Abnormal Fingerprints and Immigration Delay Disease

In a study of 101 women aged 18-66, 30% reported experiencing what they considered to be excessive hair shedding. Of these, 49% had developed shedding before the age of 40, with 60% describing the onset as abrupt. Most did not attribute the shedding to any specific cause, with 25% experiencing constant shedding, 50% intermittent, and 11% only once. Generalized hair thinning was noted by 50%, a reduction in ponytail thickness by 23%, and localized thinning, primarily at the temples or sides of the head, by 30%. The majority of hair loss was only noticed by the individuals themselves, with a smaller percentage observed by close family. There was no significant association found between postpartum shedding and chronic shedding at other times. The study suggests that a significant minority of the adult female population may experience unattributable excessive hair shedding, with chronic telogen effluvium (CTE) and seasonal hair shedding (SHS) being possible causes, rather than female-pattern hair loss (FPHL), especially since half of the affected women developed shedding before age 40.