Overview of Alopecia Areata

Brief overview of alopecia areata

Alopecia areata is a, non-life threatening, medical condition characterized by rapid hair loss. The hair loss can occur on any hair bearing surface of the skin but usually occurs on the scalp. This condition is seen in both men and women and is not the same as male/female pattern baldness, which is an aging process. With an occurrence rate of 1 - 2% of the human population, it can occur to people of all ages, but the majority of the cases occurs during childhood through early adulthood.

Types

Cause

Though the actual cause of alopecia areata has not been found, it's known that it is due to an autoimmune reaction in the body. The immune system, for an unknown reason, attacks the hair follicles, which disrupts the hair growth cycle and causes the affected hair follicles to fall out. Some studies have indicated that those people who have other autoimmune disorders such as: disthyroid disease, asthma, pernicious anemia, hay fever and vitiligo have a greater risk of developing the disease. Studies have also shown that even environmental factors such as de-sensitizing injections, certain vaccines chemicals, stress, and anxiety can trigger the condition. More recent evidence also suggests that alopecia areata is a hereditary disorder. Combined with triggering factors, such as another illness or a stressor, alopecia areata can develop given predisposed genetic markers that were inherited through the patient’s genes. T-cell lymphocytes have been observed to cluster around affected hair follicles. The clustering of the T-cell lymphocytes causes inflammation and is followed by the loss of hair. T-cells are also known as thymus cells. These are a type of white blood cell known as lymphocytes. These cells assist the body in the fending off infection and disease. The presence of T-cell lymphocytes around the affected region further proves that alopecia areata is caused by the immune system attacking hair follicles that the immune system mistakenly believes is a threat to the body.

Prognosis

The effects of the disease is not life threatening. Instead it can have sociological and psychological upsetting effects on the affected patient. In general people with any type of hair loss problems tend to suffer from depression, anxiety and social phobia, and in the case of many sufferers of alopecia areata the same physiological symptoms can be observed. Alopecia areata is not a communicable disorder. It is characterized by a distinct oval or round bald patch. It is seen that in many of the cases, there is re-growth of hair without any particular treatment within a time period of one year. However there is a chance that the problem will reoccur in the future. Ointments and steroid injections have been found to have limited success. But in the majority of cases pertaining to alopecia areata, the problem will reverse on its own without any treatment. If the disease does not reverse on its own, within a period of 6 to 18 months, then there is a chance that the disorder can progress to more severe stages of hair loss. The two other disorders that can progress from alopecia areata, alopecia totalis and alopecia universalis, are much more severe and rare but is still non-life threatening. The loss of all the hair on the scalp is known as alopecia totalis whereas the loss of all body hair is referred to as alopecia universalis.

Diagnosis

The bald patches on the scalp, body, or beard are very smooth to touch and should appear to have no physical trauma as the cause of the bald patch. There are usually no other skin symptoms seen, though certain people report on having experienced tingling, itching, tenderness or a slight burning sensation in the area where hair loss occurs. Some people report abnormalities on the fingernail surface (like little dents, pits, grooves, an abnormal redness and superficial splitting) to occur along side having alopecia areata. Another symptom of alopecia areata is the presence of exclamation hairs around the effected bald patch. Exclamation hairs are fragile hairs located on the outskirts of the patch, and the follicles themselves look to represent an exclamation mark, as the hair starts to thin out moving down towards the root. These exclamation hairs can be pulled out with the slightest tug. This technique of gently pulling out exclamation hairs, with ease, is the easiest way of diagnosing alopecia areata.

Treatment

The treatment of alopecia areata varies greatly depending on the severity and duration that the disease has been present. However bear in mind that no treatment for alopecia areata is guaranteed to work. Alopecia areata most commonly is treated through, no treatment at all. In most cases the disease will disappear on its own. If the disease continues to worsen than other treatment options are available. These treatment options do not always work for everyone or they may simply just improve the condition slightly only to worsen again. The most common treatment option for alopecia areata is corticosteroid creams and injections. Corticosteroids are a type of hormonal steroids which comes from the adrenal cortex. The adrenal cortex controls the bodies stress response by producing steroid hormones which control metabolism and minerakcorticoid hormones. An input of corticosteroids can help the immune system block substances that can trigger inflammatory and allergic actions. The consequence of this support to the immune system is that it can interfere with the function of white blood cells. Impeding on the white blood cells can lead the immune system from not functioning properly. Another common treatment of alopecia areata is minoxidil. Minoxidil is a vasodilator medication, which is known to stop and slow down the process of hair loss, and in time promote the re-growth of new hair.