So, what exactly is alopecia? It is a medical term for baldness. Alopecia occurs because the person's immune system begins to attack one of the healthy hair cells. Men and women of all ages can experience this disease, which is not harmful or physically painful. However, the disease often causes a mental burden on the person due to hair loss. There are three different types of alopecia, which are briefly described below.
Alopecia Areata is the most common type. It is also called spot baldness because the bald spots are usually circular in shape. The spontaneous bald spots arise in the scalp.
Alopecia Totalis causes complete hair loss. Usually, this type only involves hair loss on the scalp, resulting in total baldness. However, in some cases, hair loss is also accompanied by eyelashes and eyebrows. This type of alopecia usually affects a person before the age of 40.
Alopecia Universalis is the rarest form of alopecia. Here the hair loss becomes so severe that it encompasses both the head and the body. This means that beards, pubic hair, etc. also disappear.
Unfortunately, there is no formula for why alopecia occurs. There are only some people who are more prone to this disease than others. This can be, for example, people with other autoimmune diseases, asthma, hay fever or eczema in children. If there is a family tendency for parents and siblings to have or have had bald spots on the scalp, there is also an increased risk of developing alopecia.
