Teen Suffers Kidney Failure After Hair Straightening
Jerusalem hospital reports third kidney failure case in two months linked to hair straightening. Doctors warn young women to verify products approved by Health Ministry before treatment.
Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem reported this morning (Sunday) another young woman hospitalized due to a particularly unsuccessful hair straightening treatment that caused kidney failure.
The patient is a 19-year-old who suffered kidney failure after undergoing hair straightening. This is the third case in just about two months of girls and young women hospitalized at Shaare Zedek with varying degrees of kidney failure after hair straightening treatments. Recently, a 25-year-old woman and a 17-year-old girl were also hospitalized at Shaare Zedek.
The teen arrived at the hospital's emergency room after having her hair straightened and immediately felt a burning sensation on her scalp, followed by weakness, nausea, and vomiting.
After a series of comprehensive tests, she was hospitalized in Internal Medicine Department A, with blood test results indicating significant deterioration in kidney function.
Dr. Zagel Hamza, a senior physician in Internal Medicine A who treated the girl along with Prof. Linda Shavit, head of the Institute of Nephrology at Shaare Zedek, said: "The girl came to us with poor kidney function after having her hair straightened. She was hospitalized for monitoring of her kidney function, treated with fluids, and released in good condition."
National Research Reveals Link
Prof. Shavit, together with Dr. Alon Binyah from the Institute of Nephrology at Shaare Zedek, are among the initiators and leaders of a broad national study that examined 26 cases over three years of women hospitalized due to kidney failure after straightening treatments. The study was the first in the world to point to the connection between kidney failure in women and hair straightening products containing glyoxylic acid.
Based on the research, among other factors, the Ministry of Health decided about three years ago to revoke licenses from dozens of cosmetics containing glyoxylic acid. Following the research findings, and after similar cases appeared worldwide, Switzerland and France published public warnings on the matter. Since the study, over 50 cases have been reported in Israel in total.
Prof. Shavit: "We're seeing a worrying increase at Shaare Zedek in cases of women being hospitalized with kidney failure after hair straightening. All three treated with us in the past two months were young women with no background illnesses, hospitalized with acute kidney failure only because of hair straightening. Some of the cases also led to repeat emergency room visits even after discharge from hospitalization."
She added: "I'm asking women who want to have their hair straightened, check that the product is approved by the Ministry of Health, that the substance doesn't come into contact with the scalp skin, and demand that salons perform the straightening according to manufacturer instructions. If you feel burning on your scalp during straightening, remove the substance immediately. Your health comes first, there's no reason to go to a salon and end up hospitalized."