Hair breakage in Alopecia Areata

Why do hairs break in alopecia areata?

Hair breakage is a common finding in active alopecia areata (an autoimmune hair loss condition). Inflammation occurring deep down in the scalp at the level of the bulb prevents strong hairs from being produced. The result is hair breakage. Some of hairs that are shed are of course full length hairs. But in patients with very active AA, a close examination of shed hairs will reveal that many are broken.