Androgenetic Alopecia: Accumulation of Shallow , Thin and Short Cycling Hairs

Androgenetic Alopecia

Androgenetic alopecia, also called male and female pattern hair loss, is a common hair loss condition whereby hair follicles transition from manufacturing deeply-rooted, thick hairs (called terminal hairs) that grow for years and years into shallow-rooted, thin hairs (called vellus hairs) that grow only for months and months. The shorter growth cycles lead many patients to experience increased amounts of daily hair shedding.

4 mm punch biopsy showing deeply rooted terminal hairs and more shallow vellus hairs. These are important features of androgenetic alopecia.

The process of androgenetic alopecia tends to affect only certain regions of the scalp although a small proportion do experience diffuse forms of androgenetic alopecia which affect the entire scalp. This photo shows a fresh biopsy sample taken from a female patient with androgenetic alopecia. Deeply rooted terminal hairs contrast the shallow and finer vellus hairs.