A term referring to physical characteristics of the male sex. In women, it refers to changes in appearance leading to masculinization (acne, alopecia, hirsutism, clitoral enlargement, deepening of the voice with irreversible damage to the larynx). Virilization symptoms are side effects of anabolic steroids in women and reflect increased androgenization.
Acne (Acne)
A collective term for various disorders of the sebaceous follicles in the skin, involving disturbances in secretion and keratinization and characterized by inflammation and scarring as a consequence.
Alopecia
Increased hair loss leading to baldness.
Androgenization
: Androgens are male sex hormones (C-19 steroid hormones such as testosterone). An increased androgenic effect is defined as androgenization. It can have various causes, such as increased production of androgens in the germ cells or increased conversion of precursors to androgens in peripheral tissues.
Hirsutism
: Increased body and facial hair in women, following the male pattern of hair distribution. The causes may include increased androgen production by endocrine glands, but may also be ethnically or genetically determined.
References: Pschyrembel, Clinical Dictionary, 258th edition, Walter de Gruyter Publishers, Berlin–New York, 1998.