Postoperative Alopecia Following Oral Surgery

July 2018 in “ Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery ”

Masanori Tsukamoto, Takashi Hitosugi, Hitoshi Yamanaka, Takeshi Yokoyama

postoperative alopecia hair loss general anesthesia perioperative stress ischemia head immobilization hypotension blood loss anemia hypothermia topical steroids stress cold steroids

Studysummary This report describes two cases of postoperative alopecia following oral surgery, highlighting potential risk factors such as head positioning and prolonged operative time, and suggests prevention strategies.

Our plain-language summary. Not medical advice or a treatment recommendation. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before changing treatment. Full disclaimer

The document reported on two cases of postoperative alopecia, a condition of hair loss that occurred after oral surgery under general anesthesia. The first case involved a 5-year-old girl with hair loss in the occipital region 20 days after surgery, which resolved in 4 months without treatment. The second case was a 19-year-old male who experienced hair loss in the same region about 30 days post-surgery, with spontaneous recovery after 5 months. The paper proposed that the hair loss could be due to perioperative stress and pressure-induced ischemia from head immobilization during surgery. It identified potential risk factors such as long surgery duration, hypotension, blood loss, anemia, hypothermia, and certain headrests. The paper highlighted the need for preventive measures like repositioning the head and avoiding hard gel headrests, as treatments like topical steroids were ineffective.