Kathy is a 27-year-old woman who works as a Receptionist in a dental clinic 8 hours a day from Monday to Saturday. She takes almost 2 hours to get to work every morning and equal time to return at the end of the workday. Her rhythm of life does not allow her to socialize and she is almost always in a hurry. Her job requires an impeccable personal presentation, which directly affects her hair, which should always be well-groomed and ironed.

However, in recent months Kathy has seen with concern how her hair has been falling progressively, to the point where her scalp now shows areas of absolute baldness. Kathy is worried and doesn’t know what to do.

As Kathy many people are alarmed at the first signs of the appearance of Alopecia, and during National Alopecia Awareness Month, here are some considerations about what Alopecia is.

Defining Alopecia

First of all, Alopecia is abnormal hair loss. It is also known as baldness.

It has a strong inherited pattern, but it also occurs as a result of some other active disease in the individual that affects their immune system, such as stress or anemia that weaken the hair follicle or, a hormonal imbalance in the case of menopause.

Androgenic Alopecia manifests itself in most cases after age 50. It is more common in men, but it also affects women. Other areas affected by alopecia are the beard, armpits, genital region, eyebrows, and eyelashes.

Alopecia Areata is a type of autoimmune disease in which hair is lost circularly or as patches on the head. It affects men, women and children equally. When alopecia occurs due to stress, it is called Telogenic Effluvium and is reversible, only when stress disappears.

Other forms of Alopecia are those manifested in cancer patients due to the use of drugs to combat the disease. They are known as Anagen Effluvium.

The repeated, forced and under pressure action of certain hairstyles such as bows and braids can cause alopecia of certain areas of the scalp known as Traumatic Alopecia. It is characteristic in women but also in babies who pose their head for long periods on the pillow.

Congenital Atria Syndrome is a type of hereditary baldness that has its origin in the person’s birth, not in their development or adulthood.

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