Sadick & Reed Speak on Women's Hair Loss

Article by HairlossTalk.com

NEIL SADICK, MD: Telogen effluvium, which is where the hair goes into a resting or shock phase after any type of insult. The most common cause of this type of resting hair shedding is pregnancy. Three to six months after delivering a child, many women will notice a great degree of hair loss as the hair cycles into a resting phase because of the physiologic insult of pregnancy. This can also occur quite commonly in women who are on crash diets and lose a great deal of weight over a short period of time, or after acute illnesses, such as an acute infection. Anything that puts stress on the body can cause the body to recycle its hair into a resting phase and cause acute hair shedding, called telogen effluvium.

Does the body then recover into a normal growth cycle?

NEIL SADICK, MD: Usually. Because the body is able to compensate for this insult, usually three to nine months after the insult, the hair will begin to regrow, and usually in most cases between 90 and 100 percent of hair regrowth can be expected.

What is the third most common cause of hair loss in women?

MICHAEL REED, MD: The third most common cause that we see in clinical practice is a condition called alopecia areata. Areata is Latin for "round" or "circumscribed", which means that people suddenly see bald spots here or there, or little, tiny short hairs that are broken off. Sometimes it's noticed by the person cutting their hair. It's often related to some stressful event, and it's believed to be some type of immunologic imbalance. The immune system goes after its own hair for some unknown reason, causing them to go into the resting phase and slow down their growth so they break off or come out. A lot of times, it regrows by itself. In fact, most people who have it don't come to the doctor. It just goes away by itself. But a small number of people have very severe problems. Some people will lose all the hair on their head, and some people lose all the hair on their body. It's quite a common condition.

Where can women go to find more information about hair loss?

NEIL SADICK, MD: People can consult the American Academy of Dermatology. There's the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery. There is the Alopecia Areata Foundation, and there's also a National Hair Council. So these are common information sources that patients can look to for help and support in dealing with their particular problems.

But the first place to start may be a dermatologist?

MICHAEL REED, MD: If the hair loss has any unusual features-suddenly a lot of hair is coming out, if hair is coming out in a bizarre or unusual pattern, even if it's very severe, premature general thinning of the scalp, see a dermatologist. Dermatologists are trained in medical-and some of them also in surgical-treatment of hair loss. They're the people to see first.

- For more information, please read our Guide to Women's Hair Loss
- Read about the Proven treatments for Women's Hair loss
- Discuss your hair loss with other women in the Women's Forums

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