In a shocking incident, a 52-year-old man has developed an extremely rare condition—hair is growing inside his throat. According to researchers, this unusual case occurred as he smoked a pack of cigarettes daily for years.
The findings of this bizarre case were published in the American Journal of Case Reports recently.
The study highlights unexpected and sometimes serious complications of long-term smoking.
In 2007, the man went to a doctor after his voice got hoarse and he started experiencing troubled breathing and persistent cough. When the doctor examined with a bronchoscope he was shocked to see several hairs growing in his throat, especially in an area that had surgery after a near-drowning incident when he was a child. The region also had inflammation.
When the man was 10-year-old he had undergone a tracheotomy. This opening was stabilized using a skin and cartilage graft taken from his ear. According to the doctor, this grafted area, unexpectedly, became the unlikely spot where hair started growing.
Following this, the doctor diagnosed the man with endotracheal hair growth. Reportedly, this is an extremely rare condition that had only been documented in one other case before.
There are 6-9 hairs that are 2 inches long and grew through his voice box and even into his mouth. Every year for 14 years he will visit the hospital to remove them.
After some temporary relief by pulling out the hairs and using antibiotics to treat infected follicles, the hairs will grow back again. In 2022, the man decided to quit smoking. This decision allowed doctors to perform a new procedure called endoscopic argon plasma coagulation.
This technique uses targeted energy to burn the very root of the hair growth, preventing future regrowth, the study stated. A follow-up session next year finally ended his ordeal.
According to the study, the chronic inflammation caused by smoking was possibly turning stem cells into hair follicles.