Black female 36: Hair is thinning from shedding due to highlights put in months ago. What can be done to help this?
Don’t assume that your thinning is from the highlighting. It sounds doubtful. I can not blindly stab at an answer to your questions without access to you, get your correct history, examine you, etc. You should see a dermatologist if the hair does not regrow. Not much I can do online at this point.
I am 42 yrs (female) and have been experiencing hair loss at the front of my head to the middle I’m of african descent with natural hair. I try all products that encourage re-growth with no results. Using rogaine made me gain weight and I also suffer from anxiety. Can you help?
I’ve never had any patient of mine report weight gain as a side effect of Rogaine (minoxidil), but it may be a side effect of your stress. As you are a woman, Rogaine would be the only medication I’d recommend, as it is the only one FDA approved to treat female hair loss.
Dr. Rassman:
Does the shedding of miniaturized hairs always indicate AGA, or can the presence of miniaturized hairs be due to another cause of hair loss? If so, what else can cause it?
Thank you for any input
Hair grows in cycles. During the stages of the cycle, individual hairs may go through physical changes often referred to as miniaturization. In normal non-balding people, the miniaturized hairs will represent less than 20% of the hair population. Miniaturization is the process where a normal thickness hair shaft becomes thinner and thinner over time. It can be due to the genetically determined effects of aging and/or androgenic hormones on the terminal (normal) hair follicle or other stress related or medical conditions (physical stress, mental stress, stress from chemicals or drugs, diseases, dietary problems, etc).
Miniaturization does not necessarily indicate AGA. It does not in itself give you a diagnosis, but a general state of hair health. The diagnosis comes from a good history and physical exam with a complete mapping of the scalp hairs for miniaturization.
Dear Dr. Rassman,
I am a 43 year old lady with increased hairloss usually between 150-200 hairs a day at the moment.
3 years ago I had two lots of traumas which caused my initial hairloss. After eventually seeing a trichologist and starting estradex lotion (containing minidoxil and phyto hormones)my hairloss reduced this took 3-4 months to see benefit. Initial the estradex made more hair come out which trichologist said normal as the estradex gets rid of the bad hair making room for better quality hair. I was also put on a antidepressant dotheipin 75mg. 12 months ago I stopped estradex, hairloss returned, not that it totally stopped but hair did look thicker. I have started back on estradex about 3 months on side of head but the partening looking slighlty wider on one side so started using estradex along this area for last 6 weeks. Still taking dothiepin 50mg – 75 mg alt days. I have recently started vitamins saw palmetto and pygeum and stinging nettle root. Sure my telogen as increased within a day of taking this vitamin could it be related. Taking high doses off this up to 2000mg. Or do you think its the estradex getting into my system (which contains 5% minidoxil)?
When I woke up yesterday, the birds were chirping and the air was crisp and I had a great day. Today when I woke up the dog was barking and the air was smoggy and I had a bad day. Do you think I had a good day because the birds where chirping or the air was crisp? Do you think I had a bad day because the dog was barking and the air was smoggy?
Your guess is as good as mine.
There’s too many variables and no direct proven relationships in the information you provided. It is normal to lose 100+ hairs a day. For most normal people, the regrowing hair will start at about the same time as the hair is lost so that the total hair count of hairs growing on the head stays constant. If you do the math, 100 hairs lost per day is about 109,500 hairs in three years (36,500/year) and that is the normal adult hair population. The hair cycling we have discussed before on this web site, is responsible for the fall out and the regrowth that is every person’s normal. The average growth cycle is 3 years for most people, so that means that in three years, most people replace 100% of the hairs on the head with new hair, one day at a time.
Please do not use my real name. I’m female, aged 54. I was born with a very high wide forehead. 8 years ago I had a scalp advancement which brought my scalp 1/2 inch lower. Two years ago I had hair transplanted from the back of my head to my my hairline. The transplanted hair became infected. Some of it fell out & never came back. The hair that stayed is course, dark, kinky & curly. It doesn’t resemble the rest of my forehead hair which is fine, straight & medium in color. Why is the transplanted hair so different from my natural hair? I also have lumps & red irritated skin where the transplanted hair grows. Did my doctor do something wrong?
Generally, if the technique of transplanting hair is done correctly, the frontal hairline should blend in with the rest of your hair. That being said, on occasion it may grow out a bit more wavy and on rare occasions it can become kinky or frizzy (very rare). Your prior surgery on your forehead and the complication of an infection may have played a part in the overall result. A good examination of the hair with thickness measurements may help understand what you think you are seeing. These are subjects that you need to discuss with your doctor who performed your surgery. If that is not possible, you should seek out another doctor for a formal medical opinion.
