Is baldness bad for the heart?
Various skin conditions are considered to be characteristic markers for elevated coronary disease risk. Over and above these established signs there are reports on other skin signs with possible associations with elevated coronary disease risk, i.e. the horizontal earlobe crease, high breast hair density, precocious graying and male pattern hair loss. A review of the literature is presented in this article, and the relevance of these symptoms is discussed as they are related to the possible myocardial disease risk. The available data on this topic are impressive, but on close assessment most of the studies are marred by methodical errors.
Department of Dermatology, Kantonsspital Aarau, Aarau, Switzerland. thomas@gutersohn.ch
Thomas
T
Gutersohn
E Paul
EP
Scheidegger
D000505:Alopecia / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000150:complications*; D012307:Risk Factors