Book a Consultation

Providing NHS services

£0.00
No products in the cart.
Book a Consultation

Providing NHS services

Alopecia Areata

The clinicians at Ahmey's can treat almost everything and would be happy to consult

face to face or over a video consultation.

You decide!

BOOK a 30 minute CONSULTATION

All Inclusive Service

Next-Day Delivery

UK-Registered Pharmacy

Discreet Packaging


Alopecia Areata

Alopecia Areata is an autoimmune disease characterised by non-scarring hair loss in single or multiple areas of the scalp, face or body.

An autoimmune disease is where your immune system attacks itself, causing multiple outcomes.

In the case of Alopecia Areata, your body attacks your hair follicles, shrinking them and causing them to stop producing hair, resulting in hair loss.

If you’ve seen a lot of extra hair on your pillow, brush, or shower drain, or you’ve noticed odd little bald spots in the mirror, you might have developed Alopecia Areata.

Although it is rare, in some cases, you can lose all of the hair on your head (Alopecia Areata Totalis) and even on your entire body (Alopecia Areata Universalis).

If you think you have this condition, then you should visit your GP or dermatologist in order to start treatment.

Symptoms

The only symptom of Alopecia Areata is hair Loss, however, the hair loss can present in various ways. Bald patches, a receding hairline, and all-over thinning hair are some of the ways that this autoimmune disease presents itself.

As the disease can affect your entire body, hair loss is likely to present all over the face and body, as well as the head.

Causes

The exact cause of this disease is still unknown. However, there are some circumstances that are believed to be causes of Alopecia Areata.

  • Genetics

This disease is more likely to occur in people who have a family history of autoimmune diseases, like diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis.

  • Environment
  • Acute stressful episodes
  • Anxiety attacks

Diagnosis

Once you’ve discovered symptoms of Alopecia Areata, you should visit your dermatologist.

The first thing that your dermatologist will do is examine your hair loss and take a few samples of your hair, in order to examine it.

  • Scalp Biopsy

In this test, the dermatologist will remove a small piece of skin on your scalp for analysis, to rule out other conditions that cause hair loss, including fungal infections like Tinea Capitis.

  • Blood tests might also be done if another autoimmune condition is suspected.

Treatments

Alopecia Areata can’t be cured, but it can be treated to make your hair grow back. Below are several treatments that are used regularly to treat this condition.

  • CorticosteroidsThese are anti-inflammatory drugs that are prescribed for autoimmune diseases. You can find them in many forms like a pill, a cream or ointment to rub on the skin, or an injection directly into the affected area.
  • Minoxidil (Rogaine) This drug is already used to treat pattern baldness. Just apply it on your scalp daily, and you will start to get results usually after at least 12 weeks, or 1 year in some cases. This treatment is most effective when used in a treatment plan alongside other products and methods.
  • Anthralin (Dritho-Scalp) A treatment that irritates the skin in order to cause hair regrowth.
  • Topical immunotherapy This method is used in cases with a significant amount of hair loss. A chemical like diphencyprone will be applied to the scalp to produce an allergic reaction. The allergic reaction draws the white blood cells away from attacking your hair follicles, allowing them to recover.
  • Steroid injections involve tiny needles injecting the steroid directly into the skin of the affected areas.
  • Oral treatments, there are many products on the market which claim to treat Alopecia, such as cortisone tablets, or oral immunosuppressants like cyclosporine and methotrexate.

The mechanism for these drugs is simply to block the immune system’s instinct to attack your own body. You should discuss any treatments with your dermatologist thoroughly before you use any medications for this condition.

The types of medications used for autoimmune diseases have potential side effects of liver or kidney damage, and some of the medications used can increase your risk of developing Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.

Faheem Ahmed

Have Questions?

Our clinicians would be more than happy to help.

Either give us a call on 01865 689 149 or book online.

It's really that simple!

Book a Consultation

Providing NHS services

How to Find Us

Visit us at:
158 Oxford Road
Cowley, Oxford, OX4 2LA
Contact us at:
[email protected]
01865 689 149

Join over 1000's of patients who choose Ahmey's

Jackie Nakate
Jackie Nakate
2021-08-14
professional and lovely staff. The staff was super helpful and also called just to make sure I got my results without any mistakes.
Dimitris Kolokouris
Dimitris Kolokouris
2021-07-18
Went for a fit to fly PCR test. The staff were incredibly polite and helpful. They took special care to get my flight credentials correct and had my test result to me within less than a day. They guarantee to get your result the next day (even over weekends). Overall good service, I would recommend.
Margherita Davoli
Margherita Davoli
2021-06-22
I went today for a covid rapid- antigen test for travelling. Excellent service, they also gave me a pdf with the certificate for travelling, both paper and via email.
Elena Razzano
Elena Razzano
2021-05-27
I went to the clinic for a Covid Swab test: the nurse has been very professional and careful, the service has been perfect, fast and the certificate compliant for the fit to fly. I highly recommend this service and I will definitely use it again.
Aloise Fiala-Murphy
Aloise Fiala-Murphy
2021-05-25
Very good service, just did a PCR test for travelling. Helpful, on time and easy.
Susanne Mecklenburg
Susanne Mecklenburg
2021-05-24
Super service, competent, friendly, quick turn around of the results - really helpful. I can recommend it!
Michael Chipeta
Michael Chipeta
2021-02-04
Had Covid-19 fit to fly test. Results came promptly, in record time. Impressed with the service.
Shengpan Zhang
Shengpan Zhang
2021-01-24
Excellent service, very friendly and reliable
Kan Li
Kan Li
2021-01-19
Excellent people to work with! Great service, prompt communication, flexible schedule, and very reasonable price. 100/100 recommend for all kinds of fit-for-travel testing.