should I be worried?

Hi all,

Firstly a simple question - how many hairs per day are we meant to loose from our head? (different websites say different things, I was hoping that a doctor on this forum could perhaps give a rough estimate of the normal range?)

Secondly, how often are we meant to loose eyebrow hairs?

I am a 21 year old female. I have been noticing hairs falling out in a small patch here and there on my eyebrows every few weeks (sometimes leaving a temporary bald spot for a few weeks until the hairs slowly grow back again). They seem to always grow back, but its not long before they fall out again (its almost like an ongoing growth-fall-out cycle). Is this normal? I also have a little bit of eczema or dermatitis that irritates the area of my eyebrows which comes and goes. My doctor suggested that even though I don't scratch this area, the irritation alone may be causing the hairs to fall out. However, another doctor told me that eczema/dermatitis itself, does not cause hair loss. Which is true?

I also suspect (but I am not entirely sure), that my hair on my head has thinned slightly (enough for me to notice, but not enough for others to notice). I am loosing around 150 hairs in my brush per day, and probably a few more in the shower when I actually wash my hair. I would never count my hair normally but lately I have been a bit concerned. I guess its a fine line between me worrying over nothing, and there actually being a problem.

I had blood work run the other week. I came back with a high testosterone reading (slightly outside the normal range but not dramatically elevated), and also high levels of prolactin (and I am not pregnant). Could this be causing the hair loss?

I would like to know who I should go and see about this issue. My Doctor wasn't sure who to send me to. Should I see a dermatologist? Are there doctors that specialize specifically in hair problems?

I would appreciate any advice, as I am not very educated in the area of hair!

Thank you for your time.

Alice.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
You have explained your condition very well. Normal hair loss is 80-100 hair per day but this is a very relative term as it depends on the immune system and the general build up of the body.

The causes of hair fall could be due to stress, fungal infections, alopecia aereata, hormonal imbalance(overproduction of dihydrotestosterone and thyroid hormones irregularities) which you are already having ,malnutrition, telogen effluvium and sebum plugs on skin. Telogen effluvium is nonscarring alopecia characterized by diffuse hair shedding, often with an acute onset. There is a chronic form also which persists for a longer duration and starts with insidious onset. Chronic telogen effluvium is hair shedding lasting longer than 6 months. Treatment consists of medications like Minoxidil, surgical approach(hair transplantation) and improvement in diet.

My sincere advice is to consult a trichologist for hair fall and endocrinologist for hormonal imbalance.

I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.