Dermatology => Skin => Seborrhea
Seborrhea
Seborrhea, disease of the sebaceous, or oil, glands of the skin. Seborrhea is characterized by an increased and altered secretion of sebum, or fatty matter, and is manifested by an oily or scaly appearance of the skin, especially of the hairy parts. It may interfere with the nutrition of the hair, resulting in partial baldness. Some cases of dandruff are caused by the disease. Sebum may also accumulate in the ducts of the glands, causing the glands to become distended with undischarged sebum, and form a small hard body called a whitehead, or comedo. When the sebum in the mouth of the duct becomes discolored with dirt, the comedo is known as a blackhead.
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