Facial Hair Loss Started with a Tiny Spot, Now It’s Half My Face!

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

I am a man of 29 years old but i noticed when i was 27 years old at the lower part of my jaw on the left part of my face, the hair on a part there started going bald. It started gradually with a tiny spot of hair loss then it started expanding and now it as expanded to its limit and it stopped expanding but my hair won’t grow back and i can’t have my proper shave. please doctor i need an advise to know if or how i can grow my hair back.

I couldn’t say precisely what it is, but alopecia areata starts like how you described. You need to see a dermatologist and your condition will probably require a biopsy for confirmation. Learn more about this disease at the National Alopecia Areata Foundation.

Tags: alopecia areata, alopecia, facial hair, spots, hairloss, hair loss

All of My Scalp and Body Hair Has Thinned!

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

Hi I have something weird that happened. All of my hair on my head has minimized. On the sides, back, front all over. Is this DUPA? I went to my dermatologist and he brushed me off and didn’t even know what DUPA was. The weird thing is is that it’s all over my body hair, genital hair and underarm hair.

Is this DUPA or is it hormonal?

To answer your question with regard to DUPA, I would need to map your entire scalp for miniaturization. In men, DUPA shows significant miniaturization in the donor area. That would start answering your question.

With regard to body hair, I think that you are lucky (as I hate my body hair), but we do see changes in body hair with age in some people and this may be genetic in men. With that personal candid view, I don’t want to minimize the importance of getting a doctor involved so that the ‘rare’ conditions that are either genetic or hormonal are not overlooked.

Tags: dupa, diffuse unpatterned alopecia, hair loss, hairloss, body hair

Doctors That Don’t Do Miniaturization Mapping

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

When attempting to find a good HT Doctor, should one that doesn’t do a Miniaturization test be a strong factor in determining whether to use them?

There are many doctors that do not map the scalp for miniaturization. It is a relatively easy procedure, and in my hands it is basic to using medications like Propecia, in determining the health of the donor area, and in developing a long term Master Plan for the patient. If they do not use a high-powered video device to examine the hair, they will miss things like diffuse unpatterned alopecia (DUPA) on many patients who have it. And to continue that example, I am sure that if they end up performing surgery on a person with DUPA, they will absolutely harm them.

I am not a fan of doctors that do not do a complete examination of the scalp before they go forward with hair transplantation surgery. Of course, you should make your own determination of that issue.

Tags: miniaturization, mapping, examination, doctor, hairloss, hair loss, surgery, surgeon

In the News – 12 Year Old Girl’s Battle with Alopecia

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /, ,

Snippet from the article:

Sophie NixonWhen football fanatic Sophie Nixon started losing clumps of her hair, no one in her family knew that bullying at school was making the youngster ill. Now the 12-year-old from Lowestoft has spoken out about her alopecia to encourage other young people to seek help if they are being bullied.

Sophie’s hair started falling out two years ago and she soon lost her eyebrows and eyelashes. It was only when her parents took her to see a doctor that she told them she was being teased at school and she was diagnosed with the condition, which causes sudden hair loss.

Read the full article at the UK’s East Anglian Daily Times.

She’s quite brave to speak out about her condition and I wish her well. This story reminded me of an article from a couple years ago, where a young girl’s hair loss was triggered by bullying (see here).

There are genetic disorders that cause hair loss at the young age, starting at 2-4 years old. This can be alopecia totalis or a form of ectodermal dysplasia, which are often genetic in origin.

Tags: alopecia, hairloss, hair loss, bullying, teasing, school, child

Why is My Hair Loss from Alopecia Areata Cyclical?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

(female) About 1 year ago, I found out I had Alopecia Areata. I went to the doctor right away and got the steroid injections to the bald spot I had. Well, in about 5 month, i got all my hair back, but it starting thinning out. Now after full 10 months, I noticed a very small bald spot on my scalp again. So, my question is why am I loosing hair after almost 1 year again. Please suggest something.

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease and based upon your history, it sounds like it is active. It has been known to return after disappearing spontaneously or with treatment. Read up about the disease at the National Alopecia Areata Foundation site.

Tags: alopecia areata, hairloss, hair loss

Alopecia Areata and Cyclical Hair Loss

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

(female)
i have alopecia areata and my hormone levels are up the creek . i am growing new hair , however why does it get so far and then fall out again ?

