You Need To Know All About Hair Loss Explained By Dermatologists – Part 1

You’re Not Alone In Dealing With Thinning Strands Or Alopecia 

You’re not alone in case you have noticed patchy or thinning spots on the scalp along with a surplus of hair strands on your hairbrush or in shower. According to the Cleveland Clinic, more than half of all the women experience noticeable hair loss. Thereafter you have to figure out the root of the problem, in order to put a stop to shedding. As Yolanda Lenzy, dermatologist and licensed cosmetologist in Chicopee, Massachusetts commends, as hair loss is not a diagnosis but a symptom, that once you get a specific diagnosis you can thereby know the causes associated with that diagnosis.  

Know that the term alopecia refers to most of the kinds of hair loss for starters. Here come the two main types of alopecia along with a variety of forms of hair loss that is possible within those two categories. The missing hair in case of non-scarring or temporary hair loss will eventually grow back whereas the scarring or permanent hair loss has done permanent damage to the hair follicles and so they won’t grow back. As Dr.Lenzy says, the goal with scarring hair loss is not for it to grow back but to stop the progression. Here we explore the seven different kinds of alopecia and you can decide which one you’re suffering from helping to determine the proper treatment. 

Non-scarring (Reversible) Forms of Hair Loss

Androgenetic Alopecia

It is androgenetic alopecia when people talk about male or female pattern hair loss that comes typically as a receding hairline in men and also thinning at the crown in women. Among all people, it is the most common form of hair loss and research shows that in fact, more than 50% of women develop androgenetic alopecia by the age of 80. As a dermatologist, Carolyn Goh, at the David Geffen School of medicine and the Director of the Hair and Scalp Disorder Clinic at UCLA says, it is possible to come from either side of the family in men or women, or skip a generation as also start earlier in the next generation than the one before it. There are some people however with pattern hair loss without any family history of it. Women may show signs of androgenetic alopecia in their teenage years, whereas others won’t experience it until their 50s or 60s. As Dr.Lenzy says the decrease of estrogen when nearing menopause means you have unopposed testosterone, and the elevated testosterone now converts to a hormone called dihydrotestosterone contributing to the thinning of the hair follicles which get smaller in this particular form of hair loss. 

Telogen Effluvium

Just a fancy name for excessive hair shedding, telogen effluvium is an annoyance where many people experience it at some point in their life. As Dr. Goh explains, the common cause of this is the stress that usually means major life stressors or physical stressors like surgery, medication, weight loss, and also death in the family just to name a few. Usually, this starts three to six months after a stressor and lasting for three to six months. Triggering telogen effluvium is hypothyroidism and iron deficiency. 70% of the hair strands are still in the anagen or growing phase, which is the beautiful thing of this kind of hair loss. Here you won’t go bald as the hair follicles work in a cycle. 

Alopecia Areata

Affecting about 2% of people, this type of hair loss usually appears as round smooth circles anywhere on the head and without any redness itching, or pain. Dr.Lenzy states, that thought to be caused by an autoimmune process, Alopecia Areata has the body’s immune system making some mistakes and producing T cells attacking hair follicles. 

Traction Alopecia

Indicating traction alopecia is thinning and bald patches at the temples or where the hair is frequently pulled tight. Caused by haircare and hairstyle practices, is this very common form of hair loss with placing excessive tension or weight on the follicles like braids, ponytails, hair extensions, or locks. 

Scarring (Permanent) Forms of Hair Loss

Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia (CCCA)

Starting on the top of the head with breakage and thinning is the central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia often with some tenderness of the scalp according to Dr. Goh. Causing permanent hair loss, it gradually spreads outward and CCCA is the most common among Black women as studies are showing about 25% of the people has this form of hair loss with a genetic mutation in one of the proteins that’s responsible for the formation of the hair follicle according to Dr.Lenzy. The same haircare practices, on top of that, as she notes, create tension and cause traction alopecia that can also contribute to CCCA. 

In The Next Post

There are more types of hair loss explained in the next post. Read on the full discussion.