Archive for December, 2008

Medical, Surgical and Cosmetic Treatment for Hair Loss

Hair loss can be embarrassing and seeking treatment is something that concerns most individual who experience hair loss. There are medical, surgical and cosmetic treatments for hair loss.

Medical Hair Loss Remedy

Medical treatment consists of using medication to stop or prevent hair loss from getting worse.

Two medications commonly prescribed for hair loss is finasteride (Propecia and Proscar), and minoxidil (Rogaine, and Loniten). Finasteride is used for male hair loss and not for hair loss in women and Minoxidil is used for both male and female hair loss.

Surgical Hair Loss Remedy

A popular surgical hair loss remedy is a hair transplant. This is where a doctor will take plugs of healthy hair from other areas of your scalp and place them on the areas where you have thinning hair or no hair.

The surgical treatment that is currently replacing hair plugs is follicular transplants.

Scalp rotation is used in cases where children have hair loss but it does not work well in adults.

Cosmetic Hair Loss Remedy

There are many things that individuals can do that are considered to be cosmetic hair loss remedies such as changing hairstyles to one that covers thinning hair, or wearing hair pieces such as hair weaves, toupees, or wigs. Creative people also find ways to make a statement using hats or scarves.

Winding it up

When an individual has hair loss he or she needs to know that there are options for treating the hair loss including a combination of medical, surgical and cosmetic treatments. All of these options can be discussed between the patient and doctor or dermatologist so that the treatment choices can be explored and the individual can choose what fits best in his or her lifestyle. Not everyone is comfortable with surgery, nor does everyone like taking medications. Treatments can be made individualized to fit the needs of the one with the hair loss. This is especially important when the person is young.

The treatment choice will also depend upon the cause or causes for the hair loss as sometimes medication is necessary such as when a disease is the cause. New treatments are always being tested so hair loss patients should periodically check back with their doctor or dermatologist to find out if there are any new medical, surgical or cosmetic treatments that can benefit their hair loss situation.

Whether you choose to use a medical, surgical or cosmetic hair loss treatment or a combination of treatments, know that most hair loss situations are temporary and that should your case turn out to be permanent, you always have options. Seek out current information, get involved in hair loss organizations and support groups and keep in touch with your doctor or dermatologist so that your options will always be known to you. 

Tags: cosmetic treatment for hair loss, surgical hair loss remedy, hair loss, hair loss remedy

There are Many Types of Hair Loss

There is just not one type of hair loss. You can suffer from effuviums, alopecia areata, scarring alopecia, congenital hypotrichosis, or have a fungal infection. There is male-pattern hair loss, female-pattern hair loss and hair loss associated with other diseases and conditions and medication adverse reactions as well as hair loss as a result of the stress in your life.

In order to figure out which type of hair loss you have it is important to see a doctor or dermatologist to receive a diagnosis. The diagnosis will help to discover what is causing your hair loss. Once the cause or multiple causes are known, a treatment plan can be devised. Your doctor or dermatologist will need to have a good account of the symptoms you have been having and how long you have experienced excessive hair loss. These clues along with what your diet is like and if you are experiencing any stress in your life can help to arrive at the correct type of hair loss you are suffering from.

Effluviums are a type of hair loss that affects different phases of the hair growth cycle. The term effluviums mean, "outflow".

Alopecia areata is a type of hair loss affected by your immune system. It attacks hair follicles. The hair follicles are where all hair growth begins. This type of hair loss happens most often in those younger than age 20, although it can occur at any age.
Scarring alopecia causes irreversible damage to the hair follicles and then scar tissue covers the scalp in that area. Another term used to describe this type of hair loss is, "cicatricial alopecia".

Congenital hypotrichosis is when there is no hair growth at all, so it is technically not a hair loss condition but a condition in which no hair at all appears on the scalp. This condition is a genetic disease. There are not usually any treatments for this type so those suffering from this type will need to cope by accepting baldness or by getting creative in covering it up or using hair pieces.

Fungal infections can cause hair loss and is commonly seen in children and teens. Antifungal medications can treat the infection and when the infection is gone, hair will grow back.

Because there are so many different types of hair loss or conditions in which hair does not grow it is important to understand the type of hair loss you are dealing with first, before deciding what to do about it. Most types of hair loss will have identifiable causes that can lead to appropriate treatments. Your doctor can explain about the different types of hair loss, your particular diagnosis and the treatment options available to you.

Tags: types of hair loss, effluviums, alopecia, hypotrichosis