I do not know what you mean by your hormones being up a creek. Which hormones and what creek?

I am glad to read that you are growing new hair, which is to be expected for those who have alopecia areata. But it also may fall out again, also to be expected for those who have alopecia areata. This is something that happens with this disease, where it may spontaneously reverse and at times recur. For more info about alopecia areata, see the National Alopecia Areata Foundation.

Tags: alopecia areata, hairloss, hair loss

CellCept (Organ Transplant Antirejection Medication) and Hair Loss

/by William Rassman, M.D./1 /, ,

I have been taking CellCept for 6 weeks and I noticed hair loss, I have stopped taking it now but this was 8 weeks ago and I have seen no improvement.

Can you advise if it will grow back?

I’ve answered this question about CellCept before and have nothing new to report since then.

If it grows back it would take over a year, though it often does not grow back to its original fullness, particularly in the area where genetic balding is active.

Tags: cellcept, mycophenolate mofetil, hairloss, hair loss, antirejection, anti-rejection, transplant, organ transplant

I’ve Got Thick Hair from Acromegaly

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

i recently was diagnosed with something called acromegaly which partly means the pituitary gland produces too much hgh. one of the symptoms of this disease is course or thick hair, which i have. i’m wondering once i correct this issue & my hgh levels return to normal. will this cause hair loss of any kind whether its the legs, eyelashes, etc…

Many of the body’s changes from acromegaly do not reverse after the pituitary problem is fixed. Unfortunately, I have no real experience dealing with this disease or the hair changes that go along with it. Perhaps you can find more info here or here.

Tags: acromegaly, hairloss, hair loss, hair growth, pituitary gland

Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

What is frontal fibrosing alopecia? I haven’t heard of this before and I just read an advertorial that mentions that it is a cause of hair loss in women.

Link here

Frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) requires a microscopic diagnosis made in the hands of a good dermatopathologist. To quote the link you sent, FFA “can cause women to lose up to five inches from their hairline. If FFA goes undiagnosed, women can even lose hair at the sides and back of their head.” For more info and some photos, see DermNet NZ.

In general, there are two types of hair loss — scarring alopecia and non-scarring alopecia. Genetic (male pattern) hair loss is the non-scarring type. We usually do not perform surgery for those with the scarring alopecia, because as the name implies there is scarring and inflammation underneath that is causing the hair loss. So a hair transplant would not likely work because your own immune system can still attack the transplanted hair.

Tags: frontal fibrosing alopecia, ffa, autoimmune, disease, hairloss, hair loss, female hair loss, scarring alopecia

Tiny White Bumps on My Scalp

/by William Rassman, M.D./2 /,

I don’t know what to call this but I have found myself scratching and itching my scalp for the past few years during times of stress such as exams. The reason why I do this is because there are these tiny white bumps on my head that I try to pick at and just continue to do so. My hair has greatly thinned and is more oily. What is this condition called? how do I treat it?

I can not address the white bumps you are talking about without seeing you and them. It could be an infection, folliculitis, dermatitis, or even dandruff. You’ll likely want to see a dermatologist for that, as I can’t simply guess as to what it is or tell you how to treat it.

The hair loss you are experiencing in the areas you are scratching is probably traction alopecia. Some people with dermatillomania (compulsive skin picking) can also have trichotillomania (compulsive hair pulling), which leads to permanent hair loss.

Tags: scalp, bumps, dermatology, hairloss, hair loss

Diabetes and Propecia

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

I would like to thank you first for this wonderfull and highly educating blog.I am a 20 years old Male with type 1 diabetes. I have been experiencing hairloss for the past 2 years. I tried Regaine for the past year but stopped it because of the major itching it was causing. My two questions are if I started taking propecia, would it cause me any health damage related with the my situation.? is there any particular tests I should take before starting on propecia? (I dont have any health problems other than type1 diabetes). Thank you

Type 1 diabetes should not be a problem when you take Propecia, but get a good hair doctor involved in the diagnosis and treatment.

I’ve written quite a bit about the drug, so I won’t rewrite the same stuff again… but Propecia will work best when you’re in the early stages of genetic hair loss, which it sounds like you could be (I can’t say for sure as I haven’t seen a photo or met you).

