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Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley reveals she has alopecia 1:29
(CNN Spanish) - Hair loss may not be serious, if it is a few hundred hairs a day, which, according to the National Library of Medicine of the United States, usually grow again. But excessive hair loss can be somewhat distressing.
The situation is normal, however some men, women or children may suffer from a massive loss of hair that can lead to total baldness.
The National Alopecia Areata Foundation says it affects almost 6.8 million people in the United States and has a lifetime risk of 2.1%.
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There are three types of alopecia, according to the American Dermatology Association (AAD):
Alopecia totalis , which is when the person loses hair from the scalp, so his head is totally bald.
Alopecia universalis , which is a very rare condition in which people lose their entire body hair, including eyebrows, eyelashes, among others.
And alopecia areata , which means hair loss in patches. This develops when the body attacks its own hair follicles, resulting in hair loss, according to the ADF.
This condition is not contagious, and although people develop it, they usually remain healthy.
There may also be some nail conditions, says the ADF, with dents, ridges or brittle nails. Some people develop red nails.
Baldness is a problem for many men and women. Alopecia can lead to total hair loss either in the head or throughout the body.
How does alopecia start?
According to the ADF, this condition can start at any age, between men and women, but most people develop it either at adulthood or in their teenage years.
Half of people can see that the hair grows back in about 12 months. Sometimes, when the hair grows back, it may never fall back, but "unpredictable cycles of hair loss and regeneration for years" are also possible.
According to the Merk Manual, the cause is an autoimmune reaction in which the defenses mistakenly attack the hair follicles, which is where the hair grows. However, he emphasizes that "alopecia areata is not a consequence of another disorder, but some affected may also suffer from an associated thyroid or vitiligo disorder," the latter, a skin pigmentation disorder.
What symptoms do you have?
Hair loss is usually the only symptom of alopecia, according to the United States National Library of Medicine. But some people may feel burning or itching.
“Alopecia can occur anywhere in the body. If it occurs in the scalp, it is called baldness. Hair loss is often a major concern for aesthetic reasons, but it can also be a sign of an organic disorder, ”says the Merk Manual, a medical information provider.
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Which is the treatment?
If hair loss is not widespread, it may grow back in a few months without treatment, says the National Library of Medicine.
When the condition is more serious, some treatments that may include steroid injection under the skin, medications applied to the skin or ultraviolet light therapy.
Many people, especially women, decide to wear wigs or extensions to hide areas of hair loss.
In the case of small patches, this can be treated with corticosteroids under the skin of the season, says the Merk Manual or minoxidil can be applied directly over the area affected by baldness.
For larger baldness corticosteroids can be applied to the scalp, however this condition can resolve on its own, "without the need for treatment in milder cases," according to the Merk Manual.
'It's not a matter of aesthetics'
A study published in the journal PLOS Biology in 2018 revealed that a medication originally developed to treat osteoporosis could help those who wish to treat or even reverse baldness.
Annoying a possible response to baldness, researchers at the Dermatology Research Center at the University of Manchester decided to investigate the analysis of the impact of the drug on genetic expression and discovered that the protein cyclosporin A silences, (commonly known as SFRP1) inhibits the hair growth and when the silencer is inhibited, there is significant hair growth. The study had yet to do clinical trials to see if the topical use of this compound is safe and effective for humans.
More recently, it has been seen that autoimmune medications known as Janus kinase inhibitors (JAK inhibitors) produce a complete scalp in patients with moderate to severe alopecia, a type of baldness that affects both men and women.
These medications are in clinical trials (tested in humans) to see if they are safe and effective for the treatment of universal alopecia, a genetic disease that causes complete hair loss in the scalp and body, said Dr. Doris Day, dermatologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York about the study.
“Hair loss is not just an aesthetic issue. It really affects someone's self-esteem and their sense of well-being, ”Day continued, adding that 30% of his practice deals with hair loss.
Hair, being a fundamental way of projecting ourselves to the world, is important for many people, he said.
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