
ALOPECIA AREATA
SYMPTOMS OF ALOPECIA AREATA
Most patients have no symptoms, and a bald patch or thinning hair is noted incidentally. Other patients describe a burning, prickly discomfort in the affected areas — this is known as trichodynia. The bald areas may have a smooth surface, completely devoid of hair or with scattered 'exclamation mark' hairs. Exclamation mark hairs are 2 to 3 mm in length, broken or tapered, with a club-shaped root. Regrowing hairs are often initially white or grey; they may be curly even when previously straight. It may take months and sometimes years to regrow all the hair. One patch can be falling out while another is regrowing.
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Diffuse alopecia areata ∙Sometimes called alopecia areata incognita ∙Presents with sudden diffuse alopecia. ∙Persisting hair tends to grey, thus descriptions of 'turning white overnight' ∙Positive hair pull test ∙Diffuse alopecia areata may be confused with telogen effluvium or hair loss due to medications.
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Alopecia areata of the nails ∙Nail disease affects 10–50% of those with alopecia areata. ∙Regular pitting and ridging are the most common findings. ∙May also cause koilonychia, trichodynia, Beau lines, Onychorrhexis, onychomadesis, onycholysis and red spots on the lunula.


CASUSES OF ALOPECIA AREATA
It is an autoimmune condition, the immune system malfunctions and attacks the body's own tissues instead. In alopecia areata the immune system targets hair follicles, stopping hair growth However, the causes are complex and not well understood. A combination of factors likely underlies the disorder, including changes in many genes that function in the hair and skin and in the immune system.







