Baldness

Baldness is basically a condition where there is insufficient hair in places where hair is supposed to grow. This baldness usually occurs on the head, and the most common forms of baldness are male pattern baldness and female pattern baldness.

Permanent pattern baldness or baldness in men is common baldness that basically affects men the most. This baldness in men is usually an inherited trait that is passed from the father to the son. In this baldness in men, the earlier a man starts losing hair, the more hair loss he suffers from.

Hormones can trigger baldness in men and women

Baldness in men usually starts with a receding hair line which starts at the crown of the head. This type of hair loss is responsible for 90% of hair loss; and though its causes are not certain, baldness in men is associated with heredity, age and hormonal changes. However unlike other forms of hair loss because of medication, disease and other non-hereditary reasons, baldness in men is permanent.

Baldness in women or alopecia in women is the most common form of hair loss in women. The hair loss here follows a pattern where there is thinning of hair over the entire scalp. Balding in women is attributed to a typical hair loss pattern, triggered by hormones, aging and their genetic predispositions.

Hair loss patterns in women

However unlike men, baldness in women does not result in a well defined pattern of hair loss. Here, there is basically a thinning of hair on the whole head, without any receding hair line. However, alopecia in women very rarely leads to total baldness.

Though baldness in women can start at any age, hair loss usually starts after the age of 40. There is no fixed pattern for this form of baldness, and it may vary a lot in appearance. There may be a lot of diffuse thinning on the overall scalp, with more prominent thinning at the back of the scalp.

In some cases, there may be diffuse thinning on the front of the scalp, without much involvement of the frontal hair line. And in some other cases, there is diffuse thinning on the whole scalp while thinning is more noticeable in the front of the scalp, where there is sometimes also some breaching of the frontal hairline.

Treatment options for balding

Whether it is a case of baldness in men or women, there are some treatment options that can be considered. It is possible to transplant hair from portions of the head having more hair, to the part of the scalp that has gone bald. On transplanting the hair, the hair tends to grow, and has the same color as the hair found in the donor site. Hair transplantation is done using local anesthetic, and can be done in numerous stages or in a single session.

Another treatment option for baldness is using prescription medication like Minoxidil (Rogaine). This treatment is most successful in men with baldness in the top of their heads.

Rogaine has to be applied on the balding region twice a day, wherein there is hair growth for as long as you use the product. On its discontinuation, there is a possibility of balding re-occurring. Even the drug Finasterid is effective in stopping hair loss and in some cases, can even reverse the hair balding process.