Hair Articles

What is alopecia areata?

Alopecia is an umbrella term for all types of hair loss. Whatever your age, sex, gender, lifestyle choice, or even body part, if you’re losing hair a doctor will most likely call it ‘alopecia’.

But, what does ‘areata’ mean and how is it different from other types of hair loss?

The NHS defines the condition as: ‘A chronic inflammatory disease which affects the hair follicles and sometimes the nails. Alopecia areata usually presents as patches of hair loss on the scalp but any hair-bearing skin can be involved.’

So, if you experience concentrated hair loss in specific areas (and shorter hairs around the baldness), you probably have alopecia areata.

Most people experience the first signs of the condition in their teens. In fact, lots of research shows that the majority of people with alopecia areata experience patchy hair loss before they’re 30 years old.

How common is alopecia areata?

Out of the three forms of alopecia, alopecia areata is the most commonly reported. In the UK, the condition affects about 15 in every 10,000 people. It can affect men and women equally, and race does not play a part in its frequency.

Most people experience hair loss on their scalp or beard area, although it can show itself wherever hair can or could grow. It is less common for people to lose their eyebrows or eyelashes, and nail changes and weakness only happen to around 10 to 15% of people.

What causes alopecia areata?

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence says: “Alopecia areata occurs when hairs are prematurely converted from the growth (anagen) to the loss (telogen) phase, resulting in dystrophic, miniaturised hairs.”

Put simply, the condition happens because your hair does not go through an entire growth cycle before it dies and falls out. This is because your immune system attacks the hair follicles.

Currently, it is not exactly known why this immune response happens. There is evidence to show that if a member of your family has the condition, you are 20% more likely to experience it too. That said, there are lots of other triggers, including stress, allergies, autoimmune diseases and illness.

Is alopecia areata permanent?

Thankfully, in most cases, hair loss caused by alopecia areata does grow back. That said, regrowth is slow in comparison to how quickly hair falls out in the first place - and sometimes it never grows back.

The guidance in the British Journal of Dermatology says that around 80% of people experience regrowth, however this very rarely happens within the first three months.

Sometimes, alopecia areata can be mistaken for trichotillomania which is when someone cannot resist the urge to pull out their own hair. This is because both conditions can lead to short ‘exclamation mark’ hairs. However, trichotillomania does not cause complete baldness as often the hair follicle remains healthy.

What is the best treatment for alopecia areata?

Due to how often hair grows back for most people with alopecia areata, treatment options are relatively limited. In fact, doctors are recommended to wait three months before offering specific treatments.

However, if someone is experiencing extensive and prolonged hair loss, there are three treatment routes:

• Corticosteroid injections - This is the most common form of treatment for people with alopecia areata. A dermatologist can give you tiny injections into your scalp every four to six weeks.
• Topical treatments - Topical minoxidil and corticosteroids come in the form of creams, ointments, foams or lotions. Minoxidil stimulates the hair follicle whilst corticosteroids decrease inflammation.
• Anthralin - You might have seen this tar-like substance used for psoriasis. It helps to reduce inflammation and stimulate hair regrowth. You apply it to areas of hair loss for around one hour before washing it off.

If you have Alopecia Areata or 'patchy' hair loss, you could be suitable to take part in a phase II clinical trial aiming to test a new treatment and determine its effectiveness in inducing hair regrowth. If this trial is of interest to you, please visit our Surveys & Trials page to find out more. 

Or, complete a short survey to see if you are eligible to take part: Click here to complete the survey