Can a Dermatologist Tell What Is Causing You Hair Loss?

Dermatologists are medical doctors who study and treat skin disorders affecting texture, appearance and function. Your family doctor may send you to a dermatologist if you experience hair loss that cannot be attributed to medications, systemic illnesses or heredity.

Medical History

• The dermatologist asks about family members experiencing hair loss, their genetic relationship to you and the type of hair loss they experienced. The dermatologist uses the information to decide if your hair loss is hereditary.

Miniaturization

• Hormones can cause individual hair shafts to grow thinner and shorter (miniaturization). Eventually, the affected hairs fall out and leave bare spots. According to Bernstein Medical, dermatologists diagnose miniaturization by measuring hair shaft diameters with magnifying instruments (densitometers).

Telogen effluvium

• Dermatologists test for abnormal hair shedding (telogen effluvium) by gently pulling 20 to 30 hairs. If five or more hairs pull out, the doctor may evaluate diet or medications, making adjustments that may slow hair shedding.

Infections

• Dermatologists look at skin samples, obtained by scraping the skin or with a punch biopsy. Examining the samples may reveal microscopic fungal or bacterial scalp and skin infections that scar hair follicles, preventing hair growth.

Defects

• According to the American Hair Loss Association, dermatologists examine hair shafts with microscopes, looking for hair shaft defects that weaken hair (trichorrhexis nodosa). The doctor may recommend changes in grooming habits and using mild shampoo to slow breakage.