Alopecia areata, and does it matter?

[Anita]

Help! I am very confused! I’ve been experiencing hair loss that’s been diagnosed as Telogen Effluvium by a derm (even though I suspect it could be Androgenetic Alopecia). So I gave up on trying to determine if it’s Telogen Effluvium or Androgenetic Alopecia and start a regimen regardless. I am a woman, by the way.

The derm did not examine my scalp thoroughly at all, so last night when I was trying to determine what areas I would need to apply Rogaine to, I discovered all these small, bald areas. They seemed to me like an alopecia areata kind of situation. They are not on the crown, or perfectly round, but they are maybe the size of a dime in some cases. Most are in the back of my head, under layers of hair, which is why I probably hadn’t noticed them yet. I’d been focusing on areas near the front, where there was scalp visible depending on how I parted my hair, etc.

So, could it be alopecia areata? I hadn’t even considered this. My bloodwork is all normal, and I was tested for autoimmune disorder. The weird thing is that my actual hair loss (shedding) has nearly resolved itself in the last month. Now I need to grow back lots of hair. Would the diagnosis of AA, Androgenetic Alopecia or Telogen Effluvium have any bearing on how I can make the hair grow back? Or would it be based on Rogaine use anyway?
Should I let go of the diagnosis issue?

Thanks!
Anita

 

[Stingray]

Rogaine is a great tool to stimulate the growth of even healthy hair follicles... not just damaged ones. It does sound like you have a pathogenic case of hair loss, not androgen related. I'd seriously recommend you to go see a hairloss specialist, not a plain jane general practitioner. Alopecia areata can be reversed, but it's probably gonna be tough... I'm not too familiar with it. Telogen Effluvium's can almost always be reversed after the causative influence is removed, though.

Good luck.

 

[Lizzad]

I agree with Sting. Probably not AA, but trying some minoxidil 2% in the mean time certainly can't hurt the situation.

 

[elguapo]

Check out other forums as well

Anita,

Just saw your post. Thought HairLossTalk.com might not like this, you might also want to check out other forums. I ran across a few that are for women Telogen Effluvium sufferers after doing a search for Telogen Effluvium and "rapid hair loss", things of that sort. In one, a lady cannot stress enough that you find the right doctor, just as Stingray suggested. That is THE most important thing in your case, I believe. In the forums they can better guide you in that respect.

Personally, yes, sounds like AA to me. Did you recall anything that might have induced it, even up to 6 months ago? I also suggest rogaine, and in your case your diet is probably very important as well.

Not kicking you off this site, just saying you will find (possibly more) useful information on other sites as well. The dates of the threads might not be up to date, but the advice is still be good. Best of luck.

 

[HairlossTalk]

phew. Anita you've reposted this almost 4 times now.

What can we do at this point to help?

Eguapo, no problem on suggesting other resources. This isn't a competition. At least not as far as im concerned.

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