Alopecia (Baldness)

Acne
Actinic Keratosis
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Alopecia (Baldness)
Athletes Foot
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There are many types of alopecia, each with a different cause. Alopecia may be localized to the front and top of the head as in common male pattern baldness. It may be patchy as in a condition called alopecia areata, or it can involve the entire head as in alopecia capitis totalis.

There are many kinds of hair loss, including what we call:

Alopecia areata (patches of baldness that usually grow back);
Telogen effluvium (rapid shedding after childbirth, fever, or sudden weight loss); and
Traction alopecia (thinning from tight braids or ponytails).

All of these types of hair loss can be alarming but, fortunately, they are most often mild and temporary or reversible.

The majority of people who lose their hair, however, do it gradually and all through the scalp, with some emphasis on the frontal part. Doctors refer to this process as "androgenetic alopecia" which implies that a combination of hormones (andro-) and heredity (genetics) is needed to develop the condition.

Hair Loss in Men

What causes hair loss in men?
Some men never go "bald", but everyone''s hair thins out over the years. Despite much research, there is still only a little that men can do to slow down or reverse hair loss. Sometimes acute stress to the system (such as high fever, sudden weight loss, etc.) produces a sudden, rapid shedding of hair, where you find clumps of hair coming out all over the place. Although this syndrome is alarming, it actually is good news, because the body readjusts itself and most if not all the hair grows back. People whose loss of hair is inherited notice their hair is thinning but do not see very much hair actually coming out. Once you think you are thinning, it is worth a check to be sure.

Clearing up the "Myths"

You inherit baldness through your mother''s male relatives. Actually, baldness can come from either side of the family, or both. Looking at your family can give you, at best, an educated guess about how you will turn out.
Hair loss is not caused by wearing longer hair or by wearing hats.
It is true that you lose up to 100 hairs per day - some days a lot more. These hairs have finished their 3-year life span and are ready to be shed, then replaced. Finding hair on your comb or in the sink, therefore, does not necessarily mean you are going bald.
Shampooing does not accelerate balding.

What treatments are there for hair loss in men?
To slow down hair loss, you have two options:

Minoxidil (brand name: Rogaine): This topical application is sold over-the-counter at varying strengths, and works best on the crown, less on the frontal region. Rogaine may grow a little hair, but is better at holding onto what is still there. There are few side effects with Rogaine; this treatment requires application twice a day.
Finasteride (brand name: Propecia): This is a lower-dose version of a drug that shrinks prostates in middle-aged men. Propecia is by prescription only, and is taken once a day. Propecia seems to retain hair; however, it may also grow or thicken hair. Therefore, it is recommended for men who still have enough hair to retain. One of the side effects is impotence, but it is uncommon and generally reversible.

Note: Stopping either Rogaine or Propecia puts you back where you would have been without them, but not worse off.

Hair Loss in Women

Is hair loss in women different than men?
Hair loss in women also has an inherited (genetic) basis, but not as much as men, and the loss is not as fast. Also, women tend not to have big bald spots; in general women''s frontal hairline remains and thinning tends to be distributed throughout the scalp. Like men, when women first notice that their hair is thinner than it used to be (which can be in their early 20''s in some families), they assume the process will leave them bald, when in fact it usually takes many years for thinning to become obvious to others.

Women start losing their hair later in life and almost never lose the frontal hairline, no matter how thin their hair gets (this is called female-pattern baldness.) All of us develop thinning of our hair as we age.