Everybody loses hair – it’s a part of the hair growth cycle. In fact, an average person typically has over 100,000 strands of hair. Normally, almost all of these hairs are in the growing phase, which lasts a few years and then enters resting stage. The resting stage lasts a few months and then naturally the hair falls out and is replaced by new hairs. However, although a little hair loss is natural, there are signs to look out for that your hair may be thinning more than it should. This blog will further describe what to look out for to see if your hair is falling out too fast.

Inspect Your Hairline and Top of Your Scalp

One of the best ways to see if your hair is significantly thinning is to inspect the hairline and look at the top of your scalp. A receding hairline is actually a big indicator of baldness, especially male pattern baldness. This can be seen in a distinctive “M” shape, also known as a receding hairline. If the hairs at the top of your hairline are thinning, or being shed without being replaced within the normal growth process, you might be suffering from Androgenic Alopecia. These signs of a receding hairline will continue as the hair is lost from the crown of the head, leaving the top of the head bald creating the “horseshoe” effect. Although the “horseshoe” is the most common, the area of hair loss varies for different people but will typically always be at the top of the scalp.

Use a Hand Mirror for Closer Look

To get a closer look at your hairline and the top of the scalp, utilize a handheld mirror. Turn your back to your bathroom mirror and lift the hand held mirror up at a slight angle. Look at the top part your scalp in the mirror. If the area is flesh colored and the hair is spread apart, this is a sign your hair is thinning. For females, inspect your whole head for thinness as well as your hairline with the mirror. Ultimately, thinning hair over the whole scalp is more common in women and for men it’s the receding hairline.

Look at Old Pictures

Looking at old pictures might sound odd, but you might find that a few years ago, your hair seemed to be a lot fuller. Compare your head to a picture from a several years ago. Stand in front of a mirror and compare what you see to the picture. Notice the thickness of your hair then and now and if your hair is thinner and lighter now, you are most likely experiencing hair loss.

Check Where You Rest Your Head

Your hair sheds from time to time and that’s normal. However, if you notice large amounts of hair left behind on areas where you rest your head, you may have an issue with hair loss. Look at your pillows, couches, car head rests and even your clothes to see if you have an unusual amount of hair left behind.

Pillows/Couches/Car Seats

A few strands of hair on common resting areas such as your pillow, couch or even your car seat is nothing to be afraid of. However, if you notice large clumps of hair, you should visit a hair restoration specialist. These specialists can provide a scalp evaluation. Working with a St. Louis hair restoration doctor like Dr. Richard Moore can help you create the best scalp environment to maintain your hair.  A prevention plan starts with good hair care products to keep your scalp in the best condition and ph for hair growth. A healthy scalp leads to healthy hair. Laser treatments increase blood flow and helps your thinning hair reach its full potential.

Clothes

Do you also notice there is always large amounts of hair left on your clothes? That can be equally frustrating as it is concerning. This is another sign that you might want to consider an evaluation from a hair restoration specialist.

Look at Your Morning Routine

Your morning routine can actually tell you a lot more about hair loss than you think. There are ways to check common items used in your morning routine but how do you know if your routine is damaging?  Below are some of the common items and places you should look in your morning routine for signs that too much of your hair is falling out.

Hairbrush 

Most women can relate to cleaning out the hairbrush from the amount of shedding hair. However, you shouldn’t have to clean out your hairbrush on a daily basis. You may notice you lose even more when brushing hair when it’s wet. Don’t take the amount of hair in your brush lightly as this can be an eye-opening sign that you need to either improve your routine or seek hair restoration solutions.

Towels 

The reason towels are helpful indicators of hair loss is most people commonly use them after taking a shower, get out of the pool or dry off at the beach. Your hair is significantly more fragile when it’s wet and people typically don’t realize they can be aggressive with their hair when wrapping it up in a towel. The strands are yanked and pulled which makes the surrounding areas weaker and leading to more hair loss.

Drains 

There are so many jokes about men complaining about their wives or girlfriends clogging up the drains with hair. Over time, without routinely cleaning your drains, hair can build up and create clogs. If you’re starting to notice that your shower drain is clogged with a lot more hair than usual, this is one of the primary signs of thinning hair. You don’t need to worry about hair loss just yet but consider making some changes to make your stronger. Some quick changes you can make are washing with colder water, avoid straining hair when wet and make lifestyle changes to reduce stress related hair loss.

Proven Hair Loss Solutions

At the Moore Hair Clinic, we are very proud to provide each of our clients with the latest advances in technology for clinically proven hair loss, prevention and restoration solutions.

