When women lose their hair

Telogen effluvium usually occurs suddenly and unexpectedly, and can worsen very quickly. — 123rf.com

In my experience, most women who come in with generalised hair thinning report that it usually starts after a major life event, most commonly, childbirth or a major illness.

This is also known as telogen effluvium.

It is usually unexpected and sudden, and can worsen very quickly – sometimes in a matter of days.

This sudden onset causes many of them to feel helpless and stressed out by the condition.

Seeing chunks of hair come out from routine brushing and washing can be extremely frightening.

Fortunately, telogen effluvium is usually temporary and most people recover fully after a few months.

I once saw a young woman in my practice who started losing hair right after her childbirth.

She worked as an airline cabin crew member and had a head of thick, long hair that she took pride in before her condition began.

It put her on an emotional rollercoaster that gave her extremely low self-esteem and brought her close to depression.

After a lot of reassurance and some help from hair loss treatment, her condition improved over the next six months.

So what should you do if you have hair loss or thinning?

Consult a doctor!

Before starting any form of treatment, it is important to find out the type and the cause of hair loss.

Treatment of the underlying condition is often required to address hair loss issues.

If it is due to skin conditions such as eczema and fungal skin infections, you will require prescribed medications, such as creams and tablets, to treat the skin condition before the hair loss will stop.

If it is found to be due to health conditions such as thyroid disease, a referral to a medical specialist may be required to treat the medical condition in order to improve hair loss.

If you have already seen a doctor and gotten the underlying skin or health condition treated, you can then consider other forms of hair growth treatment to treat your hair loss.

Non-invasive hair growth treatment that involves the application of hair growth ingredients on the scalp to promote hair growth can be useful as a supplementary treatment.

Some ingredients that may be useful in hair loss treatments include recombinant insulin-like growth factor 1 and 2 (IGF-1 and IGF-2), hyaluronic acid and stem cell factor (SCF).

Hair transplantation is usually the last resort when it comes to hair loss.

It is a complex procedure, requiring a skilled doctor to perform it.

Even after hair transplant, treatments such as a topical spray and oral medication, will still be required to maintain the hair.

All forms of hair loss treatments need at least three months to see improvement.

Dr Sii Sik Liong is a physician practising aesthetic medicine in Singapore. For more information, email [e-mail]. The information provided is for educational and communication purposes only, and should not be considered as medical advice. The Star does not give any warranty on accuracy, completeness, functionality, usefulness or other assurances as to the content appearing in this article. The Star disclaims all responsibility for any losses, damage to property or personal injury suffered directly or indirectly from reliance on such information.