Female Pattern Baldness Treatment in Delhi

FPHL, also known as androgenetic alopecia, is a gradual thinning of hair on the scalp, following a specific pattern. It’s distinct from male pattern baldness, manifesting differently in women. Unlike the receding hairline seen in men, FPHL typically presents as:

Diffuse thinning: Overall hair loss across the scalp, particularly noticeable at the crown and parting.
Widening of the central part: The parting becomes wider, revealing more scalp.
Reduced hair density: Hair appears thinner and less voluminous.

Before diving into treatments, let’s explore the causes of FPHL:

Genetics: Like male pattern baldness, FPHL often has a genetic predisposition. If there’s a family history of baldness, you’re more likely to be affected.
Hormonal imbalances: Fluctuations in hormones like estrogen, androgen, and testosterone can trigger hair loss, particularly during pregnancy, menopause, or due to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Medical conditions: Certain medical conditions like thyroid disorders, anemia, and autoimmune diseases can lead to hair loss.
Lifestyle factors: Stress, nutritional deficiencies, and certain medications can contribute to hair thinning.

Before diving into treatments, let’s explore the causes of FPHL:

• Genetics: Like male pattern baldness, FPHL often has a genetic predisposition. If there’s a family history of baldness, you’re more likely to be affected.
• Hormonal imbalances: Fluctuations in hormones like estrogen, androgen, and testosterone can trigger hair loss, particularly during pregnancy, menopause, or due to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
• Medical conditions: Certain medical conditions like thyroid disorders, anemia, and autoimmune diseases can lead to hair loss.
• Lifestyle factors: Stress, nutritional deficiencies, and certain medications can contribute to hair thinning.

If you are experiencing hair loss, it is crucial to seek a professional diagnosis to determine the underlying cause and develop an appropriate treatment plan. At Care Well Medical Centre, our experienced dermatologists and hair restoration specialists offer comprehensive consultations that include:

• Detailed medical history: Discussing your symptoms, family history, and any medications or medical conditions you have.
• Physical examination: Examining your scalp and hair follicles for signs of miniaturization, inflammation, or scarring.
• Blood tests: Checking hormone levels and ruling out any underlying medical conditions.
• Trichoscopy: Magnified examination of the scalp and hair follicles to assess their health and miniaturization.
  Treatment Options for Female Pattern Baldness.

At Care Well Medical Centre, we understand that no single treatment fits all. We offer a personalized approach, tailoring treatment plans to your individual needs and preferences. Our range of treatment options for FPHL includes:

Medications:

• Minoxidil: Topical solution applied to the scalp to stimulate hair growth and slow down hair loss.
• Finasteride: Oral medication that blocks the conversion of testosterone to DHT, a hormone that contributes to hair miniaturization. This medication is typically not prescribed to women due to potential side effects.
• Spironolactone: Hormone-regulating medication that can help with hormonal imbalances contributing to FPHL.

Minimally Invasive Procedures:

• Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy: Involves injecting concentrated platelets from your own blood into the scalp to promote hair growth and improve scalp health.
• Mesotherapy: Microinjections of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients into the scalp to nourish hair follicles and stimulate growth.
• Low-level laser therapy: Using light therapy to stimulate hair growth and improve blood circulation in the scalp.

Surgical Options:

• Hair transplant: Follicular unit transplantation (FUT) or Follicular unit extraction (FUE) techniques are used to transplant healthy hair follicles from donor areas to balding areas.
• Scalp micropigmentation: Micropigmentation creates the appearance of thicker hair by depositing tiny pigments into the scalp.

Women’s hair and follicles appear to be specifically sensitive to suppressed medical conditions. Since intrinsic medical conditions commonly cause a diffuse type of hair loss pattern that can be confused with genetic balding, it is essentially required that women with undiagnosed alopecia be appropriately examined by a physician specializing in hair loss. Check here for the systemic medical conditions that cause a diffuse pattern of hair loss:

• Gynecologic and child-birth conditions; such as post-menopausal states and ovarian tumors
• Both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism lead to diffuse telogen hair loss.
• Chronic disorders like inflammatory bowel disease, systemic amyloidosis, lymphoproliferative disorders, chronic renal failure, and hepatic failure resulting in telogen hair shedding.
• Autoimmune diseases such as dermatomyositis, systemic lupus, and erythematosus
• Inflammatory disorders such as seborrheic dermatitis, psoriasis, and allergic contact dermatitis
• Chronic infections such as secondary syphilis and human immunodeficiency virus
• Anemia (iron deficiency)
• Lupus- a Connective tissue disease
• Nutritional deficiency, zinc deficiency, low protein/calorie count, essential fatty acid, malabsorption, crash dieting, and hypervitaminosis
• Distress from clinical procedures, anesthesia, or emotional issues

Among the many known causes of hair loss in women, drug-induced hair loss is one of the most disregarded causes. FPHL from drugs is a generally reversible diffuse non-scarring hair loss that happens within days to a month of beginning a new medication or changing the dose. It may be stressful for the patient and may also result in poor compliance with the treatment.

Anagen effluvium is most widely recognized after the intake of cytotoxic drugs. Drug-induced hair shedding is awful and severe and may contribute to the loss of large amounts of scalp hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows. Telogen effluvium is the commonest type of hair loss prompted by drugs and is presented with abnormal shedding of telogen hairs. Drugs are known to promote effluvium through 3 distinct mechanisms i.e.:

• By accelerating the hair follicle into premature rest.
• As a repercussion of discontinuation of drugs that extends the time duration of anagen, for example, oral contraceptives and topical minoxidil.
• Premature separation of the club hair from the hair follicles with compressing of the normal telogen phase, for example, retinoids.