The Moore Hair Transplant Clinic in St. Louis, Missouri is a recognized leader in multi-therapeutic hair loss treatments, hair restoration and hair transplantation for men and women suffering from Alopecia, balding and thinning hair.

Do you suffer from hair loss or thinning hair? Hair loss can be caused by a variety of factors, both genetic and medical. We invite you to contact us to schedule a free, confidential appointment to find out which hair loss solution is right for you.

Among the many biological occurrences that manifest differently for men and women, one that is especially different is cycles of hair loss. The idea of male pattern hair loss (MPHL) is widely known and often discussed. But just as there are measurable configurations of male baldness, there exist patterns for hair loss in women as well. In fact, over 55% of women experience some measure of hair loss throughout their lives.

Hamilton and Norwood developed a scale for measuring male hair loss (developed by Hamilton in the 1950s then updated by Norwood in the 1970s). In 1977 Ludwig developed a similar scale for female pattern baldness.

Though there are other scales for both MPHL and female pattern hair loss (FPHL), these two are the most popular among practitioners and researchers when attempting to classify hair loss.

The Hamilton-Norwood scale: The Hamilton-Norwood scale has seven types of classifications and several stages within those classifications. For example, within stage 5 there are 3 levels of progression including 5, 5A, and 5V, which show variations on a receding hairline with hair loss also in the crown of a man’s head.

Androgenetic alopecia, or MPHL, can begin for some men even in their teens and continue on throughout their life. The rate and onset of androgenetic alopecia are highly individualized. However, it is widely accepted that there are biological determinants for hair loss, and the best indicator of a man’s potential for hair loss is in his family history.

The Ludwig scale: The Ludwig scale has three primary classifications that display thinning hair, diffuse hair loss, as well as frontal hairline recession. Each image in the scale displays a woman’s head with her hair parted down the middle. As an example, images I-1 through I-4 show the progression as a woman goes from no hair loss to increasingly thinning hair as indicated by a widening part. Further along in the scale, the hair loss becomes increasingly drastic.

As compared to male pattern baldness, FPHL is not as wildly expected or accepted in society. Thus, women affected by androgenetic alopecia can experience emotional and psychological distress over their condition. This scale helps to normalize their condition and provide a point from which to discuss treatment with professionals in the field of hair restoration, dermatology, and other medical professions.

The comparison: The same process of minimizing the hair follicles and development of terminal follicles is present for both male and female pattern hair loss. Many, but not all, treatment options are comparable for men and women including medications that contain androgen enhancers, hair replacement accessories, and surgical options.

Though there are similarities between male pattern hair loss (MPHL) and female androgenic alopecia the primary differences are that women tend toward early detection and thus early treatment. Males on the other hand have a higher rate of progression and an earlier average age of onset. There is a lower percentage of women affected by female pattern hair loss (FPHL) compared to the percentage of men affected; and finally, the patterns themselves are different as displayed in the two scales.

Research continues to be performed on both male and female and androgenic alopecia. For now, the best way to combat hair thinning is through early detection. In both cases, treatment options are more effective and available when you begin early. Is it best to consult your physician on which treatment options might be best for you?

You can also contact a hair care expert in your area to learn about hairpieces, hair transplants, and treatments that can help stimulate hair growth as you navigate these difficult waters. A hair expert will help you determine the type of hair loss you have and can offer solutions that can treat hair loss.

References:

Dinh QU and Sinclair R. “Female pattern hair loss: Current treatment concepts”. Dove Medical Press Limited, 2007 Jun, 2(2): 189-199

Camacho FM, Garcia-Hernandez MJ, Fernandez-Crehuet JL. “Value of hormonal levels in patients with male androgenetic alopecia treated with finasteride: better response in patients under 26 years old”. British Journal of Dermatology. 2008 May;158(5):1121-4.

 

Some of us take our hair for granted.

We wash it, style it, color it and generally do everything we can to mistreat it without a second thought. We’re lucky. Others have the misfortune of not having enough hair – or any at all – to work with.

NeoGraft surgical hair transplants, a surprisingly quick hair-restoration process

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, hereditary hair loss affects 50 million men and 30 million women each year. However, that statistic does not include those who suffer from alopecia areata, trichotillomania or other medically related hair loss.

Follicular unit extraction (FUE) is a relatively minor, minimally invasive procedure. This method does not require a piece of the scalp to be extracted, as is the case with standard processes. Instead, the hair follicles are removed directly from the donor area, which creates a more natural look and doesn’t leave a scar.

The benefits of FUE hair transplantation from the patient’s perspective is that there are no incisions or linear scar along the back of the head and hence no sutures or staples because there is no wound to close, significantly lowered risk of surgical complications, much quicker post-operative recovery, minimal discomfort, and a much more natural looking outcome.

