A rare case of congenital red hair heterochromia of the scalp

Congenital red hair heterochromia in the background of blond scalp hair

“…Diffuse heterochromia has sporadic intermixing of the heterochromic hair. It can be familial or due to metabolic deficiencies (phenylketonuria and kwashiorkor), nutritional deficiency (vitamin B12 and copper), or drug exposure (minoxidil, chloroquine, and diazoxide) 1 . Patchy heterochromia will present as an isolated patch of heterochromia not adhering to any given pattern.…”

“…Heterochromia has been known to be impacted by genetics, metabolic defects, nutritional deficiencies, exposure to chemicals, injury of the follicle, and drugs 2 . There are reports recording the presence of light‐colored hair in the background of darker hair 1,3 and one case of dark hair in the background of lighter hair, 4 presumably due to a relative increase or decrease in eumelanin in the heterochromic hair. This is the first report of congenital red hair heterochromia of the scalp amidst a background of blond hair, with a relative increase in pheomelanin in the heterochromic hair.…”