Female & Male Androgenetic Alopecia Treatment

Androgenetic Alopecia is a common form of hair loss that affects both men (male pattern hair loss or MPH) and women (female pattern hair loss or FPH). You inherit a predisposition to it that coupled with some environmental factors causes your hair loss. There is no clear and obvious inheritance pattern like there is with some diseases.

But perhaps you’re wondering what exactly happens to your scalp during this process. What are the changes that are occurring in or near your hair follicles to cause hair thinning and baldness? This article is going to explain it to you.

First, keep in mind that this type of hair loss is very slow and gradual and occurs in a predictable pattern. In men, there is the thinning of the hair especially on the top of the head and on the edges of the hairline around the face, causing hair to recede. In women, the pattern is an all over diffuse hair loss without the same thinning specifically at the hairline.

There are several things happening at once at the follicular level under the surface of the scalp. The hair growing out of a follicle is not just one hair. It’s actually called a follicular unit (FU), and it has a primary hair and several secondary hairs.

One change that occurs in androgenetic alopecia is a miniaturization of the individual follicles within the unit starting with the secondary hairs. As the follicles become miniaturized, they become less and less efficient at growing hair until no hair grows at all.

When the miniaturization process is happening, the hair growth phases are speeded up. So, instead of having a hair staying in the anagen or growth phase for two to six (2-6) years, which is normally the case, the growth phase is shortened, the individual hair falls out, and thinner hairs grow in. Eventually, no hair grows in.

There are also other changes happening at the follicle level. The primary follicle in the follicular unit has a little muscle—the arrector pili muscle (APM)—and a sebaceous gland, among other things. These structures are important for the health of the follicle. As androgenetic alopecia progresses, this muscle becomes thinner and thinner until it detaches from the follicle altogether.

Scientists are getting closer and closer to understanding the process of the hair loss of androgenetic alopecia. The better we understand the process, the better we can find ways to stop or reverse it.

If you suffer from hair loss, rest assured you are not alone. Millions of men and women battle hair loss worldwide. At Capillus, we are here to help patients find a physician and a hair loss treatment that works for them. To find a licensed hair loss expert near you, visit our Capillus physician finder online. Readers are also invited to browse our collection of clinical strength hair care products. For product inquiries and order assistance, please call customer service at 1-844-280-4680.