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However, people should not stop taking a medication without their doctor’s agreement. Drug-induced alopecia can affect any part of the scalp or body. The extent and duration of hair loss depend on the medication that the person is taking, as well as the dosage. Chemotherapy drugs may be the best-known cause of drug-induced alopecia.
Hair Loss in Women
And still others choose one of the treatments available to prevent further hair loss or restore growth. Many people think that hair loss only affects people assigned male at birth (AMAB). However, studies show that more than 50% of people assigned female at birth will experience noticeable hair loss. The most significant cause of hair loss in women is female-pattern hair loss (FPHL). Medications are designed to treat a variety of health conditions, but sometimes they can have unwanted side effects. Certain drugs can contribute to excess hair growth, changes in hair color or texture, or hair loss.
Habits that may help prevent hair loss in women
However, a negative test result does not necessarily exclude those conditions. Patients with hair loss will often consult their family physician first. Hair loss is not life threatening, but it is distressing and significantly affects the patient's quality of life. The pattern of hair loss may be obvious, such as the bald patches that occur in alopecia areata, or more subtle, such as the diffuse hair loss that occurs in telogen effluvium. As with most conditions, the physician should begin the evaluation with a detailed history and physical examination. It is helpful to determine whether the hair loss is nonscarring (also called noncicatricial), which is reversible, or scarring (also called cicatricial), which is permanent.
What is baldness?
While the exact reason for this type of hair loss is unknown, it is generally understood that “the immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles, leading to hair loss,” she adds. Male-pattern hair loss is what causes a receding hairline and baldness in men. In women, female-pattern hair loss typically affects the crown or top of the head first, Mirmirani says. Women may notice that their part is becoming wider or that their scalp is more visible. Research is promising regarding the effectiveness of popular hair loss medications.
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Medications that prevent seizures, like valproic acid (Depakote) and trimethadione (Tridione), can lead to hair loss in some people. Some statin drugs like simvastatin (Zocor) and (atorvastatin) Lipitor have been reported to cause hair loss. Anticoagulants like heparin and warfarin are used to thin the blood and prevent blood clots and certain health concerns in some people (like those with heart conditions).
Suddenly losing your hair? The culprit could be your prescription medications
Beta-blockers can function as life-saving blood pressure reducers, but they may also reduce hair production over time. Specifically, metoprolol, propranolol, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors have been found to cause follicles to prematurely drop their hairs during the growth cycle. Researchers claim that most beta-blocker related hair loss is reversible and that the benefits of the drug often outweigh this side effect in the short term. The effects typically begin several weeks after the initiation of the therapy that causes hair loss. Research on women who have been treated with chemotherapy for breast cancer has found that alopecia could begin as early as two weeks after the first treatment for some women.
How is hair loss in women treated?
You may need more than one surgery to get the effect you want. Hereditary hair loss will eventually progress despite surgery. If your hair loss is caused by an underlying disease, treatment for that disease will be necessary. If a certain medication is causing the hair loss, your doctor may advise you to stop using it for a few months.
Hair loss in men and women
Common conditions that mimic androgenetic alopecia include thyroid disease, iron deficiency anemia, and malnutrition. It's important to review any medications you take, and discuss their potential side effects with your doctor and pharmacist. When hair loss does occur from a drug you're taking, there is a good chance that the hair will grow back on its own after you stop taking the medication. If your ponytail is not as bouncy as it once was, or your hair is simply not as lush, soft, or full, you’re not alone. Nearly 50% of women going through menopause, typically in their forties and beyond, will experience moderate to excessive hair loss, shedding and thinning.
They can help determine if you’re experiencing female pattern baldness or a different type of hair loss caused by other factors. Androgenetic alopecia, a type of hair loss commonly called male or female pattern baldness, was only partially understood until the last few decades. For many years, scientists thought that androgenetic alopecia was caused by the predominance of the male sex hormone, testosterone, which women also have in trace amounts under normal conditions. But while testosterone is at the core of the balding process, dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is now thought to be the main culprit. Chemotherapy drugs often lead to the anagen effluvium type of hair loss. As these drugs kill cancer cells throughout the body, they also can damage healthy cells, including hair matrix cells.
Certainly when those testosterone levels rise, DHT is even more of a problem. DHT levels can be elevated and be within what doctors consider "normal range" on a blood test, but they may be high enough to cause a problem. The levels may not rise at all and still be a problem if you have the kind of body chemistry that is overly sensitive to even regular levels of chemicals, including hormones.
Other possible causes include a recent illness or surgery, poor diet, or patterned androgenetic hair loss. The FDA hasn’t labeled spironolactone as a treatment for androgenic alopecia. It’s typically used to reduce swelling from liver disease and nephrotic syndrome (a kidney problem). It can also treat high blood pressure, heart failure, and hyperaldosteronism (excessive secretion of the hormone aldosterone).
A larger 2019 meta-analysis compared dutasteride with finasteride as a treatment for MPHL. The authors found that dutasteride significantly increased hair counts, had increased efficacy compared to finasteride, and produced similar side effects. They also wrote that participants tolerated both treatments well. There are many medications that can cause hair loss in some individuals, without causing any problems in other people.
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Sometimes a larger strip of skin containing multiple hair groupings is taken. This procedure doesn't require hospitalization, but it is painful so you'll be given a sedation medicine to ease any discomfort. Possible risks include bleeding, bruising, swelling and infection.
Weight loss medications like phentermine can cause hair loss, but the side effect isn’t often listed. This is because dieters who lose their hair are often also nutrient-deficient or may have underlying health conditions contributing to their hair loss. Some immune-suppressing drugs used to treat autoimmune conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis can cause hair loss.
In the most common type of permanent hair loss, only the top of the head is affected. Hair transplant, or restoration surgery, can make the most of the hair you have left. In these cases, you have to weigh the benefits of the drug against the distress you may feel about your hair loss, Dr. Massick says.
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