Sometimes it is due to inflammation in the body. And sometimes it is the result of female-pattern hair loss. The good news is that in many cases this hair loss can be stabilized with treatment and may be reversible. If not, there are some new cosmetic approaches that can help.
Understanding hair loss
The first step in dealing with thinning hair is determining what's happening in your body that's keeping those extra strands stuck to your shoulders and hairbrush. Some hair loss is normal. Everyone loses hair as part of the hair's natural growth cycle, which occurs in three phases:
The anagen stage refers to when a hair strand is actively growing. This phase can last two to eight years.
The catagen phase is a short transition phase that lasts a maximum of three weeks. At this point the hair has stopped growing and is preparing to shed.
The telogen stage is the part of the hair cycle when hair is expelled from the follicle (the structure that produces and holds hair). After the hair falls out, the follicle remains dormant, usually for about three months, before a new hair begins to sprout.
Normal hair loss is very individual. Most people have an idea of how much hair it is normal to lose. If you suddenly notice more hair than normal falling out, you're losing clumps of hair, or your hair seems to be visibly thinning, it could be a sign that something is wrong.>
Underlying causes of hair loss
Numerous problems can cause hair loss in women. Some are external, such as taking certain medications, frequently wearing hairstyles that pull the hair too tight, or even a stressful event like surgery. In other cases, thinning hair is caused by something happening in the body – for example, a thyroid problem, a hormone shift, a recent pregnancy or an inflammatory condition.
Hair loss can also be genetic. The most common genetic condition is known as female hair loss, or androgenic alopecia. Women with this condition may notice a widening of the area at the top of the head, often beginning when a woman is in her XNUMXs or XNUMXs. You may experience this if you inherit certain genes from one or both parents. Hormonal shifts that occur during menopause can also stimulate this.
Another cause of hair loss in women is an inflammatory condition that affects the scalp. This could be eczema, psoriasis or a condition called frontal fibrosing alopecia, which usually causes scarring and hair loss (sometimes permanent) on the front of the scalp above the forehead.
Other common causes of hair loss include overuse of harmful hair products or tools such as dryers and other devices that heat the hair. Underlying illness, autoimmune diseases such as lupus, nutritional deficiencies or hormonal imbalances can also cause hair to fall out.
Medicines to treat hair loss
treatment depends on the underlying cause. Sometimes regrowing hair is enough to simply address a medical condition causing hair loss. In other cases, a woman may consider a medication like minoxidil (Rogaine), which helps with certain types of hair loss, or another treatment to replace or grow lost hair.
A newer option used to treat hair loss is platelet-rich plasma injections (PRP). For this treatment, the doctor draws your blood, divides it into its individual components, recombines the blood fluid (plasma) with a high concentration of platelets (structures in the blood that, among other things, help with clotting) and introduces the resulting preparation back into the scalp.
PRP works because growth factors in platelets stimulate the regeneration of hair follicles and other tissues.
Additionally, low-level LED laser lights have been found to be helpful in regrowing hair in some cases. More treatments are likely to be developed in the near future.
Cosmetic options for hair loss
If medical treatments fail, women can also consider cosmetic options to make up for lost hair, such as wearing a wig. At the other end of the spectrum is hair transplantation, a surgical procedure that moves active follicles from the back of the scalp to areas where hair is thinning. Once transplanted, the hair grows normally.
Hair transplantation is usually performed as an outpatient surgical procedure. In suitable patients it can be extremely successful. One downside is the cost: it can cost thousands and the procedure also requires recovery time. And it may not be suitable for women with diffuse dilution over the entire scalp. It is more effective at treating smaller, more defined areas of hair loss.
Want to know more about treating hair loss in women? Click here!
