Human essential fatty acid deficiency: treatment by topical application of linoleic acid.

In 1977, a study was conducted on a 19-year-old man who developed an essential fatty acid (EFA) deficiency due to a long-term regimen of fat-free, intravenous hyperalimentation fluids. The EFA deficiency was successfully reversed after 21 days of daily, topical application of linoleic acid to the patient's skin. The ratio of eicosatrienoic acid to eicosatetraenoic acid decreased to normal levels in the skin and serum, indicating clinical improvement of the EFA deficiency syndrome. The cutaneous manifestations, which included scalp dermatitis, alopecia, and depigmentation of hair, were reversed with continued, topical application of safflower oil, which contains 60% to 70% linoleic acid.