Male Pattern Baldness Explained – Androgenetic Alopecia

What is male pattern baldness?

Also known as androgenetic alopecia, it is a common form of genetically driven loss of hair that occurs in human males.

Statistics

According to recent researches on the subject, 25% of men in the U.S will suffer from androgenetic alopecia before they reach 21. 66% of men will experience some level of hair loss by the age of 35. And 85% of men will experience a severe thinning of the hair by the age of 50. Male pattern baldness is the most common condition of hair loss among men – it accounts for 95% of the cases.

The Hamilton-Norwood Scale: patterns of hair loss

The following scale was first drafted by Dr. James Hamilton in the 1950s and later revised and updated by Dr. O’Tar Norwood in the 1970s.
It is commonly used to describe the stages of male pattern baldness. There are seven patterns of hair identified in the Hamilton-Norwood Scale:

• Type 1 (not shown in the figure) represents a normal head with no visible signs of hair loss
• Type 2 shows first signs of hair retreating in a wedge shaped pattern
• Type 3 shows hair retreating pattern has deepen into the frontal area and the temporal area
• Type 4 indicates that in addition to the even deeper progress of hair retreating from the frontal and temporal region, there is a balding area located at the crown of the head (called vertex). The new area is still isolated and not visibly connected to the front retreating pattern
• Type 5 shows the process of merging between the front balding areas with the vertex
• Type 6 shows that the merging process between the front and vertex areas has been completed
• Type 7 indicates the last stage when the hair retreats completely from the upper part of the head and remains only on the base of the head just above the ears

Causes for male pattern baldness

The cause of Androgenetic alopecia/male-pattern baldness is mostly associated with genetic related factors. Although the phenomenon is not completely understood- some new researches on the subject point out that there are other factors as well that should be taken into consideration.

Modern medicine can relate the activity of a class of hormones called Androgens, especially dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Although those hormones are very important to proper male sexual development from embryonic stage through puberty (and to other function as well), they also cause the thinning and even the out falling of the hair while attached to the root of the hair follicle.

There are various treatments to the problem that work directly on the inhibition of the DHT hormone while minimizing side effects and promoting the re growth of hair.

For further reading:

• Natural DHT blockers
• Nurture & hair loss prevention

Treatments for male pattern baldness

There are several ways to categorize treatment types for male pattern baldness and one should remember that there’s always a trade off so it’s a god practice to make an educated decision and keep your ears and eyes open on new studies that are published on the subject.

Most solutions that treat Androgenetic Alopecia directly act to inhibit the DHT hormone with the exception of Minoxidil (also known as Rogaine/Regaine) which is an anti blood pressure drug that one of its side effects is increased regrowth of hair.

From the list of DHT inhibitors being used by conventional medicine there is Minoxidil that was mentioned – please note that it is effective only on the vertex area and with large balding areas and has some side effects from itchy scalp to allergic reaction, swelling of the face and extremities, rapid and irregular heartbeat, lightheadedness, cardiac lesions, and focal necrosis of the papillary muscle and subendocardial areas of the left ventricle.

Another conventional medicine drug used this time as a DHT inhibitor is Finasteride (also known as Propecia or Proscar). This drug, like Minoxidil is mostly effective on the crown area but unlike the later is also partially effective on the hairline area. 1% of patients suffer from side effects of erectile dysfunction and gynecomastia (breast gland enlargement).

You’re most welcome to read about my own experience using those medicines to treat alopecia areata and then switching to aroma therapy solution that proved to be more suitable for me: Successful aromatherapy treatment for Alopecia Areata – a scientific study » »

Herbal medicine also offers its own DHT inhibitors solution – those treatments are based on natural inhibitors such as Saw-Plamento extract and Nettle Root as well as other minerals and vitamins. To learn some more about herbal solution – we recommend that you refer to the following article about natural DHT blockers.

Another treatment that received approval from the FDA is the Laser Beam Hair Therapy that works to invigorate the hair follicle and stop Follicle Miniaturization process.