Female Traction Alopecia

I have a full head of hair which is shoulder length. However due to many years of wearing a pony tail, I have developed a mild traction alopecia around the neck line and slightly behind the ears. Because of this, I am not able to wear my hair up, or side swept which limits my hairstyles. I was wondering if I may perhaps benefit from follicular hair transplant?

Tight pony tails or ‘pig-tails’ can cause traction alopecia (hair loss from constant pulling). Of interest, the ‘falls’ that women use to add fullness to hair are a frequent cause of hair loss in women who use them to make their hair appear fuller. The more the use, the thinner the hair gets and the cycle of more use to treat thinner hair produces more thin hair.

With that said, the traction alopecia may not be permanent, that is, if you stop putting the traction on it. To find out, you would need to stop using a ‘pony tail’ for at least 6-8 months. What hair does not come back is probably permanent. There is a difference in the hair at the nape of the neck (which often has a different genetic ‘permanence’) then other scalp hair. Hair in the nape of the neck is generally more fragile and can be lost with stress (like traction).

We have extensive experience with treating temple hair and hair at the nape of the neck. The neck transplants were usually secondary to scarring from flap procedures which were surgically induced. The temple hair has been done in many, many patients wanting to move the temples forward or replace them from thinning. Send some pictures to me and I would be happy to give you an opinion. My email address is on the Contact page.