NeoGraft FUE Hair Transplantation: the Latest Breakthrough

The newest, most advanced method of hair transplantation is called the NeoGraft Assisted FUE hair transplant system, which helps eliminate the difficulties associated with a standard Strip Graft method.

NeoGraft uses pneumatic pressure to extract the follicles and precisely implant them, taking away the need for touching the follicles with forceps during harvesting and leaving them in a more robust state.

The process begins with a consultation with the Moore Hair Clinic staff a few days prior to the procedure to discuss exactly what will happen. The day of the surgery, the hair restoration technician will prepare the operating room, and the scalp will be numbed.

“It’s still a surgery, even though it’s less invasive or a minor procedure,” explains Dr. Moore. “They still have to anesthetize the area, so some patients do get nervous.”

An anxious patient actually may bleed more during the process, so the doctor may give the patient an anti-anxiety medication prior to the procedure.

Aiming for the Most-Natural Look

Once all preparations have been made, the hair transplant surgeon will begin extracting hair follicles, or grafts, from the donor area. Donor sites differ from person to person, but are typically on the sides and/or back of the head. The grafts are then inserted into the scalp where hair loss and thinning are occurring in order to create a natural looking hairline that the doctor and patient have agreed upon ahead of time.

During the initial doctor-patient consultation, the patient and doctor will come to an agreement on exactly where the newly restored hairline will be placed in order to achieve the most natural look result possible.

The patient will then have their bandages removed the following morning by an Moore Hair Clinic hair transplant technician and he or she will have their hair shampooed. It is also recommended that the patient begin PRP Platelet Rich Plasma hair therapy that same week in order to achieve maximum new hair growth and the best possible hair transplant final outcome. In all, the patient will be required to have one follow-up visit per month for the first six months.

The patient’s hair will start to grow back within six months and in most cases will be fully grown in 12 months following the procedure.

Hair transplants are a popular option for men looking to reverse their hair loss. So the question is a reasonable one to ask since hair is removed from one area and transplanted to another.

The answer is Yes and no, but… you need to understand how a hair transplant works.

About Hair Transplants

The process of hair transplant surgery is to restore your natural hair. Different procedures can be used to achieve this goal. Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) and often referred to as the Strip Method is one of them. It relies on a strip of hair surgically removed from the back of the head and separated into individual hair follicles. Those follicles are then transplanted into the thinning areas of the scalp.

Related: SMP Scalp Micropigmentation Treatment for Thinning Hair

Follicular Unit Extraction hair transplant surgery (FUE) doesn’t require a surgical incision. This process uses modern technology like NeoGraft to extract the individual hair follicles from the back of the head using pneumatic pressure. The transplant of the hair follicles for the FUE procedure is the same that is used with the FUT hair transplant method.

Does this mean since hair is taken from one area that your hair is thinner after a hair transplant? No, you are left with the same amount of hair you had before the transplant procedure. It is simply moved from one area to another. For your hair to be thicker in one area then it has to become thinner in another. However, because the hair follicles are removed from dense areas the lesser hair is not noticed.

All Hair Loss is not Equal: Male Pattern Baldness

When it comes to hair loss and more specifically, male pattern baldness, balding gets a boost. For men, baldness doesn’t occur uniformly. The typical progression of hair loss begins with a receding hairline and moves across the top of the head and eventually it affects the crown region of the scalp. For many, the hair they are left with is a ring of hair from the sides to the back of the head. This area tends to resist hair loss.

Because of the way typical men lose their hair with male pattern baldness a hair transplant is possible. This wouldn’t be the case if hair loss was more uniform. This is typically the case for women that lose their hair in that fashion. As long as hair can be extracted from the donor area, the back of sides of the head, you will notice a difference in the end result. Since this area is typically not affected by hair loss you can spare the hair needed without it being noticeable.

The hair that is transplanted to the top section of your head where the balding was occurring will not fall out like the hair you previously had in the area. This is because the follicles harvested from the donor area are safe from hair loss. While some hair loss occurs in all of us, your new hair growth should last well into advanced age.

Hair Restoration is an Art

It is important to point out that the hair that gets transplanted will never reach the same fullness your hair had before it started thinning. A skilled hair transplant technician can perform a transplant giving you results that closely match the original density.

When looking to undergo a hair transplant your first step is to choose an experienced hair clinic. This is especially important when opting for the FUE procedure. This is because there is careful planning needed to make sure the hair extracted doesn’t stray into sections that are lower-density.

If you have questions about hair transplants call us today at St. Louis Moore Hair Clinic. You can request a free hair loss consultation where they can examine the health of your scalp and your hair follicles.