Category: Hair Loss Causes

Hi doc

People who want to change sex never lose its hair because of hormonal therapies. Now, obviously I don’t want to do that, but I’ve got an idea: If we inject onto the scalp estrogen using a dermoroller, would hair loss be stopped forever?

Please answer to my question

While it is a creative approach, estrogen injected superficially into the scalp with a Dermaroller can not add value nor prevent balding. I have seen some effects of such injections by dermatologists in the “old days” and what happened is that they lose hair at the injection sites. The end result is that some came to see me about their hair loss.

hello,

I had hair transplant surgery 1 year ago and 5 months after the surgery I was diagnosed with Lichen Planopilaris. As of this date, I continue to lose hair and have less than what I started with before the transplant. It seems the transplant surgery “triggered” the LPP.

Do you have any experience with this disease and/or have you seen this situation occur in your practice?

This is an autoimmune disease that can lead to permanent hair loss, and is best treated by a dermatologist who has a great deal of experience with it. Unfortunately, I’m not that person, nor have I seen it triggered by a hair transplant. It might have happened even had you not received a hair transplant, but we will never know.

You can learn more about this disease at Dermatology Channel and Surving-HairLoss.com. The American Academy of Dermatology has a physician search that lets you find a doctor by specialty — here.

I have facial hair that i have notice that are bald spots and more are comming up. I have no scars, cancer or any of the sort. Now they are spreading to my beard where i trim but dont shave. They start small then seem to to get lager. Should I be worried abput this? What do you suggest I should do?

Yes, you should worry. You really need to see a dermatologist and find out what this is. It might be alopecia areata, as this is the way it could start. See National Alopecia Areata Foundation for more.

Since childhood I’ve always had very fine hair, every barber I’ve ever been to has commented on it. I’m currently 23 years old, and I have a constant paranoia with my hair, I’m in the military so I’m required to keep my hair short at all times. The only problem is my hair gets oily very easily, and I’m shampooing it every morning. After shampooing and drying my hair it looks fine, but when it gets oily at the end of the day when I look into my vanity mirror and I see my scalp as if my hair were sticking together on my head.

My hair doesn’t seem to be falling out at any alarming rate, I get maybe 3-10 strands in my hands when shampooing, there’s virtually nothing on my pillow in the morning, and I’ve tried the pull test in random areas of my head and at the most have pulled out 1-2 strands in any given area.

I guess my question is, is it normal for my hair to stick together like that, and am I being paranoid over nothing? Thanks

What you describe sounds like an excess of sebum, and the best way to manage that problem is by frequent shampooing. See How Can I Reduce Excess Sebum? for more.

Hi, I’m sorry if you’ve already answered a question like mine on the site but I’ve never been on it before so I’m unfamiliar with past questions. I’m 18 years old and a college student and I have been experiencing some hair loss around the lower back of my scalp and above my ears. I’ve been to a dermatologist who said that it was alopecia, but I’m not sure my symptoms truly match it. The area along the base of my scalp now has very sparse hair and has thinned significantly over the past month and a half. The areas above my ears, however, are completely bald circular spots that look much more like alopecia (my sister had alopecia a few years ago so I am familiar with what it looks like). My scalp is also very dry though not particularly itchy.

I am currently using Fluocinonide topical solution on the balding areas and have been doing so for about a month. I also got injections of cortisol (I think?) twice from my dermatologist. Though it hasn’t been very long, I don’t feel like my hair loss is slowing down and it may actually be getting worse. Can you give me any suggestions or at least a confirmation on the alopecia diagnosis? Thanks!

“Alopecia” is the latin word for “hair loss”. So the answer your doctor gave you is that you have hair loss. There are various types of alopecia (androgenic, areata, universalis, etc), so I’m not sure what your doctor diagnosed you with. If you’re getting spots on various parts of your scalp, it could be alopecia areata. Women are more complex and most cases will require an examination. Without an exam, I really won’t be much help based on the info you described. Sorry.

How do they know that Sebhoraic Dermititus and Psoriosis do not cause hair loss? You wrote on your blog once that it can cause reversible hair loss indirectly by the inflammation accelerating telogen effluvium. Can the inflammation in someone that does not have telogen effluvium do this? Many (not all) of my outer brows fall out by just touching them gently. I have sebhoraic dermititus, is this accelerated a normal symptom of the condition or does this mean I also might have telogen effluvium?

• Seborrheic dermatitis causes scaly, itchy, red skin and dandruff. It is a skin condition. It is not a hair condition.
• Telogen effluvium is diffuse hair shedding which is triggered by some form of stress that makes the hair go into the shedding (telogen) cycle. Hairs usually grow back in 6 to 12 months.

I suppose any inflammation or trauma or stress can cause hair loss, but these types of hair loss are generally reversible and do not occur in everyone… just some susceptible people. I suppose extreme seborrheic dermatitis can trigger telogen effluvium, but it would be rare. It may cause some hair loss from scratching producing traction alopecia (not as drastic as telogen effluvium).

(female)
Dr. Rassman, thank you for time. I have read your answer as well as several other sites that state ‘A’ CT scan is not sufficient to cause hair loss. I have been having repeated intensive CT scans. My research has shown that the amount per CT scan (chest, abdomen and pelvis) is relative to approximately 1/4 the radiation exposure of a survivor of the atomic bombs that were set off in Japan. I have now had 8 such scans in a year and a half period. There are more issues than hair loss that drove me to my doctors seeking answers, but they have none for me. The only other significant health or living circumstance change for me in this time period has been weight loss. I ask you again because my question is so specific to the amount of radiation I am receiving… Is it possible repeated CT scans (versus ‘a’) could cause hair loss?

Certainly it is possible that radiation from multiple computed tomography (CT) scans of the scalp could produce hair loss. Various CT scanners produce varying amounts of radiation but even your 6 CT scans to the head may not be enough radiation to produce hair loss like victims of the atomic bomb experienced. There is not much information available to produce a more certain answer to your question.