Partial or complete loss of hair is called alopecia.
Alternative Names
Loss of hair; Alopecia; Baldness
Considerations
Hair loss usually develops gradually and may be patchy or diffuse (all over). Roughly 100 hairs are lost from your head every day. The average scalp contains about 100,000 hairs.
Each individual hair survives for an average of 4-1/2 years, during which time it grows about half an inch a month. Usually in its 5th year, the hair falls out and is replaced within 6 months by a new one. Genetic baldness is caused by the body's failure to produce new hairs and not by excessive hair loss.
Both men and women tend to lose hair thickness and amount as they age. Inherited or "pattern baldness" affects many more men than women. About 25% of men begin to bald by the time they are 30 years old, and about two-thirds are either bald or have a balding pattern by age 60.
Typical male pattern baldness involves a receding hairline and thinning around the crown with eventual bald spots. Ultimately, you may have only a horseshoe ring of hair around the sides. In addition to genes, male-pattern baldness seems to require the presence of the male hormone testosterone. Men who do not produce testosterone (because of genetic abnormalities or castration) do not develop this pattern of baldness.
Some women also develop a particular pattern of hair loss due to genetics, age, and male hormones that tend to increase in women after menopause.
Alopecia areata (4 images)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Alopecia areata is hair loss of unknown cause, characterized by round patches of complete baldness. Reviewer: Michael S. Lehrer, M.D., Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 10/26/2006
Female pattern baldness (1 image)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Female pattern baldness involves a typical pattern of loss of hair in women, caused by hormones, aging, and genetic predisposition. Reviewer: Michael S. Lehrer, M.D., Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 05/03/2006
Male pattern baldness (2 images)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Male pattern baldness is the most common type of hair loss in men. It usually follows a typical pattern of receding hairline and hair thinning on the crown, and is caused by hormones and genetic predisposition. Reviewer: Kevin Berman, MD, PhD, Associate, Atlanta Center for Dermatologic Disease, Atlanta, GA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 04/12/2007
Print
