What is Alopecia?

Alopecia is an autoimmune hair loss disease that affects men, women and children of any age. The onset of the hair loss is often sudden, random and frequently recurrent. The different types of alopecia are:

More on the subject...

Alopecia Areata
Used to describe hair loss occurring in patches, usually small and round, anywhere on the body.

Alopecia Totalis
Total loss of the hair on the scalp.

Alopecia Universalis
Total loss of all hair on the body.

Androgenetic Alopecia
Male/female pattern baldness (which is not auto-immune).

While the disease itself is not damaging to bodily health in any other way, apart from possible changes in the appearance of the nails, coping with hair loss can prove challenging.

What causes it?
The body’s immune system wrongly attacks the growing cells in the body’s hair-producing `follicles’, where the hair starts to grow. This stops them producing new hair and causes existing hair to fall out. The cells which produce the hair, the follicles, do still remain active so the potential for hair to start re-growing is always there. A person’s ethnic origin, social status, their sex or age has no apparent bearing on the likelihood of them suffering from Alopecia.

How common is it?
There are varying figures available, but it is commonly accepted that something approaching 1.7% of the population will have alopecia to some degree during their lifetime. This includes more than 4 million people in the United States, with both men and women being equally affected. About 25% of people with alopecia have a family history of the disorder (Bertolino, 2000).

Is it hereditary?
Susceptibility can be affected by hereditary (inherited) genes in as much as they are thought to influence the likelihood of getting Alopecia. About 25% of patients have a family history of the disorder (Bertolino, 2000). However, your genes alone are not going to make Alopecia occur. Neither are you going to pass on an `Alopecia gene’ to your children. It is thought that there is a combination of genes which predispose you to the condition, meaning it is possible you may have the symptoms at some point in your lifetime.

Why did I get it?
Over 20% of people with alopecia have a family member with it. If you have had eczema, asthma or a thyroid disease you are more prone to Alopecia. However, the majority of people with alopecia are not aware of being in either of these categories and susceptibility is then probably due to their combination of genes. Some studies show a link with stress or trauma.

What treatments are available?
There is no cure for alopecia and no universally proven therapy to induce hair re-growth and sustain remission. However, there are treatments. The effectiveness of treatments tends to vary and something that works well for one person may not work well for another. So if you find one treatment doesn’t work, don’t assume others won’t either. But bear in mind that for some people none of the treatments are effective. And of course no treatment at all is another option. See our Treatments Page for more information on treatments.

What are the alternatives to treatments?
Some people wear bandannas or wigs (some of which can stay on for swimming and in the shower). These can be combined with treatments too of course. Some people with alopecia are happy to do nothing.

When will my hair grow back?
The vast majority of people with alopecia experience some degree of re-growth. The growing cells that supply the hair follicle remain active, so the potential for hair to re-grow is always there. There is a possibility of complete re-growth. But you may also experience the condition worsening or improving at any time.

It is unpredictable, which is one of the most difficult aspects of the condition - nobody can tell you with certainty what the pattern of your alopecia will be. So, at the extremes of the condition, you may have a single patch with complete re-growth within a short time and no further occurrence; or you may, as in a small minority of cases, experience all your body hair being lost with no re-growth at any time. It is most common to experience hair loss and re-growth over many years.

The re-growth can be any texture and colour, from fine-downy hair that’s white, to hair identical to your original hair colour and texture.

Visit: White Cliffs Hair Studio
White Cliffs are the UK’s leading provider of state-of-the-art hair replacement products and other advanced hair loss solutions. Their mission is to improve the lives of those experiencing the trauma of hair loss and Alopecia, as well those who desire to improve their natural appearance.

Visit: Alopecia UK
The Alopecia UK discussion forum provides a place for people to share experiences of alopecia and to hear the experiences of others. You can read the forum postings without logging on but in order to use the discussion forum you will need to register. They have a database of UK based support groups and provide support to people thinking about starting a group.

Visit: The Belgravia Centre
The Belgravia Centre hair loss clinic first opened its doors in London in 1991, employing a trichologist and two assistants. Today Belgravia’s medical centre has grown to become Europe's largest hair loss and scalp clinic.

Visit: Trevor Sorbie
"I feel my incredible career to date has led me to this moment, this opportunity to help people and I am so grateful that I have the skills to pull this off. My New Hair isn’t just about hair, its psychological medicine for women suffering from hair loss through illness and for many of the women I have seen, it’s the missing link in their treatment."

Visit: Patient Plus
PatientPlus articles are written for doctors and so the language can be technical. However, some people find that they add depth to the articles found in the other sections of this website which are written for non-medical people.

Visit: The British Association of Dermatologists
General information & links on the subject of Alopecia and other dermatalogical subjects.

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Pollyanna says:

Sunday 20th, June 2010 at 8:36pm

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Tuesday 08th, June 2010 at 8:10am

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Monday 10th, May 2010 at 2:31pm

It is great to see articles covering the area of women's hair loss - we are a cosmetic clinic specialising in hair loss, hair transplants and laser therapy and find too often that women are coming to us who have spent a lot of money on all sorts of lotions and potions that really will do nothing for them in the hope of regrowing their hair, we have just started some tests on a  regenerative product to see if this will work in particular with alopecia aretha - it has worked in the states on all other areas of regowth but as an auto immune disease this is the most difficult, if anyone is interested in discussing this and following the results or participating please contact the clinic on 0207 430 9674 or email info@cosmeticmedicalgroup.com

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Sunday 09th, May 2010 at 6:06am

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Wednesday 10th, March 2010 at 1:36pm

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Saturday 27th, February 2010 at 8:47am

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Friday 10th, July 2009 at 10:59am

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Tuesday 21st, April 2009 at 5:43pm

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Monday 02nd, March 2009 at 12:02pm

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Friday 20th, February 2009 at 12:56pm

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Friday 14th, November 2008 at 10:12am

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Friday 14th, November 2008 at 8:10am

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Tuesday 28th, October 2008 at 4:44am

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Saturday 28th, June 2008 at 9:15am

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