Hair Loss: Types of Hair Loss with Pictures-TSH Blog
Types of Hair Fall with Pictures
Hair loss is an unwanted condition that occurs both in men and women. It affects the patient both physically and psychologically. Physically hair loss destroys the patient’s physical outlook. While psychologically it pushes the patient towards anxiety and mental depression.
Medically this condition is termed as alopecia which is a disorder that occurs in the hair growth cycle of the body.
What is Hair Growth Cycle?
The hairs grow in a cycle in which the hair goes through different phases. According to an estimate, there are approximately 100,000 hairs on a scalp, which grows in the following three phases.
Phases of Hair Growth Cycle
There are following three phases of hair growth cycle.
Anagen Phase
The duration of this phase is from 3 to 5 years in which the hairs grow up to 1 to 3 feet. The length of this phase and hair depends on many factors that include age, geographical location, genetics, nutrition, and health.
Catagen Phase
It is the second phase in the hair growth cycle, shorter than the anagen phase. Its maximum duration is 10 days during this phase the hair detached from the follicle and stop growing.
Telogen Phase
This is the resting phase in which no new hair grows from the follicle. Its duration is from 60 to 90 days. During this phase, the hair falls out on an average of 70 to 150 hairs per day.
Any disruption in this hair growth cycle may lead to hair loss or alopecia.
Causes of Hair Loss or Alopecia
Hair loss or alopecia may occur due to a number of reasons which includes.
- Poor Nutrition
- Hormonal Disorder
- Genetical Disorder
- Other Medical Conditions
Types of Hair Fall with Pictures
Hair loss or alopecia further categorized into the following different categories.
Androgenic Alopecia or Hair Loss
Androgenic or androgenetic alopecia is a genetic condition in which hair follicle decreases in size that leads to baldness gradually. Androgenic hair loss occurs both in males and females. According to the United States health department database this condition has affected about 30 million women and 50 million men. Androgenetic alopecia is also known as pattern hair loss because hair fall in this condition follows a pattern on a scalp. That is why in men it is named as male pattern hair loss and in women, it is named as female pattern hair loss.
Male Pattern Hair Loss
In men, pattern hair loss starts just after the development of secondary sex characteristics (such as facial hair growth) and maturing of the reproductive organs and continue for years. It starts from the crown or top of the head and ends with complete baldness or leaves a crescent shape pattern of the hair on the bottom of the scalp.
Female Pattern Hair Loss
In female pattern hair loss mostly occur in women with a positive history of hair loss in her family. This condition does not lead to complete baldness in women. But however, thinning of hairs and semi baldness or receding of hairlines on the top of the scalp may occur.
Telogen Effluvium
Telogen effluvium is a hair fall condition that occurs due to the entrance of a large number of follicles, a structure responsible for hair growth, to the Telogen phase (the resting phase). The hairs grow in a cycle called hair growth cycle, which consists of three phases the Anagen phase (growing phase), the Catagen Phase (in which hair detached from the follicle), and the Telogen Phase, the resting phase in which hairs fall out. The average duration of the Telogen phase is from 60 to 90 days. In Telogen Effluvium the duration of Telogen Phase increases due to which the hair falls out rate increases than its growth rate. This imbalance in the fallout and regrowth of hairs leads to partial baldness or receding of hairlines.
This type of hair loss occurs due to a number of reasons such as nutrient deficiencies (vitamin, mineral or iron), use of medicines like isotretinoin and oral contraceptives and also occurs as a result of hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism, surgery, and fever.
The hair loss is Telogen Effluvium regrows in six months after recovery from illness or to stop medications that trigger this type of hair loss. While sometimes this condition enters into the chronic stage in which regrowth of hairs take years. The chronic Telogen Effluvium needs the attention of dermatologists and can be cured by using medicines.
Anagen Effluvium
Anagen Effluvium is a hair loss condition that mostly occurs in the patient of cancer and tuberculosis due to a prolonged period of medication. The hair loss in this condition regrows when medication ends. But however, it needs some acceleration from dermatologists to accelerate the process of growing hairs.