I am a 47 yr old female with very thick hair and no family history of female hair loss. Three months ago my hair started thinning drastically. What is left has become much lighter in color. A blood test showed “slight” anemia, says the doctor, and he prescribed iron pills. I have been taking them for almost a month and still the hair is falling out. When should I see a stop in hair loss? When will I see regrowth? Could I eventually lose all my hair before the iron starts to work? I’m really trying not to stress over this!
Thanks.
The hair loss may reverse and it could take months or years in some women. It is possible that the anemia may not be the cause of the hair loss or that the anemia precipitated genetic expression of hair loss, in which case it may not return to normal. It is also important to review the use of medications that can cause hair loss, such as oral contraceptives, beta-blockers, Vitamin A, thyroid drugs, coumadin and prednisone. The following laboratory tests are often useful if underlying problems are suspected: Estradiol, FSH, LH, SHBG, Prolactin, T4, TSH, ANA, Iron, TIBC, Ferritin, Free and Total Testosterone. If your doctor has any questions, please encourage him/her to call me at 800-NEW-HAIR. You need to make sure that you have a full medical work-up. If the hair loss does not return and all of the above testing is negative, your hair loss could be a sign of a genetic predisposition to hair loss which may have been precipitated by the defect (in this case anemia) or just the changes in your overall hormone balances.
please help – my girlfriend is suffering from itching and burning on the top of her head – and she has little red bumps in that area. she picks at them until they peel or flake off – and now she is seeing her hair fall out in little small circles in this location. what can she do and what is causing this??? just some information: she is 50 y.o, in menopuase and has had this condition for about 3 months now. please help.
If she continues to pick, these bald spots may become permanent. The red areas you are looking at may be traumatic in origin from the picking. This is an obsessive condition called trichotillomania. She needs to see a good dermatologist to lock in a differential diagnosis and pick up therapy from the recommendation of the dermatologist. The signs of trichotillomania are very characteristic on an examination of the scalp, so a good doctor will easily identify this as a cause if it is what is happening to her.
Hello Doctor!
I’m not unique, but have a specific question regarding female hair loss & regrowth. I am slowly going off of Topamax (w/Dr. supervision), and have recently gone off my birth control pills. I have extensive hair loss, to the point of clogging the shower drain daily (frightening!). I’m using topical Rogaine 5%, but have only done so for a month. How long does it take for hair to grow back? I’m confident mine will once my body adjusts to all of the medication changes. And does hair typically continue to fall out post-medication use? Please advise? Thank you!
Your question has a number of moving parts. You have recently stopped oral contraceptives and are tapering down on Topamax (both known causes of hair loss). Also, you have decided to start using Rogaine 5% for your hair loss, which if tolerated well, can only help. The standard time for hair to grow back once it has fallen out and gone into a ‘sleeping cycle’ is about 4 to 8 months. If your hair loss is due to medication, it should hopefully grow back once the medication has been stopped. Given that you are under the supervision of a physician, I suggest getting a full medical workup to rule out other causes of hair loss.
I too have hair thinning issues. I am 25 years old female, and this hair loss/itchy scalp began not too long after the birth of my son. At first I attributed it to post partum pair loss, but when it continued after 2 years, it became worrysome.
My hair seems to be constantly be falling out, and regrowing. I have a lot of frizzy baby hairs. My scalp is itchy, and when I scratch, in the general area I find like a granule of skin cells. It feels like the white bit at the base of a hair, only a little larger and dryer. Most of the hair that falls out also has these at the base of the hair. This is driving me crazy, PLEASE help me figure out what this is. I’ve had blood work and my thyroid is okay, and I am not a diabetic.
Thank you.
Female genetic hair loss can be triggered by pregnancy. There are unique patterns of miniaturization is associated with the genetic process (even in females) and this pattern is easily seen with good densitometry studies mapping out the head for miniaturization. You should get this process done and if you have a genetic process then, at the least, you will know what it is that is causing your problem. For those who lose hair with pregnancy, most will reverse within a couple of years.
I just turned 40 (female) and have been on Seasonale for almost 2 years. Over the last 6 mos. I have noticed my hair seems to be dramatically thinning at the hairline around my face. I can see my scalp through my hair and my hairline may also be receding a bit. Haven’t been able to find concrete info. on the androgen levels in Seasonale and link to hair loss. Can’t find any pics of similar hair loss to compare it to. Stress could also be a concern but don’t know where to go for answers….Thanks!
This is a different type of hormone / birth control approach. Any hormone alteration has the potential to produce changes in hair numbers (loss), thickness of the hair shaft, and texture of the hair. The posts I read from users on the various internet boards seem to have either enthusiastic opinions of it, or are generally negative. It would not be a surprise to find out that this induced hair loss in some women.
