Alopecia areata, as a form of baldness, often manifests itself as round or oval hair loss in areas of hair that are extremely distracting to a person's appearance.

People of all ages can suffer from baldness, more often in young adults. The causes of baldness can range from genetics to damage to the autoimmune system. Many people wonder if baldness can be cured. The truth is that experts have not found a cure for baldness yet, but some treatments can promote the regrowth of lost hair as soon as possible.

Causes

1. Genetic: There is a family history of baldness in 10-20% of cases, and genetic allergies predispose people to baldness, suggesting that genetics may be a cause. There have been reports of four generations of families suffering from baldness and the disease may be linked to genetic defects.

2. Mental: Research findings have shown that mental factors may affect the appearance of alopecia areata. Psychiatric shock and acute anxiety are the most common causes of alopecia areata. Meanwhile 30% of patients with the disease experience emotional stress, such as anxiety, depression, phobias and paranoid disorders. What’s more, the results of a study of 31 patients with pemphigus showed that 39% of patients with pemphigus had generalized anxiety and 39% also suffered from depression. All the evidence promote mental condition to be a focus of pathogenesis of baldness.

3. Immunity: Psychoneurotic factors can also trigger the formation of baldness. People who live with chronic anxiety or sadness, or who are in a state of prolonged panic or grief, are highly likely to cause baldness.

Solutions

There is no cure for alopecia areata, although some treatments can help hair to grow back more quickly.

1. Topical medication

Minoxidil: 5% minoxidil cream or solvent, which together with finasteride is an FDA approved drug capable of promoting hair growth.

Anthralin: 0.5% to 1% anthralin ointment or cream, which is a primary hair stimulant. Patients may apply it topically 1 to several times daily.

Contact sensitizers : Diphenylcyclopropenone (DCP) is most commonly used.

Glucocorticoids: strong hormones applied topically or in packets. 0.05% dexamethasone, 50% dimethylsulfoxide solution applied topically is often more effective than creams etc.

2. Internal medicine

Glucocorticoids: Prednisone is taken internally and gradually reduced after a few weeks, and then maintained in small doses for 6 months. Glucocorticosteroids are effective, but they have many side effects and are prone to relapse after discontinuation, so they are not used as conventional therapy. However, it can be tried in acute baldness to avoid the development of total or general baldness.

Cyclosporine: The treatment course is 6-12 months. It is effective in some cases and can be stopped after 4 months if there is no effect.

Thymopentin: Intramuscular injection for 3 weeks.

Vasodilators: oral niacin.

3. Local injection method

Local injections of glucocorticoids are indicated for less extensive hair loss, or for cosmetically important areas (e.g. eyebrows) in patients with alopecia areata. The area of hair loss can be injected directly or at its periphery with a view to controlling the further extension of the hair loss. Care should be taken to avoid localised skin atrophy and depressions that may result.

4. Nerve closure therapy

The occipital nerve is closed and the temperature of the skin in the area it innervates rises, facilitating hair regrowth.

Many people are afraid of the effects of baldness and opt for medical treatments such as hair transplants, which is not necessary. Most common baldness has a tendency to heal naturally, with a few cases recurring, in which case it can be difficult to treat.

There are no medications that can cure baldness, so you still need to pay more attention to your