Alopecia World
www.alopeciaworld.com
What kind of alopecia? Really need some help. Doctors contradict each other
Hi all,
I just found this website. I would immensely appreciate it if you would take the time to read about my weird case....
Here it is:
I am a 32 year old male.
About 8 months ago I noticed bald spots in my beard. Just tiny ones so I thought it might be due to past shaving.
Then I started noticing more and more....All over my beard but the weird thing is, after between 2 to 5 weeks they regrow and new spots appear.
Now the regrowth is just plain strong healthy thick black beard hair. No signs of weaker hair whatsoever.
Another weird thing is that it is approximately symmetric.
I have spots in both my sideburns, on both my cheeks and my moustache has regressed from my nostrils downwards on both sides.
Also on both sides my moustache does not connect to my chin hair any more.
So it's not as if the hairs get attacked in any way. They just fall out and weeks later I see them regrow just as strong as ever.
My whole beard is fluctuating with bald spots in the weirdest forms: S-shapes, squares, cylinder shapes....U name it! It's a mozaick of bald spots, I kid you not. And they all have regrowth regularly.
2 months ago after being used to the beard problem I started to notice a spot in my hairline....Just a small bite out of my frontal hairline.
And guess what, 4 weeks later I see the same strong hairs regrow again....It filled up for about 50%. Nowhere thin hairs to be found, just normal strong hairs.
So I went to a doctor. The first send me to a dermatologist. He did not even look and said "It's alopecia Areata". Very unfriendly and uninterested guy.
Then I went back to the first to say what he said and she wanted me to do a blood test to check my thyroid gland which seemed ok.
This is all in Hong Kong by the way where I do my PhD at a university.
Then I went back for a holiday to the Netherlands (where I come from) and wanted to get a second opinion from another dermatologist.
The first thing he said was that it is not alopecia areata. He told me that alopecia areata shows itself most of the time as round or oval bald spots which progress to bigger ones or new ones appear. However, regular regrowth within weeks without any damage to the hairs and the shapes of the balding spots being so random is a contra-indicator of alopecia areata.
So he said he was at a loss actually.
It could be stress....
But I always have the feeling that when a doctor doesn't know, they will say the easy argument: Stress.
However, I must admit that I moved to Hong Kong 2 years ago and due to personal issues I have been under intense stress.
I also remember my hairdresser say to me some years ago (still in the Netherlands) "hey you have a small bald spot in your side burn" .... I didn't think much of it back then as my beard was nice and full in these days. But now I come to think of it, probably I have been living with this stuff for years.
So to sum it all up, I have the weirdest shapes of bald spots all over my beard and the balding on both sides is approximately symmetrical, which regularly show regrowth of normal strong hairs within weeks, then go bald again, then regrow, etc etc. and also a spot in my hairline which showed regrowth of normal hairs within weeks.
Does anyone recognize this? I am at a loss here....What could this be? Could it be hormonal? Or something internal? A deficiency?
Something is messed up inside, that's for sure....
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by a2rutherford on
-
Wow, that's a tough one...Like you, I've had a hairdresser or friends notice a spot (back when it was just a small spot), but I never really thought much of it until I had to start doing a "comb over" with my dreds. Doctors told me all sorts of things, which is why it took so long to figure out, as the spot got bigger and bigger. My "braids" were too tight, my hair was to long/heavy, I was stressed, I had some sort of fungal growth (because I had a dred loc style, of course they thought I never washed my hair). I practically had to have a tantrum to get a referral to a dermatologist who took a biopsy and determined it was cenral centrifugal cicatricial alopecia. My second opinion doc said the same, although they both seem to use the term interchangeably with scarring alopecia. To be honest, I'm still not quite sure if they're different, or if that's a category of alopecia areata.
BUT it's autoimmune, and looking back it had probably been happening over a long period of time. Do you have any other symptoms? The spot on my head burns, and the itching is intense feels like my skin i crawling... I often have what appears to be terrible dandruff. I never thought much of those symptoms, as I've always had lots of allergies, and am prone to hive out. I just popped claritin every day, and used anti itch creams. Stress could probably exacerbate it. I hope that info helps you. I'm sure some other people will weigh in. I don't know much about other types of alopecia, but there seem to be lots, and they may have different symptoms...
-
-
I guess if they're regrowing as normal, it could be stress?
-
-
Hi a2rutherford,
Thanks for the reply.
No I have no other complaints. No pain, no discoloration, feeling healthy.
The spots never grow in size. It's just bam a spot....Weeks later it fills in again with normal hair.
And I have zillions of them in my beard and one on my frontal hairline which showed regrowth almost immediately.It fluctuates weekly.
It almost feels like they go into resting phase too soon, start to grow again and poof! go into resting phase again....
And yes, it might be stress. I have been under intense stress, I must admit it.
-
-
Wow, sorry this is happening to you but it sounds like alopecia areata to me. The most consistent thing about this condition is that it is unpredicatable. My daughter has had all sorts of hairloss and regrowth patterns. She went AU for over 1 year and now is in a spontaneous regrowth stage. This condition is considered autoimmune. There is a theory that stress could be a trigger but they have also found a genetic link. There are treatments that work sometimes for some people but none are without side effects. NAAF is a good place to start educating yourself.
-
-
I heard about a guy having the same problem for 1,5 years.
He went to check for a food allergy test and was allergic to Soy.
He quit soy and had immediate regrowth of all the spots.I did move to HK two years ago and my diet completely changed.
I am going to do a test, who knows....
-
Permalink Reply by George Ortiz on
-
Hello every one, there is very promising news on the horizon in the microbiology world concerning Lform and biofilm form bacterial overgrowth within the human body and its direct correlation to inflamitory autoimunual diseases of all types. The studies show unmistaken connections between inflamitory diseases in the human body and internal biofilm bacteria that resides within the body gone undetected by current testing. Biofilm and Lform bacteria are the cause of all autoimmunal diseases the articles posted below show this. If interested please read the articles, personally I owe it to myself to read up on this current break through information. we are all victims of this current situation. If you wish to read the article just go to www.bacteriality.com and read Dr. Randalls discoveries on biofilm bacteria.
and also check out the Marshall protocol websites google Dr.Trevor Marshall or google the marshall protocol. I hope this information consoles every one who reads it in some way.
If you believe in this movement please let the word out contact your primary care physicians and inform them of this breakthrough information give them the websites so they can read the published articles and read about the current conferences and currently ongoing human trials in effect.
-
-
Hello read your blog hope this information helps in some way , there is very promising news on the horizon in the microbiology world concerning Lform and biofilm form bacterial overgrowth within the human body and its direct correlation to inflamitory autoimunual diseases of all types. The studies show unmistaken connections between inflamitory diseases in the human body and internal biofilm bacteria that resides within the body gone undetected by current testing. Biofilm and Lform bacteria are the cause of all autoimmunal diseases the articles posted below show this. If interested please read the articles, personally I owe it to myself to read up on this current break through information. we are all victims of this current situation. If you wish to read the article just go to www.bacteriality.com and read Dr. Randalls discoveries on biofilm bacteria.
and also check out the Marshall protocol websites google Dr.Trevor Marshall or google the marshall protocol. I hope this information consoles every one who reads it in some way.
If you believe in this movement please let the word out contact your primary care physicians and inform them of this breakthrough information give them the websites so they can read the published articles and read about the current conferences and currently ongoing human trials in effect.
© 2024 Created by Alopecia World.
Powered by