I am an 18 year old female, about to enter her freshman year of college. In my freshman year of high school (2002), one night before bed, I was brushing my hair and I screamed. I ran out to my mom and yelled that I was dying!!! I bent over and showed her the spot on my head the size of a quarter where there was not a single hair. Now, four years later, I do not have that one spot, but when I am in the shower washing my hair, I notice large amounts of hair that fall out into my hands, then, after my shower, I often wonder how much more will come out when I comb my hair with a wide tooth comb, and again, a lot. I do not know the cause of this, and I was wondering if you could please help me in telling me some of the causes of this that are in an 18 years olds life. Thank you.
See a dermatologist and let him/her examine you to answer your questions. It does require a good doctor and the knowledge that he/she has between their ears. Sorry, this isn’t the type of question I could easily answer over the internet without examining you first.
I have a question for my friend.. She has had hair breakage about 3 inches from the root. She has had over 15 surgeries in the past 7 years due to a motorcycle accident.. Her hair breaking has been an issue for over a year or 2.. She has had blood work done and nothing was found wrong. She has made an appointment with a hair specialist to do a test on a piece of her scalp. Is there any other simple reason that the doctors would be looking over like her nutrition? I am concerned for her and I wanna help her as much as I can.. If you have any answers for me I would appreciate it.
Stress from surgery can cause hair to fall out. I have often stressed (no pun intended) the importance of miniaturization mapping of the scalp to see the pattern of hair loss. This may be of benefit to your friend.
With regard to hair breakage (if it were you), I would want to know more about how you manage your hair, how you brush/comb it, what shampoos and conditioners you use, what changes you have implemented prior to noticing the breakage problem, and what the nutritional status of your body is (the hair may reflect vitamin and other nutritional deficiencies).
I’ve been searching your wonderful blog for treatment information on what is apparently termed, “Senile Alopecia.” My still beautiful mother at 84, may be experiencing this. She has been having a rather sudden increase in overall hair loss. Her scalp is showing through mostly on top, but also in the back and sides. I’ve copied your suggestions for possible medical causes in younger women. Once those are eliminated, is there anything at all that might halt this fast progression to almost total balness? Thank you so much for your help.
Senile alopecia often refers to generalized thinning or alopecia. With women, the female hair loss that we see on over 50% of post menopausal women, is a diffuse alopecia. We see this condition in 1% of men in their 20s. If the medical causes are not there and blood testing has cleared your mom of the the various causes of hair loss, then female genetic hair loss is probably the diagnosis. When it is referred to as senile alopecia, it generally means that the victim is elderly. It’s bad terminology. In the case of your beautiful 84 year old mother, simply put, she may be outliving some of her hair. Also see NHI Frequently Asked Questions.
I am an African American woman and my scalp started itching on and off about 2 months ago mainly in the crown area and the front area, then my scalp became sore for a day or 2, then I noticed, I didnt become bald, but my hair in the crown area and certain parts of the frontal area looks like it broke all the way down and left about 1 to 2 inches of hair in certain spots. This has happened to me about 2 years ago. But the hair always grew back. Can you tell me why this happens and what I can do to prevent it?
There is no way to tell what is happening with your scalp or hair without a physical examination. Usually if you pull or scratch your hair enough it will break off at its tip. It is sometimes a compulsive act. This condition is known a trichotillomania. But if the root (pardon the pun) of your problem is an itchy scalp you may have a local dermatitis or ring worms (fungal infection) or hundreds of other causes. BaldingBlog is not meant to be a substitute for medical advice or second opinions. You should see a medical doctor if this problem persists.
Hi, I am sixteen-years-old, and I just recently went to a consoltation with my parents to address the scalp scar, (non-transplant)that I had wrote about in a previous post. The doctor has been doing hair restoration for over 30 years and he seems to know what he is talking about. Well, my question is this, I went into the office thinking that he would recommed the FUE procedure to fill in this scar, but instead he told me he would be using FUT. He said that he would use a trichophytic closure and that the small scar he would make would be virtually undetectable. I asked him why he wouldn’t use FUE, and he told me that he performs this procedure, but he said that it would cost me twice as much and it would leave me with little scars that would be even more detectible than the trichophytic-closed scar. He said that my scar would require 50 unit grafts, and that this would be no problem. I just wanted to know your opinion. Does this doctor sound correct?
-P.S. My parents and I would really like to know, because we want to get the best treatment possible, and we need some advice. Thank-you
Either FUE or FUT will do the job. This doctor may not be comfortable with FUE, but it is not a procedure that produces any socially-detectable scars. In other words, FUE will not produce a noticeable scar (less than 1 mm punctate scars), versus a small, barely noticeable linear scar with FUT. The choice is yours. Although the FUE is often more expensive, I doubt that 50 follicular units would be an appreciable difference in costs.
As you are local to my Los Angeles office, if you and your parents are looking at options and would like a free consultation with an NHI physician, you can call 800-NEW-HAIR to schedule an appointment or visit the NHI site to request more info.