Tags: propecia, finasteride, diabetes

Seborrheic Dermatitis on Eyebrows and Scalp?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

Hi what the problem is that just about a year ago i started to get seborrheic dermatitis mildly starting on my eyebrows. It has now progressed all around my scalp and has produced reasonably large flake’s all over my scalp. what i worry about is that when these flake’s fall out a hair would sometimes come out with it and what looks like the root of the hair aswell. I am just wondering will these hairs grow back if it is not part of the normal growth cycle? or may i be facing permanent hairloss if there is no true way to permanently get rid of these flakes. Thank you for your time Doc.

You may have psoriasis rather than seborrheic dermatitis. The hair that is going to fall out in normal hair cycling will often come out with the big flakes. You need to be evaluated by a dermatologist.

Tags: psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis, dandruff, hair loss, hairloss

Prolactinoma and Hair Loss?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /,

Hi Dr Rassman,

Im looking for a bit of advice, i think i have been fooling myself into believing i was going bald genetically and that my hairloss was due to Seb Derm/Inflammation and Traction loss. I believe some of it has been caused by my scalp picking and itching, but i have noticed i am starting now to recede and have lost hair diffusely through the top and also on the sides of my head.

I have been diagnosed lately with a Prolactinoma and low Testosterone so dont know how much that could be affecting my loss if any ? if im just going bald DUPA what would be youre recommendation for halting and regrowth, and would it conflict with my Cabergoline im using to shrink my Pituatory Tumor ?

Thanks

You’ve got a lot going on. The excess production of the hormone prolactin can possibly cause hair loss, but I do not have a lot of experience in this area. I can’t give recommendations for you, as I don’t have enough information and you’re under the care of a doctor that you should be getting your info from. Cabergoline doesn’t list hair loss as a side effect, and I’ve written about a similar problem before here.

Tags: cabergoline, hairloss, hair loss, prolactin, pituitary, prolactinoma

Did Surgeries from My Fibrous Dysplasia Cause Hair Loss?

/by William Rassman, M.D./1 /, , ,

Dear Dr Rassman:

I’m a 27 year old who has long suffered from Fibrous Dysplasia (I’m not sure if you are familiar with this disease). Due to my ailment, I have incurred over 30 medical surgeries over my lifetime. My hair was thick up untl high school, and then it really began to thin. The only ancestors of mine that have been bald were only two of my great-grandfathers. I was wondering if all of the major surgery I have had would have caused my hair loss. Also, I have been on propecia since November of last year and am having some back surgery next week. Would the shock of surgery or the medications used cause my hair loss to increase? Also, because I may be missing a couple of days of propecia doses would this affect the progress of the drug in combating my hair loss?

Fibrous dysplasiaI’m familiar with fibrous dysplasia (it is a very rare bone disease), but I do not know what surgery you have had or what medications you take. Your question is very general and it is not something I can give you an answer to in this format. You need to see a physician and have a complete history and examination.

In most cases, hair loss in men is caused by genetics. If you have an autoimmune disease like a form of a scarring alopecia, surgery done in these conditions can be dangerous and produce failures of the grafts and further scarring of the scalp. Any medical illness or surgery that is a stress to your body can cause hair loss (sometimes permanent). But to distinguish that from genetic causes is something that only a thorough examination with a physician can provide. You are looking for a cause and effect type of relationship and I really cannot help you with the limited information I have.

Tags: surgery, hair loss, hairloss, fibrous dysplasia, bone disease, tumors

In the News – Smokers with Lupus Have Higher Risk of Hair Loss

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Snippet from the press release:

“Up to 85 per cent of people with SLE develop skin involvement at some point,” explains Dr. Pineau. “Our study shows that the risk of skin damage such as permanent hair loss and scarring from skin inflammation is significantly increased in smokers. So is the rate of active lupus rash.”

Read the full text: Smokers With Common Autoimmune Disorder At Higher Risk For Skin Damage

The information comes from a study published in the Journal of Rheumatology, and “has clearly linked skin damage and rashes to smoking in people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).” The great majority of those with SLE are women, and could be something else doctors consider when looking into a cause for female hair loss.

Tags: lupus, systemic lupus erythematosus, sle, hairloss, hair loss, smoking, cigarette