Health encyclopaedia

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Symptoms of Hair loss

Male-pattern baldness is hereditary which means it runs in families. It usually starts to happen around the late twenties and thirties although this can vary. By the age of 60, most men have some degree of hair loss.

Male-pattern baldness is so called because it tends to follow a set pattern. The first stage is usually a receding hairline, followed by thinning of the hair on the crown and temples. When these two areas meet in the middle, you have a horseshoe shape of hair around the back and sides of your head. Eventually you may be completely bald.

Women’s hair gradually thins with age but they only tend to lose hair from the top of the head. This usually gets more noticeable after the menopause. It is called androgenetic alopecia, or female-pattern hair loss, and also tends to run in families.

Alopecia areata causes patches of baldness that are about the size of a large coin. They usually appear on the scalp but can occur anywhere on the body, including the beard, eyebrows and eyelashes. There are usually no other symptoms.

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