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Follicle Miniaturisation

Male pattern hair loss usually occurs over a long period of time and you may not notice extra hair fall. What may be happening is that your individual hairs are becoming finer and thinner in diameter, and also shorter after each subsequent hair cycle. Follicle miniaturisation can occur in both men and women, but is more common and also pronounced in men.

Thinner hairs take up less space on your scalp, which gives the appearance of reduced volume, as well as visible spaces of scalp between your hairs. In extreme cases, individual scalp hairs can get so thin and short (miniature) that you can’t see them. This miniaturisation affects the hair papilla, the matrix and, eventually, the hair shaft.

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When a hair reaches a diameter of 40 microns, it rarely grows longer than 80mm (3.5 inches). This is when hair loss appears to happen rapidly. However, sometimes thinning stops and the number of hairs on your scalp remains the same for months or even years.

Follicle miniaturisation can often be slowed, and sometimes reversed, with topical and/or oral treatments. For more information, please contact our Trichological Clinic.