Hair loss is becoming increasingly common owing to many factors like pollution, lack of sleep, unhealthy eating habits and stress.
“Baldness becomes common with age, and for some, it’s the result of a stressful and hectic lifestyle. Loss of hair is associated with distress in the patient and in their family members as well,” said Dr BL Jangid, hair transplant surgeon, and founder of SkinQure Clinic, Saket, Delhi.
He added that constant hair loss issues or other types of baldness in both males and females “tends to affect the quality of work, and also affects one’s mental health.”
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As such, it becomes essential to understand the baldness pattern and visit a hair transplant expert for proper diagnosis and treatment.
Baldness in males & females
“About 50 per cent of males face this problem after reaching their 50s, whereas most females face this problem after menopause. Women don’t become completely bald, they usually experience hair thinning, sometimes leading to the visibility of the scalp. Symptoms of hair loss are not very clear in Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) — whether diffused hair fall or receding hairline. All this happens due to the androgen hormone,” he said.
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Types of baldness
The scalp is the most common site for hair loss. There are mainly two types of hair loss:
Cicatricial alopecia (non-reversible) – Those in which there is scarring of the skin and permanent hair loss. This happens mainly because of lichen planopilaris, trauma, burn, infections, and congenital conditions.
Non-cicatricial alopecia (reversible) – It has a better outcome as hair loss can be reversed with no scarring of the skin. Other conditions like (AGA), male baldness pattern, female pattern baldness, systemic infection is are examples of non-cicatricial alopecia
There are various tests available – Trichogramma, trichoscopy, hormonal level, and scalp biopsy which help in diagnosing these conditions.
Types of baldness in males
Alopecia areata – small round shaped bald patches.
Traction alopecia – tightening of hair in different hairstyles may also lead to hair fall.
Tinea capitis – a fungal infection.
Types of baldness in females
Androgenetic Alopecia– Diffused thinning on all areas of the scalp.
Telogen Effluvium – This May happen due to factors like childbirth, excessive stress, major infection, etc.
Anagen Effluvium – This may happen because of chemotherapy.
Alopecia Areata – It happens due to the inflammatory reaction of the immune system.
Traction Alopecia – This is because of the stretch in hair follicles because of tying tight ponytails or different types of styling.
Causes of baldness in males and females
“Testosterone gets converted to Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) thus shrinking the hair follicles and reducing hair growth, causing male and female pattern baldness,” Dr Jangid said.
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Other causes include:
*Hereditary or genetic factors
*Aging is the common reason
*Loss of essential nutrients & improper diet
*Psychological pressure and anxiety.
*Hormonal changes during puberty, pregnancy, and menopause
*Chronic illnesses or autoimmune diseases
*Female problems like PCOS issues
*Environmental factors like pollution, dust, etc.
“People have also experienced hair loss within 3-6 months of post infections (COVID, TB, typhoid, dengue), which take time to grow back. But knowing the underlying cause of baldness becomes important to eradicate the problem completely, thus reaching out to a hair expert is a must,” he suggested.
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