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Pubic Hair Grooming-Related Injuries Evaluated

JAMA Dermatol; ePub 2017 Aug 16; Truesdale, et al

Publish date:: August 29, 2017

Among US adults who reported pubic hair grooming, greater than one-fourth also report grooming-related injuries, a recent study found. The nationally representative cross-sectional study of 5,674 adults aged 18 to 65 years included a web-based survey with data collected from January 2014 and analyzed from August 1, 2016 through February 1, 2017. Researchers found:

Grooming-related injuries were reported by 1,430 (25.6% weighted prevalence) participants, with more women reporting injuries than men.
Degree of grooming was an independent risk factor for injury.
Waxing may prevent repetitive injuries.
79 injuries among 5,674 groomers (1.4%) required medical attention.

Citation:

Truesdale MD, Osterberg EC, Gaither TW, et al. Prevalence of pubic hair grooming–related injuries and identification of high-risk individuals in the United States. [Published online ahead of print August 16, 2017]. JAMA Dermatol. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2017.2815.

Commentary:

A previous study showed that about 85% of adults report a history of pubic hair grooming, with older women being less likely to groom than younger women, and women with a college degree being 2 to 3 times as likely to groom as those who do not have a college degrees.¹ The current study further informs us that grooming is not without risk, as a quarter of all adults who groom have had grooming-related injuries, with lacerations being the most common type of injury. That said, grooming injuries rarely are of a severity that require an emergency room visit or a hospital admission. However, with 85% of the population grooming, it is a subject to keep in mind. —Neil Skolnik, MD

Rowen TS, Gaither TW, Awad MA, Osterberg EC, Shindel AW, Breyer BN. Pubic hair grooming prevalence and motivation among women in the United States. JAMA Dermatol. 2016;152(10):1106-1113. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2016.2154.

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