Ingrown hairs
Other possible skin conditions
There are many skin conditions that can easily be mistaken for ingrown hairs, including:
- keratosis pilaris ("chicken skin") a common, harmless condition where the skin becomes rough and bumpy, as if covered in permanent goose pimples
- acne
- a cyst or abscess
- eczema
- impetigo a highly contagious skin infection that mainly affects children
- heat rash (prickly heat)
- pustular psoriasis
- molluscum contagiosum a highly contagious viral infection that affects the skin
See your GP if you're unsure. The above links will take you to more information about these similar-looking skin conditions.
Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018
Introduction
Read about ingrown hairs, including what causes them and advice about what to do if you have them.
What causes ingrown hairs?
Ingrown hairs have usually grown out of the skin, curled back round and re-entered the skin. Some curl back into the hair follicle small cavities in the skinthat hairs grow out ofwithout even exiting
What to do
If possible, you should leave ingrown hairs for a whileasthey may disappear without you having to do anything. Don't pick or scratch an ingrown hairas bacteria can enter the small wound created, incr
If there are lots of pus-filled spots
The hair follicles of ingrown hairs can sometimes become infected and inflamed. This is known as folliculitis. The hair follicles will swell into pus-filled spots, although pus doesn't always mean th
Preventing ingrown hairs
The simplest way to prevent ingrowing hairs is to let your hair grow freely without shaving it. You may want to try this for a brief period if you need relief from particularly bad spots. If you don'
Other possible skin conditions
There are many skin conditions that can easily be mistaken for ingrown hairs, including: keratosis pilaris ("chicken skin") a common, harmless condition where the skin becomes rough and bumpy,
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