Abnormal Hair and Nail Growth with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

Abnormal hair and nail growth are common for people who have CRPS. Some may not experience it or it will show up as CRPS progresses. I will tell you about the abnormal hair and nail growth associated with CRPS and my own experience with it.

Abnormal hair growth is quite common with CRPS. Some people may have accelerated hair growth, while others have slow or no hair growth. Hair on the affected limb can fall out completely or it can be sparse.

On my legs, hair growth slowed almost immediately and within a couple of months fell out. I have no hair on the backs of both legs and scattered hair on the front. The hair on my legs is sparse, with a coarse, wiry feel to it. The color changed from light blond to black. It is a bit unsettling because I am a redhead.

Hair on the head can also be affected. Mine began falling out more than normal soon after the CRPS started. It has continued to accelerate over the past six years and is now falling out by the handful. This has not and will not ever bother me, but for other women it can be very upsetting.

On the opposite end of the scale, hair can grow quickly and become very thick. While this is not a bad thing for your head, it can be unsettling to see it on arms and legs. Most of us with CRPS have skin sensitivity issues and needing to shave more often becomes something to dread.

Nails may grow faster than normal. They can also grow much slower or seem to barely grow at all. I have a combination of the two. Shortly after CRPS started, I noticed my toenails seemed to be at a standstill. One week and then two went by. They were nowhere near needing to be cut. Almost three months went by before I had to trim my nails.

My fingernails are a mix of growing normally and a bit faster than normal. I can cut my nails to a comfortable length and within days have five nails be quite long again.

Some people with CRPS have nails that are hard and thick making them painful to trim. The nails can get so thick a regular pair of clippers will not be able to cut through them.

Some people have nails that are thin and brittle, breaking easily. Nails can also develop ridges along the length and turn yellow. Both fingernails and toenails can split, or fall off completely.

CRPS can cause the immune system to become weakened, and this leads to frequent infections. Those who deal with this aspect have to monitor themselves to be certain a simple cut does not become horribly infected.

The changes in growth CRPS brings to hair and nails is easy to deal with. There are other symptoms much harder to tolerate and more painful. Nothing about CRPS is ever easy to deal with but hair and nail difficulties are, to me, the easiest to tolerate.