Should skinny jeans be worn only in moderation?

Regardless of what the fashion police might decree, one Yale doctor definitely agrees.

In an ABC News article published Friday, School of Medicine neurologist Orly Avitzur said the hipster staple may cause meralgia paresthetica, which is a pain or numbing sensation that extends from the spinal column to the thigh.

In times past, the condition was found in girdle wearers, Avitzur said. Nowadays — though girdles may be out of fashion and all — the condition is apparently reappearing in “women and young hipster men,” as the article put it, who often wear tight, lycra-infused denim.

“It can feel anywhere from numb to prickly, to a tingle, to burning, to painful or irritating,” said Avitzur, an instructor in neurology at the School of Medicine.

Meralgia paresthetica begins when a nerve in the groin is compressed by tight clothing. If enough pressure is put on the nerve, which runs from the groin to the outer thigh and down towards the knee, it can react.

Once started, the condition can linger for weeks or sometimes months if the damage is extensive, even after the afflicted individual has cast aside the skinny jeans responsible, Avitzur said.  She estimated that four in 10,000 people have suffered from the condition.

(Photo: Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP/Getty Images)