What is Alopecia Areata?
Alopecia areata is a kind of hair loss or baldness for man or woman that occurs when immune systems mistakenly fall on hair follicles, that is where hair growth starts. The harm to the follicle is typically not permanent. Specialists don't recognize why the system attacks the follicles. Alopecia areata mostly seems to people who are younger than twenty, but kids and adults of any age can be attacked. Men and woman can be attacked equally.
What happens in alopecia areata?
Alopecia areata typically begins when lots of hairs fall out at a time, resulting in completely sleek, circular hairless patches on the scalp or any part of the body. Sometimes hair could become thinner without prominent patches of hairlessness or it could grow and break off, leaving the hair’s short stubs (called "exclamation point" hair). In a few cases, full loss of hair (body and scalp) occurs. Hair loss often comes back and fallen hair increase over a few months but another area will fall out.
When alopecia areata causes in some of the hair loss, the hair usually start grows again in several months. Though the new hair is typically a similar color and texture as the remaining hair but sometimes can be white and fine.
With this condition, almost 10% people may not regrow hair. You can have permanent baldness if you:
- Have a family history of hair loss or baldness.
- Have situation at a very young age (before puberty) or for extended than one year.
- Have another affliction like the autoimmune
- Are allergies prone(atopy)?
- Have massive hair fall.
- Have unusual shape, color, thickness, the texture of the toenails or fingernails.
Because hair is a very important a part of the look, hair loss may end up in feeling ungraceful.
Alopecia affected some people’s toenails and fingernails look like pitted-it’s looked as like pin had made many small dents in them. It can also look like as sandpaper.
Alopecia areata can’t be cured however it can be treated. For most people who have one episode of hair fall, they will have more.
How is alopecia areata diagnosed?
From physical examination and medical history, alopecia areata is diagnosed. First of all, the doctor will ask about your hair fall (how much hair falling out every day). The doctor also will check hair falling pattern, and examine scalp. And he or she may gently pull some hairs out. The number of pulled hair also can be counted.
If the cause of your hair loss isn’t clear enough, the doctor may do some tests to check for a disease that can be the cause of hair loss. Tests include:
- Hair analysis. The doctor will take some hair as a sample and examined it under a microscope. Sometimes scalp sample also was taken. The border of the bald patch Scalp can examine.
- Blood It can be given for a specific reason like as underactive or overactive thyroid gland.
- Daily hair count. If the pulling hair test is negative then it can be done. You need to count how much hair falling out every day. Normally people lose around 100 hairs per day.
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How is it treated?
Generally, hair grows within one year, so you may make up your mind not to treat alopecia areata.
If you make your mind to not treat this hair loss and wait to grow up again, you can face this:
- You may need to use hair pieces. It's made from synthetic or human hair and those hairs rooted within nylon netting. You can attach hairpieces to the scalp with glue or tape or metal clips. It can cause permanent baldness for man and woman, so it’s not recommended.
- You may Use particular products for hair and styling techniques. Those products or perms can make hair thicker just by looks. Dyes may be used to color the scalp. Dyes can also use to color the scalp. But your hair loss may increase by the regular use of dyes or perms.
- Hair transplantation is generally applied out under local anesthetic. Surgeon fills the thinning area with healthy hair from the sides and back of the head. The process can take four to eight hours, and more sessions may be applied to create hair even thicker. This Transplanted hair will fall out within a couple of weeks, but star regrows within months.
Very commonly used treatment for uneven hair loss is several injections of corticosteroids into your scalp or skin, about one cm apart, every four to six weeks.
Treatment of children and some adults can be treated with corticosteroids, which are applied to the affected skin.
With topical corticosteroids, Minoxidil (Rogaine) can be used.
Anthralin is an ointment that will assist to grow up hair again. It feels and looks like tar, and it can stain and irritate the skin. So anthralin applies to reveal patches on the scalp just for a brief time, and then is washing out. It can take more than two months to grow new hair.
Contact therapy triggers a hypersensitive reaction on the scalp that will assist hair to grow. A drug is "painted" on the patches scalp once every week. It can irritate the scalp and make it scaly and red. Hair growth can start within three months of starting medication. This contact immunotherapy has some side effect like a severe rash and swollen lymph nodes, particularly in the neck.
How can alopecia have an effect on your life?
Alopecia areata doesn't have an effect on you as another state might: it's not painful, it doesn't cause you to feel sick, and it doesn't lead to serious health issues. You can't unfold it to others, and it shouldn't interfere with work or recreation. But if hair loss makes you are feeling unattractive, it's necessary to speak to somebody about it. A counselor will assist, as will talking to others with a similar condition.