• Anti-coagulants such as warfarin, heparin and prospectively the newer anticoagulants like apixaban, rivaroxaban, and dabigatran
• Anti-hypertensives such as ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers
• Oral contraceptive pills (specifically those high in progestins), androgens, and hormone replacement therapy
• Anticonvulsants such as carbamazepine up to 6%, phenytoin, valproic acid 12-28% (dose-dependent)
• Antidepressants, e.g. lithium 12-19% and Mood stabilizers
• antipsychotic and anti-anxiety drugs such as amitriptyline
• An anti-inflammatory such as levodopa, bromocriptine,
• anti-infective agents, amphetamines,
• cholesterol-lowering drugs, interferons
• Anti-thyroid drugs, nonsteroidal
• Others such as –retinoid, isotretinoin, cimetidine, and acitretin.

Telogen effluvium may also take place as a consequence of a severe drug eruption such as toxic epidermal necrolysis, drug hypersensitivity syndrome, Stevens-Johnson syndrome in which hair shed for a few weeks to months after serious sickness and gradually re-grows again.

• Chemotherapy drugs
• Poisoning with thallium, arsenic, or bismuth
• Radiotherapy
• Boric acid
• Rarely with Colchicine

Scores of dermatologic conditions contribute towards localized hair loss in women and the pattern that they form is generally pretty different from the diffuse pattern hair loss in women. Female genetic hair loss and localized hair loss are easily distinguished by a skilled dermatologist. However sometimes, the diagnosis of localized hair loss is difficult to make and tests, such as a scalp biopsy are demanded. LHL in women can be further sub-divided into non-scarring and scarring types.

Alopecia Areata is a genetically inherited, auto-immune hair disorder that exemplifies the non-scarring form. It presents with the unexpected onset of discrete, disc-shaped patches of hair loss linked with normal underlying skin. It is highly responsive to local injections of corticosteroids. Localized hair loss could also be a result of constant pulling of scalp hair, either through using hair pieces, braiding, tight clips, or tightly pulled back hairstyles. The medical term used for this condition is called Traction alopecia, which often leads to reversible thinning by simply keeping the hair loose but, if there is a continuous strain on the hair follicles for an extended time period, the hair loss can become permanent.

Scarring hair loss can be caused by hosts of dermatologic or medical conditions including local radiation therapy, Discoid Lupus, thermal burns, Lichen Planus, and infections. Facelift surgery can cause permanent localized hair loss that could be especially worrisome if it appears around the temples or at the frontal hairline. Luckily, localized hair loss from medical illness or any injuries is many times amenable to hair restoration.

Many of the stimulating elements that cause the rate of hair loss to accelerate or slowly decelerate are not known, but what is known is that with age, a person’s total hair density will reduce. This is called senile alopecia. Even when there is no predisposition to hereditary hair loss or balding, hair throughout the scalp will thin over time resulting in lower hair volume. The age at which these effects become obvious varies from one person to another and is mainly related to an individual’s genetic formation.

• Patterned hair loss
• diffuse hair loss
• Localized hair loss.

The hair loss conditions in women can also be further classified into scarring and non-scarring types. Since the non-scarring, diffuse female hair loss pattern is caused by genetic disposition and is so prevalent, it has its own unique classification that is based upon the rate of miniaturizing known as the “Ludwig classification”. It is essential for all women struggling with extreme hair loss that an appropriate diagnosis is done for them.

This is specifically needed when hair loss is diffuse, as undisclosed medical conditions may be a contributing factor. It is highly advised to refer to the diagnosis of hair loss in females to gain an in-depth valuable insight into different causes that may play a key role in female hair loss other than genetics.

The Ludwig Scale uses 3 distinct classifications (type), to identify the severity of female hair loss.

In this stage, hair loss is counted as minimal. Most females may have failed to notice that hair loss has taken place, as the hairline remains comparatively unaffected. Hair loss mostly occurs on the front and top of the scalp, and gradually increases while making more and more scalp visible over time.

In this stage, females may observe each of the following:

• Decrease in hair density, volume
• Thinning
• More than normal hair shedding
• Mid-part of the scalp that continues to broaden over time.

In this final and extensive classification of female hair loss, hair is so thin that it has complexity camouflaging the scalp, making it visible to the naked eye. In all the 3 Ludwig stages of hair loss in women, there is significant hair loss on the top of the scalp and in front with relative conservation of the frontal hairline. The sides and back may or may not be involved. Despite of the severity of hair loss, only females with stable hair on the sides and back of the head are good or say only candidates for female hair transplant surgery.

• Expertise: Our team comprises highly qualified and experienced dermatologists and hair restoration specialists trained in advanced FPHL treatments.
• Personalized care: We prioritize understanding your individual needs and concerns to create a treatment plan that aligns with your expectations.
• Cutting-edge technology: We utilize the latest advancements in hair restoration technology to ensure safe and effective procedures.
• Transparency and ethics: We believe in transparent communication and provide detailed information about each treatment option, its potential outcomes, and associated costs.
• Compassionate support: We understand the emotional impact of hair loss and offer unwavering support and guidance throughout your treatment journey.