This seems to be more common than people realize, and many don't go to a dermatologist to treat it when it is so easy to treat (with steroids).
Alopecia areata is a type of hair loss that occurs when your immune
This seems to be more common than people realize, and many don't go to a dermatologist to treat it when it is so easy to treat (with steroids).
Alopecia areata is a type of hair loss that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles, which is where hair growth begins. The damage to the follicle is usually not permanent. Experts do not know why the immune system attacks the follicles. Alopecia areata is most common in people younger than 20, but children and adults of any age may be affected. Women and men are affected equally.
Alopecia areata cannot be "cured" but it can be treated. Most people who have one episode will have more episodes of hair loss. Read more about alopecia areata.
Alopecia: Baldness. 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. The word "alopecia" comes from the Greek "alopex" for "fox." Foxes are less furry when afflicted with a skin disease (the "mange") which causes them to lose their hair. When a fancier word for "baldness" was sought, the mangy fox supplied it -- "alopecia" or, if you wish, "fox-mange" -- not a very positive image to associate with baldness!
One of the most sudden causes of hair loss that can occur within women and men and cause round patches of hair to literally disappear from the scalp is referred to as alopecia. Although the hair will often grow back after a period of time, most likely months after the initial spot has occurred within the head, it can be a difficult diagnosis to accept and cause many problems within the appearance and self esteem.
Although the causes of Alopecia are unknown and can be a variety of factors, there are three common causes which are thought to cause these round bald spots to appear within the scalp. The first is genetic and appears through family members, but it is important to remember that this is not contagious. The second could be from a disorder within the immune system which causes the body to attack the hair follicles which are growing through the tissue and the third could be caused by some factor which exists within the personís environment.
There are many treatments that are used for the treatment of Alopecia, from topical treatments that are applied directly to the scalp to more invasive surgical treatments which use injections into the scalp to stop the hair loss and restart the hair growing cycle.
Alopecia areata is a form of hair loss from areas of the body, usually from the scalp. Because it causes bald spots on the head, especially in the first stages, it is sometimes called spot baldness. Alopecia areata affects both males and females. This type of hair loss is different than male pattern baldness, an inherited condition. Alopecia areata is one type of hair loss. The exact number of people affected by alopecia areata is not known. Estimates vary between 1 in 1000 to 2 in 100 people being affected at some point in their life. Alopecia areata can occur at any age but most cases first develop in teenagers and children. In about 6 in 10 cases the first patch of hair loss develops before the age of 20 years.
Alopecia is not contagious. It is an autoimmune disease in which the bodyís immune system attacks itself, in this case, the hair follicles. Alopecia areata may occur in more than one member of the family, and such families may develop other autoimmune diseases such as pernicious anaemia and vitiligo. It is also more common in patients with chromosomal disorders such as Down syndrome.
Symptoms of Alopecia
The primary symptom of alopecia areata is roundish patches of hair loss on the head, with smooth, hairless scalp in the affected areas. Alopecia totalis involves the complete loss of all scalp hair, and alopecia universalis is characterized by the complete loss of all scalp and body hair.
Topical Minoxidil Topically applied rninoxidil 5% solution is helpful in reducing the rate of hair loss or in partially restoring lost hair in some patients; in large clinical trials, moderate growth has been noted at 4 and 12 months in 40% of males. The efficacy of minoxidil in females is not yet known from large clinical trials. Combinations of higher concentrations of minoxidil with topical retinoic acid are promising improvements.
Immunotherapy using chemicals such as diphenylcyclopropenone or squaric acid dibutyl ester on the scalp that can produce an allergic reaction, which may neutralize the turned-on immune cells.
Antiandrogens Spironolactone, cyproterone acetate, flutamide, and cimetidine, which bind to androgen receptors and block the action of dihydrotestosterone, have been rep