Dermatologists I’ve Seen Just Say They Can Tell If There’s Hair Loss By Looking

Dr Rassman,

Is hair bulk analysis a commonly performed test by dermatologists or hair transplant surgeons? I’m from the Uk and the dermatologists I’ve spoken to say ‘it’s easy to just tell with the human eye’.

The thing is, I also have really OCD (particularly with my hair) and it would ease my mind to know exactly how things were progressing rather than just questioning myself in the mirror every morning for an hour on end.

I saw a trichologists who said she could see miniaturised hairs at the crown but I have no idea what that means in terms of when I will have a bald spot. I want to stay away from drugs for as long as I can really but if it’s the case that I will be noticeably bald in two years then I might consider it.

thanks

You can tell if someone’s hair is thinning just by looking at them under a bright light, but the process of quantifying it is very difficult. Not many doctors perform miniaturization tests or hair bulk tests using the HairCheck device, which is highly accurate at detecting hair loss in its earliest stage.

I don’t have a list of clinics that perform these tests, but I know I’m not the only one that uses them. Best to call around and ask. I perform these tests at my clinic, because it gives me and my patients a certain metric or a quantitative value of what the state of one’s hair is in. We use these tests as a baseline to compare over a one year time frame to see if the treatments we use (Rogaine or finasteride) are working.

To be blunt, patients with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), particularly those who have seen other doctors and were told they are not losing hair, usually do not need help with hair loss. Their main issue may be the OCD, and the best help might be finding a treatment plan for that.