Baldness: Treatment, Cost and Side Effects

Chronic forms of hair loss can lead to baldness. Many underlying causes can be responsible for baldness, starting from congenital to liver conditions. Baldness is more common in men and is known as Male-pattern baldness in such cases. However, the same affects women as well. Congenital hair loss may affect your scalp only, but it may also cause you to lose hair from all over the body.

Baldness may be caused due to an autoimmune disorder or due to hypothyroidism, nutritional deficiencies, hyperthyroidism, acute stress disorder, underactive pituitary gland and many more.

Many medications are available in the market that can help reduce hair fall. However, baldness is caused when new hair follicles stop growing on the scalp. Under normal circumstances, hair thinning occurs with age, but if the baldness results earlier, people can try out a few treatments. For instance, a fatty liver can cause hair fall and treatment for the liver can stop hair fall and prevent baldness.

There is no definite cure for baldness. Some treatments may be effective for one patient, while the same may not show any result for another. The treatment for baldness begins by determining the cause behind it. If the baldness is caused due to abnormal functioning of the thyroid gland, doctors will try to treat the hypo or hyperthyroidism first. This may be enough to cure the baldness as well.

If stress is determined to be the primary cause for the hair loss and baldness, doctors may ask the patient to follow relaxation techniques and meditation. Therefore, there is no single treatment for baldness. It is however advisable to seek the treatment when hair loss is noticed, rather than waiting for complete baldness.

In most cases, baldness cannot be cured completely, especially if the cause is congenital.

People experiencing a great deal of hair loss, should seek the treatment. Early treatment may help prevent baldness. However, the same treatment is also required by people who may have lost all of their hairs.

People who are not bald and who has not experienced hair loss should not seek treatment.

Since the medication for baldness often modifies the hormone producing organs in the body, it can have several side effects on the bodily functions.

For instance, a medication changing the functions of the thyroid glands can also affect the sexual performance of the patient.

Some of the medications may also lead to depression and anxiety.

There are no guidelines to follow as such for the treatments related to baldness. However, patients must maintain a healthy diet in order to maximize the chances of regrowing the hair on the scalp.

The treatment may take a long time to show any noticeable effect. In most cases, baldness is difficult to treat. However, some forms of the disorder cannot be treated and hair regrowth occurs in very limited amount.

Price of the treatment can differ, depending on the cause of the baldness. For instance, hair loss due to hormonal issues can be treated with Rs. 50,000-Rs. 1,00,000. However, the treatment cost increases when the cause is congenital.

Results may not be permanent in some cases. The efficacy of the treatment depends on the lifestyle choices and the cause behind the problem.

Alternative forms of treatment include natural home made remedies that are known to strengthen the hair follicles in the scalp. For instance, apple cider vinegar, aloe vera, onion juice, egg yolk and licorice are often used as home made remedies for hair fall.