An Approach to Hair Loss in Women

Hair loss is a common symptom presenting in women, and there are a range of conditions that can cause hair loss in women. Conditions for hair loss can be scarring (cicatricial) or nonscarring (noncicatricial). Nonscarring conditions include female pattern hair loss, telogen effluvium, and alopecia areata. Trichotillomania and tinea capitis are also causes of nonscarring alopecia. Scarring alopecias comprise primary and secondary conditions. Primary scarring alopecias include lichen planopilaris and discoid lupus erythematosus. Secondary causes of scarring alopecia include tumors. Hair shaft disorders, or trichodystrophies, and traction alopecia are other forms of hair loss in women.