Hair loss from application of Veterinary Product

[magcpa15425]

My 72 year old mother's hair completely fell out over a two week period.  She had scalp biopseys and blood tests which were negative.  She now remembers that the man who comes to her home to style her hair used a new product on it for approx. 4-5 times.  She told him to stop because it made her hair brittle. It was shortly thereafter that her hair fell out. We found the bottle of it, and it was an extremely old bottle of a product called Humilac - a Veterinary Product!!!!!  We cannot believe he did this and will not return phone calls. (A family friend for over 30 years).  The product is a thin yellowish liquid that has a strong ammonia smell.  I estimate the bottle to be at least 10 years old.  The distributor on the bottle quit distributing it 4 years ago.  It contains propylene glycol, urea, benzalkonium chloride.  It is for conditioning pet hair and the label says not for human use.  I guess we can now can assume it was an allergic reation to this.  My questions are this:  Does hair grow back after an allergic reaction to something like this?  Her scalp does not look red or burnt.  She noticed no discomfort when it was falling out.  Could these old expired chemicals combined and formed a more toxic form of the compound?  What should we do?  We are all in shock and really don't know where to start.  Thank you.

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

No, because that would leave stubble, not a perfectly smooth scalp.

Dr. Rockoff

[magcpa15425]

Can I ask as follow up question?  Since her hair was brittle, could it just have broken off the hair?

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

I am really not sure about why your grandmother's hair fell out, but I can't see any connection with the veterinary conditioning product.  Even severe burns wouldn't make a whole head of hair fall out, and it's clear the scalp wasn't burned.

My best guess would be alopecia totalis, an extensive form of alopecia areata.  The cause is unknown, and the best course of action is to wait it out and use a wig to maintain appearance.

I suggest you ask the doctor who performed the biopsy whether the result is compatible with alopecia totalis.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff