.

After treatment, the skin is washed, the hair should come out either immediately or after 24 hours. If necessary, the manipulations can be repeated.

Sometimes you can help the hair to break through with the help of a badyagi-based composition. To do this, you need to take one part of this drug, mix with 2 parts of Chlorhexidine or hydrogen peroxide and leave for 5 minutes on the problem area. However, this method does not help everyone, since the badyag accelerates hair growth.

If the inflammation has already begun, then a salicylic acid-based drug or Skinoren gel used to treat acne can be applied to the problem area.

Invasive hair release

Doctors recommend refraining from opening an inflamed nodule that contains pus. If, nevertheless, a decision was made about the invasive release of the hair, then it is better to wait until the moment when the purulent contents begin to protrude from under the skin, or at least shine through it.

Before proceeding with the procedure, the hands and the problem area are disinfected with alcohol. Then the hair is pryed off with a sterile needle taken from the package with a new syringe. If necessary, tweezers are used. After performing the manipulations, the skin is again treated with alcohol and a bandage is applied with an antibacterial ointment. The inflamed area must be left alone and not epilated.

Pseudofolliculitis prevention - how to deal with hair ingrowth?

For prevention, you can do the following:

• Change the method of depilation. When the problem arises from shaving, you can use an electric epilator, hair removal cream or wax strips;
• Stop shaving for a while. This advice is suitable for men, especially since wearing a beard is now a fashionable trend;
• Observe the rules of shaving and depilation. If hair is removed with a razor, then the movements should be directed in the direction of their growth. It is not worthwhile to repeatedly carry the machine through the same place. The skin should not be stretched. If a specialized device is used for hair removal, then all actions should be performed according to the attached instructions;
• Prepare skin for hair removal. The process consists of pre- and post-processing. Before starting the procedure, the skin should be steamed and freed from dead epithelial cells. Massage will help straighten your hair. It is important to use shaving foam or gel. After the procedure, the skin is treated with an antiseptic, and after a cream with a softening and disinfecting effect;
• Do not remove or shave hair when it has not grown at least 2 mm;
• Apply specialized products to slow down the rate of hair growth. For example, Planta, Dr. Bio, Aloe Vera cream and others;
• Use anti-ingrowing drugs. However, despite the high price, the effect of them is questioned;
• Do not overuse scrubs. Do not use a scrub too often to exfoliate your skin. After the hair removal procedure, it can be applied for the first time after at least 3 days. Scrubs are contraindicated for those people who have severe flaking of the skin;
• Take care of your face and body skin. The skin must be moisturized after depilation, shaving and exfoliation. These manipulations dry out the skin, which means they can provoke hair ingrowth.

If the ingrown hair has been removed, and a pigmented area has appeared in this place, you can use a badyag, ichthyol or salicylic ointment, as well as a cream after depilation. This will speed up the lightening of the skin.

Professional removal of unwanted hair

The choice of a way to get rid of the problem is carried out by a dermatologist individually in each case. Bioepilation can be used to prevent ingrowth, for example with wax or sugar. However, the effect of such procedures is temporary, and it is not always possible to achieve the desired result.

It is possible to eliminate hair growth permanently with the help of laser and photoepilation. Both of these methods are non-contact and will not injure the skin. However, there are some contraindications to their use, for example, bearing a child and breastfeeding, hypersensitivity to these methods, oncology, skin diseases.

• Destruction with the help of photoepilation is based on the transmission of light energy through the hair to its growth zone;
• The destruction of the follicle with a laser or electric current is based on a point effect.

If you find the problem of ingrown hair, you should not self-medicate, which is especially dangerous without observing the rules for sanitizing the skin.

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The author of the article: German Olga Leonidovna, trichologist, specially for the website ayzdorov.ru