An unusual new hair shaft abnormality: "bubble hair".

A 16-year-old otherwise healthy girl developed a localized area of brittle, easily broken hairs on the scalp. In addition, the hair appeared to "come out in clumps," and the overall texture of the hair changed from soft and naturally curly to straight and stiff. An unusual hair shaft abnormality was demonstrated by routine light and electron microscopy, for which we can find no report of similar cases. The case and associated findings are presented.