What are the treatment options for hair loss and thinning?
Treatment for hair loss and thinning hair includes:
- Treating the underlying cause.
- Medications.
- Hair regrowth procedures.
The type of hair loss, as well as your overall health and desires, determine which hair replacement procedures are most suitable. A healthcare provider or dermatologist can help you navigate treatment for hair loss or thinning hair.
Treating the underlying cause of hair loss
Before any type of treatment begins, a healthcare provider will perform a physical exam, get your complete medical and family medical history, and offer tests if necessary. This will help them learn more about why you have hair loss or thinning hair.
After they determine the cause, your provider will learn more about your hair goals, like whether you want it to regrow or not. If your provider detects any underlying conditions that cause your hair loss, they’ll offer a treatment plan to help you manage that condition. Usually, treatment for the underlying condition resolves hair loss or hair thinning.
Medications to treat hair loss
There are a lot of different hair loss treatment options available over the counter (OTC) or by prescription that you can apply to your hair at home. These products are usually topical and come in forms like a cream, lotion or shampoo.
Common ingredients in OTC hair loss treatment products include:
- Biotin.
- Zinc.
- Collagen.
- Azelaic acid.
- Oils like tea tree oil.
If OTC products aren’t working for you, a healthcare provider may recommend specific types of hair regrowth medications, including:
- Minoxidil (Rogaine®): This U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved medication treats pattern baldness. Minoxidil is a topical solution that you rub directly onto your scalp. It’s available OTC and doesn’t require a prescription.
- Finasteride (Propecia®): This FDA-approved prescription medication treats pattern baldness. Finasteride isn’t FDA-approved for women and people AFAB, but it’s approved for men and people AMAB to treat pattern baldness.
- Corticosteroids: This prescription medication helps treat sudden and extensive hair loss. It can slow the speed of your hair loss and potentially help with hair regrowth.
Hair regrowth procedures
There are different types of hair regrowth procedures and hair transplant surgeries available:
- Grafting is a type of hair regrowth procedure where a surgeon will remove hair from part of your body and transplant it to an area of your scalp where you have baldness. Grafting is an outpatient procedure performed in the dermatologic surgeon’s office. It’s a painful procedure, which means you’ll receive an anesthetic so you won’t feel pain.
- Scalp reduction is the removal of non-hair-bearing skin from your scalp so the remaining hair-bearing skin can be stretched to fill in the bald area of your head. Scalp reduction can reduce as much as half of the bald area. It’s a procedure performed to cover bald areas on the top and back of your head. It’s not beneficial for the frontal hairline.
- Light therapy or low-level laser therapy uses medical-grade lights directed at your scalp for a short period of time to help regrow your hair. Light therapy can stimulate the hair follicles in your skin to help your hair grow. You may need several light therapy sessions before you see results.
- Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy is a procedure in which a healthcare provider draws blood from a vein in your arm, and then spins that blood in a centrifuge machine to separate the components of your blood. They separate the platelets from your blood plasma and inject the plasma back into your body. PRP therapy is usually used to speed up your body’s healing process after injury or surgery, but it can also help regrow your hair.
- Scalp micropigmentation is a type of tattoo, also known as a hair tattoo, which can cover bald spots or thinning hair without surgery.
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Your healthcare provider will help you choose the type of hair regrowth procedure that fits best with the cause of your hair loss and your hair regrowth goals.
How can I regrow my thinning hair and stop hair loss naturally without treatment?
Some causes of hair thinning and hair loss aren’t permanent and don’t need treatment. Changes to your body can affect how much hair you’re able to grow and when your hair grows. Once your body adapts to the changes affecting it, your hair will naturally grow back without treatment.
Some of these causes include:
- Having a baby.
- Experiencing hormonal changes.
- Recovering from surgery.
- Receiving treatment for cancer.
- Losing weight.
- Stress.
A healthcare provider can help you determine what caused hair thinning or hair loss to help you manage it.
