If you begin to notice hair loss, consult your doctor. In some cases, hair loss is hereditary and does not require the care of a doctor. In other cases however, hair loss may be the cause of a disease, like lupus, or a fungal infection, like ringworm. If your doctor approves, you can use over-the-counter or prescription treatments to help reduce hair loss and, in some cases, grow new hair.
Finasteride
The American Hair Loss Association recommends finasteride as a first line of defense to treat male pattern baldness. Finasteride is a prescription medication that is taken orally. When male pattern baldness occurs, testosterone is turned into dihydrotestosterone in the body, causing hair follicles to shrink, says the Mayo Clinic. Finasteride stops the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, ceasing hair loss and in some cases, causing some hair regrowth. Finasteride is not approved by the FDA to treat female pattern baldness because it can cause birth defects.
Minoxidil
The Mayo Clinic recommends minoxidil as an over-the-counter remedy to treat male and female pattern baldness. Minoxidil is a cream or foam that is rubbed into the scalp to treat thinning hair. Minoxidil is also approved by the FDA to treat alopecia areata and androgenetic alopecia, two conditions that cause hair loss. In some patients, hair loss will cease completely and in others, hair loss will slow. Some patients may experience regrowth of hair, although it may grow in finer and thinner than older hair.
Surgery
Surgical hair implants are more expensive than other hair loss treatments, like medications or hairpieces. Additionally, surgical procedures may cause infection and scarring, and some of the implanted hair may fall out, says the Mayo Clinic. If surgery is used to treat male or female pattern baldness, more than one surgical treatment may be required as hair loss will continue to progress over time. A doctor may perform a scalp reduction, which removes skin that no longer grows hair from the scalp and stretches other portions of the scalp to fill in the balding areas. In other cases, a doctor may perform a hair transplant, where hair is surgically placed into the scalp.
Hairpieces
The Mayo Clinic recommends using hairpieces as a non-surgical way to disguise thinning hair without side effects. Hairpieces that are made of human hair look more realistic than synthetic hairpieces and can be styled, colored and cut the same way real hair can. Hairpieces can be used to treat both temporary hair loss, which may occur as a side effect of taking certain medications, or permanent hair loss.
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