Is My Temporal and Frontal Hair Loss Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia?'

Name: Yanna

Question: Hello, I am a woman of 34 years old.  For several months, I noticed a hair loss in the frontal and temporal area. I went to several dermatologists because I am afraid to have fibrotic frontal alopecia. I notice that I have a lot of transparent hair of 1 or 2 mm between the black hair. but I wanted to know if in fibrosing alopecia, there are these little white hairs, down with some terminal hair? Thank you


Answer: Hi, Yanna. We would need to conduct a proper consultation before we could diagnose the cause of your hair loss for sure, however, from what you say here it is highly unlikely that you have Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia (FFA).

The little white hairs you describe are known as vellus hairs and these, as well as terminal hairs, do not grow in the frontal region if you are experiencing FFA. This causes a completely smooth, bald band of hairloss around the frontal hairline, which is often a few inches wide and fairly easy to spot because of this.

If vellus and terminal hairs are present within the area that shedding is occurring, it is likely you have another hair loss condition. Finer hair growth represents miniaturisation or regrowth hence a full assessment would need to be undertaken in order to provide a confirmed diagnosis. However the most likely issue, based on your description, would seem to be Traction Alopecia or, potentially Female Pattern Hair Loss.

Traction Alopecia occurs when tight and/or weighty hairstyles are worn regularly, placing excessive strain on the hair follicles - especially around the frontal hairline and temple areas - which, in turn, results in hair fall. This is often temporary though if the damaging hairstyles - such as braids, high ponytails, taut buns or hair extensions - continue to be worn, it can become permanent. If this is the issue the first step to remedying it is to wear the hair down, naturally, in order to allow the follicles to recover. Traction Alopecia treatment is also available to help encourage hair growth in the affected areas by using a combination of products including a topical medication applied where needed.

The hereditary condition Female Pattern Baldness is permanent and comes on gradually, presenting as thinning hair anywhere along the top of the scalp, from the hairline and temples to the crown. This can cause a receding hairline in women as well as men, though in men it tends to be more well-defined, whereas in women it tends to be part of a general hair thinning in the area affected by genetic follicular miniaturisation. Although there is no cure yet, it is possible to manage the condition using a tailored Female Pattern Hair Loss Treatment course featuring suitable formulations of topical, clinically-proven medications.

Before you consider any treatment, however, it is of course crucial to first determine the precise condition you are experiencing so we recommend having a specialist consultation, either in-clinic or online.