Alopecia or hair loss or balding is a matter of psychological concern for both males and females. Alopecia may be of scarring and non- scarring type.
Hair follicles go through cyclic phases of activity and inactivity. Each cycle comprises of three phases:
ANAGEN : The growing phase, which lasts for 2-6yrs, average being 3 yrs.
CATAGEN : The transitional phase, which lasts for 1-2weeks.
TELOGEN : The resting phase, lasting for 3-4 months.
In a normal scalp, 90% of the hair are in anagen phase while 10% are either in catagen or telogen phase at any given point of time. The normal human scalp has about 100,000 hairs. Normally 100 hairs are shed everyday.
How Hair Fall is treated?
The hair sample must be tested and the cause if established should be treated.
If there is any bacterial or fungal infection, it must be treated.
Dandruff or lice if present should be treated.
Alopecia areata – patchy loss of hair in circular areas, can be treated by intralesional injections of triamcenalone or hydrocortisone or both. More than one cycle may be required at the interval of 2 – 3 weeks. ‘Phenolization’, is another technique to treat alopecia areata. Laser treatment as well as local application of certain creams and lotions help in treatment of alopecia areata.
Patients with male pattern alopecia or diffuse hair loss can be treated with minoxidil lotions in different concentrations depending on the severity of baldness. ‘Finasteride’ in low doses is also used in male pattern alopecia. Vitamin and Zinc supplements are essential for arresting hair loss and helping hair regeneration.
Anemia or thyroid problems and other hormonal abnormalities. if present needs prompt treatment with iron supplements and other drugs as necessary.
Only patients having severe degree of balding which had been persisting for years and not responding to medical treatment need to think about hair transplantation surgery . If proper medical treatment is taken early ie within the first 1-2 years, you can get back all the hair you have lost . but as the time lag increases the response to treatment decreases. In the modern stressful life baldness is seen to set in earlier . So get your hair fall treated as soon as it starts . By waiting you are actually wasting the precious years . In severe cases of balding besides the tablets and applied lotions , there are specefic hair growth promoters which are given through injections or dermaroller treatments. This includes the mesotherapy treatments with various meso solutions and PRP treatments.