Hair Loss in Adult Females: A Clinical and Trichoscopic Study

January 2021 in “ International journal of dermatology, venereology and leprosy sciences ”

Suyomi Shah, Krupa Ajmera, Aswathy Radhakrishnan, Aishwarya Rai, Nitin Nadkarni, Sharmila Patil

TLDR Most adult women experiencing hair loss are aged 21-40, with the most common type being female pattern hair loss. Trichoscopy is a useful tool for diagnosing different types of hair loss.

The study "Hair loss in adult females: A clinical and trichoscopic study" analyzed the patterns of hair loss in women using trichoscopic evaluation. The majority of the patients (67%) were aged between 21-40 years, and the most common symptom was hair fall. A positive hair pull test was observed in 69.2% of cases. The most common diagnosis was female pattern hair loss (36.2%), followed by telogen effluvium, pityriasis sicca, alopecia areata, canities, pediculosis capitis, scalp psoriasis, and seborrheic dermatitis. Trichoscopy, which revealed features like empty hair follicles, focal atrichia, anisotrichosis, increased vellus hair, pilosebaceous units with 1-2 hair, white dots of eccrine ducts, honeycomb pattern, was found to be an important diagnostic tool, especially when the diagnosis was unclear. It also helped avoid scalp biopsy in difficult cases.

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community C’est terrible - at my wits end

in Female 445 upvotes 1 year ago

A 29-year-old woman is experiencing gradual hair thinning since age 15, suspects Androgenic Alopecia, and has tried 5% minoxidil with little success. She has purchased various hair loss treatments including minoxidil, dutasteride, finasteride, and spironolactone, but is cautious about starting them due to potential interactions with her ADHD medication.

community Female Pattern Hair Loss - massive shed after many years on Spironolactone/Minoxidil

in Female 10 upvotes 3 years ago

Female experiencing hair loss for 10 years used 50mg Spironolactone and 5% minoxidil with decent results. Recently had massive shedding, but blood tests were fine and still taking original medications.

community Diagnosed with female pattern hair loss as a male with recent aggressive loss. Preemptively mourning the only part of myself I’ve ever come close to loving. Lost all motivation to do anything with my life.

in Progress Pictures 271 upvotes 1 year ago

The conclusion of the conversation is that the user should consider using treatments such as finasteride, minoxidil, and RU58841 to potentially reverse their hair loss. Other suggestions include using hair loss concealers and maintaining a healthy diet.

community Female. Telogen effluvium 4 years ago, hair still not back to normal

in Female 6 upvotes 7 years ago

A 23 year old female who experienced Telogen Effluvium due to stress 4 years ago, but her hair is still not back to normal. She is looking for treatments such as Minoxidil and dermarolling that may help with the thinning patches in her hair.

community Got my DHT levels checked. 38 year old female. Still losing hair.

in Female 10 upvotes 6 months ago

A 38-year-old female is experiencing hair loss despite having almost undetectable DHT levels after using dutasteride. Suggestions include checking for PCOS, thyroid issues, adjusting diet, considering the impact of birth control, and trying treatments like tretinoin, redensyl, retinol, and minoxidil with derma stamping.

community Diffuse hair loss and scalp biopsies

in Research 692 upvotes 3 months ago

Scalp biopsies are crucial for diagnosing hair loss conditions like Diffuse Unpatterned Alopecia (DUPA) and retrograde hair loss, as treatments like finasteride and dutasteride may not be effective if other conditions are present. Combining PPAR-GAMMA agonists with retinoids could improve treatments for conditions like Lichen Planopilaris.

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