Everyone loses hair, everyday, but it’s not always a cause of concern. Every day, the average person sheds between 50 and 100 hair strands. But if there is more shedding than that, it’s a cause of concern.
Stress, nutritional deficiencies, anemia, hypothyroidism, lupus, and crash dieting are all common causes of hair loss. In some cases, people begin to lose hair in clumps and shed significantly more hair than usual. If you notice that happening to you, or that there are bald spots developing on your scalp, it calls for attention. Hair fall can be indicative of something that is wrong with the body and should definitely not be ignored.
While hair fall induced by these causes is not permanent, and in most cases will come back with the use of right treatment but there is also permanent hair fall.
Androgenetic alopecia, also known as “male pattern baldness” or “male pattern hair loss,” is the most common type of male hair loss. Male pattern hair loss is responsible for hair loss in about 90% of men. It can begin as early as the teens or twenties.
Stages of Hair Loss
The generally accepted method to access the degree or extent of hair loss is the Norwood-Hamilton scale. Here are the various stages of hair loss on the Norwood scale.
Stage 1: The first stage is characterised by minor recession of the hair line. Unless you have a history of Androgenic Alopecia or baldness in your family, it doesn’t need to be treated right away. Although, you might want to start avoiding things that might induce hair loss, like smoking, eating unhealthy, crash dieting etc.
Stage 2: The front of the head experiences mild hair loss or thinning during this stage. This is when the initial signs of balding start to show.
Stage 3: At this point, baldness starts to show up more clearly. The majority of men will experience deep, symmetrical recession at the temples during this stage. There can be thinning of the hair at the crown of the head, in this stage.
Stage 4: This stage means that the hair loss on the crown is quite evident. Overhead and on the crown, hair loss is frequently separated by a hair bridge. The sides and back of the scalp will be sufficiently covered with hair.
Stage 5: The bridge that runs from the front to the crown will become thinner at this point. And hair loss at the crown and front will be distinct. Although, there is still hair on the back and sides of the head.
Stage 6: Only sparse growth will remain on the bridge that connects the front and crown. The front and the crown spots of baldness will be almost conjoined. There is hair loss on the sides as well.
Stage 7: This is the most advanced stage of hair loss, and is characterised by thin bands of hair left on the back and sides of the head.
Even if the pattern appears predictable, if you notice patterned hair loss, you should see a specialist rather than self-diagnose it. Pattern baldness can be diagnosed by a specialist, on the basis of appearance, medical history and lifestyle. The purpose of a diagnosis is to rule out any other causes of hair loss. Also, if you are experiencing pattern hair loss, it is irreversible, but it is not the end of the world. Hair transplant today is more advanced than ever and a good surgeon is all it takes to restore your hair.
Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) and Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) are currently the two most common hair restoration procedures performed by surgeons. FUE is a minimally invasive technique. It involves harvesting hair follicles one by one by using micro punches from the patient’s donor site, the back and sides of the head, and implanting them onto the thinning or bald areas. FUE is ideal for patients with male pattern baldness and involves no incision and heals quickly.