Alopecia Areata
It is another common hair fall condition caused by an autoimmune disorder. In this condition, the immune system damaged hair follicles, which affect the growth of hairs and causes hair to fall out from a scalp, eyebrows, and eyelashes. Hair fall in this condition starts suddenly in the form of patches and gradually leads to complete baldness. This condition seeks the proper attention of dermatologists and is curable.
Tinea Capitis
The hair fall in this condition, mostly occurs in the form of circular patches that leaves ring shape bald spots in children and is a result of fungal infection. The affected areas lose hair and become red and itchy. The child also feels fever in this condition. The use of antifungal drugs may improve the condition a lot.
Cicatricial Alopecia
This is the most uncommon type of hair loss. It occurs due to inflammation on the scalp. The inflammation damages the hair follicles on the scalp and replaces it with scar tissue. Such hair loss is common in both men and women of any age.
Hair loss due to cicatricial alopecia occurs suddenly along with other symptoms like swelling, itching, and lesion on the scalp. The Cicatricial hair loss did not regrow, it needs proper treatment. The following are the types of Cicatricial hair loss.
Lichen Planopilaris
Lichen planopilaris is a skin problem that affects the scalp. That causes irritating, itchy, and painful bumps on the scalp skin. Due to which the scalp becomes red and can not grow hair. Hair loss due to Lichen Planopilaris occurs in patches and is more common in women than in men. It can be treated by using medicines.
Discoid Lupus Erythematosus
Discoid Lupus Erythematosus is an autoimmune disorder that affects the ears, face, and scalp. It causes inflammation and damages the hair follicles. It replaces hair follicles with scar tissue which causes hair loss. This type of hair loss can be treated with medication.
Folliculitis Decalvans
This is an irreversible hair loss which is caused by an inflammatory disorder called Folliculitis Decalvans. It damages the hair follicles. Hair loss is one of the main symptoms of this disease, the other symptoms includes inflammation, redness and itchiness of the scalp. This type of hair loss is permanent, but however, doctors suggest medicine for treating the symptoms.
Dissecting Cellulitis of the Scalp
Dissecting Cellulitis of the scalp is also a skin problem that causes permanent hair loss. Like other skin problems Dissecting Cellulitis of the scalp damage hair follicles, form scaring tissues and inflammation of the scalp. Symptoms of Dissecting Cellulitis of the scalp include inflammation of the scalp, hair loss, and the presence of nodules and lumps on the scalp. Doctors usually diagnose it by the general examination of the scalp while sometimes suggests swab’s analysis of plucked hairs and biopsy of the scalp.
Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia
Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia is a type of hair loss that occurs mostly in postmenopausal women and its symptoms match with lichen planopilaris. Hair loss starts from the forehead and gradually recede the hairline along with the hair loss from the other parts of the body like eyebrows, eyelashes, etc. The exact cause and treatment of Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia are not known; however, someones consider it an autoimmune disorder and hormonal changes as its cause. As mentioned earlier, there is no proper treatment of frontal fibrosing alopecia, but however, doctors prescribe some medicines to stop the progression of the disease.
Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia
Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia is also a permanent and the scar hair loss. It is also called hot comb alopecia. This type of hair loss is mostly reported in black women, but however, studies show that it can occur in both middle-aged men and women of any race. The exact cause of central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia is not known. But the use of chemicals, curling irons, hair relaxer, gels, and pomades are common in the reported patients of Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia.
Hair Shaft Disorders/Abnormalities
Hair Shaft Abnormalities are specific types of disorders that may lead to hair loss at the end, but initially, it affects the thickness, length, color, and shines of the hairs. Instead of follicles, its cause lies in the shaft the upper visible part of the hair. Hair Shaft Disorders reduce the lustrousness and flexibility of hairs and made it uncombable. But however, such hair loss is treatable with medication and hair care improvement.
Hypotrichosis
Hypotrichosis is a genetic condition that causes no or rare hair growth on the scalp and body. We cannot call it hair loss because in the hair loss conditions the already existed hairs lost. While Hypotrichosis does not let the hairs to grow first. It mostly occurs from birth in children and leads to complete baldness in the very early stage of life.