h1.qusth1 { display: none !important; }

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Dr. Donovan's Articles

QUESTION OF HAIR BLOGS

Actinic Keratosis of the scalp

Scalp actinic keratoses

Actinic keratoses are red scaly lesions that develop from long term exposure to the sun. They are viewed as pre-cancers with the potential to become cancers known as squamous cell carcinomas (SCC).

Anywhere from 12 to 40% of individuals screened in dermatology clinics have actinic keratoses on the scalp. These lesions are far more common on the scalp in men than women, this is in part due to the increased exposure to ultraviolet radiation in men with hair loss. About 1-10 % of actinic keratoses will become a squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) over a 10 year period if left not treated. Approximately 1-2 % of SCC will metastasize making early treatment important.

References
Actinic keratosis: a cross-sectional study of disease characteristics and treatment patterns in Danish dermatology clinics. Erlendsson AM, et al. Int J Dermatol. 2016.

Prevalence of actinic keratosis among dermatology outpatients in Spain. Ferrándiz C, et al. Actas Dermosifiliogr. 2016.

This article was written by Dr. Jeff Donovan, a Canadian and US board certified dermatologist specializing exclusively in hair loss.
Share This
No Comments

CTE vs AGA

I posted an answer to a new question on Realself.com

CTE vs AGA

This article was written by Dr. Jeff Donovan, a Canadian and US board certified dermatologist specializing exclusively in hair loss.
Share This
No Comments

What kind of hairs are going down my drain after shampooing?

Hair Shedding: What am I seeing?

What kind of hairs typically go down the drain after shampooing one's scalp? Well, in nearly everyone these are hairs known as "telogen hairs."

Telogen hairs are hairs that have a long history. They were previously tightly rooted in the scalp and had spent many years growing (at which point they were called anagen hairs). But after years of growing without even a moment of rest, anagen hairs retire and become known as telogen hairs - and then drop out of the scalp. Telogen hairs lack a root sheath around the ends.

This article was written by Dr. Jeff Donovan, a Canadian and US board certified dermatologist specializing exclusively in hair loss.
Share This
No Comments

Telogen Effluvium and the URH

Upright Regrowing Hairs

Telogen effluvium ("TE") is a type of hair loss where individuals experience increased daily hair shedding. Instead of losing 30-40 or 50 hairs per day, the individual experiences loss of 60, 70, 80 or more hairs in any given day. The numbers can exceed 500 depending on the cause of the shedding.

Common causes of TE include low iron (low ferritin), anemias, thyroid problems, crash diets, weight loss, stress, surgery, medications (ie lithium, some blood pressure pills, retinoids (vitamin A pills)). Any significant illness inside the body (ie flu, autoimmune disease) or on the scalp surface (ie severe scalp psoriasis or severe seborrheic dermatitis) can cause a telogen effluvium.

This picture shows a typical trichoscopic appearance of someone with a "TE." Numerous short pointy hairs, known as "upright regrowing hairs (URH)" can be seen.
 

This article was written by Dr. Jeff Donovan, a Canadian and US board certified dermatologist specializing exclusively in hair loss.
Share This
1 Comment

Blogs by Topic



Share This
-->