What Are The Causes As Seborrheic Dermatitis Leads To Hair Loss?

The Skin Condition Of Seborrheic Dermatitis

Causing an itchy, flaky rash to develop on the scalp, face, or other parts of the body, seborrheic dermatitis is a skin condition. Calling it dandruff are many people. With seborrheic dermatitis rarely a person can experience temporary hair loss. 

Find out more about seborrheic dermatitis and how it may cause hair loss in this article. 

For this condition, we also outline the treatment options available. 

Can It Cause Hair Loss And How?

An uncommon symptom of seborrheic dermatitis is temporary hair loss. 

The American Hair Loss Association notes that it can sometimes lead to temporary hair loss although seborrheic dermatitis on the scalp does not tend to cause hair loss. 

Occurring as a result of a particular yeast on the skin, seborrheic dermatitis is an inflammatory skin condition. On which the yeast thrives, the sebaceous glands produce a type of oil called sebum. 

Such as excess sebum on the scalp, several factors may give rise to an overgrowth of this yeast. Which manifests as flaking, itching, and some redness on the skin, the result is inflammation. 

In seborrheic dermatitis, hair loss is not common. As it can be very itchy, if it does occur, it is likely from scratching and rubbing the scalp. Inflammation may also affect the hair follicles and cause temporary hair loss in very rare cases. If the person takes steps to control the inflammation, in these situations, the hair loss is not permanent and will eventually grow back. 

Causes Of Seborrheic Dermatitis

Why some people tend it have it while others do not, researchers are still unsure as to the full underlying cause of seborrheic dermatitis. Due to changes in hormone levels, some experts believe that it may be. 

There comes to be the potential link between seborrheic dermatitis as well as health conditions that include Parkinson’s disease and HIV, as researchers have also identified. 

Triggering a flare-up are certain factors that include the following: 

sun

heat

aggressive topical therapy

People cannot catch it from another person as seborrheic dermatitis is not infectious. 

Is Hair Loss Permanent?

Usually, reversible is any hair loss that occurs as a result of seborrheic dermatitis. 

Once a person has received treatment for inflammation that triggered the hair loss and stopped scratching or rubbing the scalp, typically the hair will grow back. 

It may not be due to seborrheic dermatitis when there is significant or scarring hair loss. Causing hair loss, seborrheic dermatitis can co-exist with other scalp conditions many of which come to be such as androgenic alopecia. 

Without treatment, in infants, seborrheic dermatitis usually clears up by itself. It tends to be a chronic condition in adults. Throughout their life, this means that people may have flare-ups of seborrheic dermatitis.

During a flareup, however, certain treatments can help reduce symptoms. Discussing the treatment options for seborrheic dermatitis is in the section below. 

Treatment

It can help alleviate some of the symptoms although treatment will not completely cure seborrheic dermatitis. 

Using natural home remedies such as aloe vera and tea tree oil, people may be able to treat mild cases of seborrheic dermatitis. Many of these are over available over the counter however these options should not replace conventional treatments. 

Requiring prescription treatments from their doctor is a person who experiences frequent or severe flare-ups. 

Natural Treatments 

Using a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to investigate the effects of aloe vera on seborrheic dermatitis is one older study from 1999. 

44 adults with seborrheic dermatitis applied one of two treatments to their scalp twice per day over the course of 4-6 weeks. While one group applied a placebo, another group applied an aloe vera ointment. 

Those in the placebo group reported a 25% improvement as those applying the aloe vera ointment reported a 62% improvement in symptoms. Concluding that aloe vera extract is successful in the treatment of seborrheic dermatitis were the researchers. 

Helping alleviate dandruff and other symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis are the following natural treatments also. 

tea tree oil

folate

vitamin B-6

Over-The-Counter Treatments

As well as keeping the condition under control, the following over-the-counter treatments may help alleviate seborrheic dermatitis flare-ups.

While others are suitable for adolescents and adults, some of the treatments outlined below are suitable for infants. 

For Infants

Baby shampoos formulated to treat scalp conditions in infants can be bought by people. Containing mineral oil are they. 

The American Academy of Dermatology suggests the following to treat seborrheic dermatitis in infants. 

using baby shampoo on the scalp daily

gently brushing away scaly skin as it becomes softer

applying OTC seborrheic dermatitis medication to the scalp

For Adolescents And Adults

In adolescents and adults, certain shampoos contain specific formulas to help treat seborrheic dermatitis. As well as shampoos containing the following ingredients, these include shampoos for treating dandruff: 

selenium sulfide

pyrithione zinc

salicylic acid

sulfur

coal tar

Containing a class of antifungal drug called azoles, people can also buy OTC shampoos. Ketoconazole is one example of this. On how and when to use the shampoo, a person should ask their pharmacist for advice. 

Thereby it here the pharmacist advises a person in order to alternate between those treatment shampoos as well as their regular shampoo just in some cases. To once or twice per week, people may eventually be able to reduce their use of the treatment shampoo. 

Prescription Medications

For those that do not respond to OTC treatments, some people may experience severe or frequent flare-ups of seborrheic dermatitis. 

A person should see their doctor or dermatologist in such cases. A corticosteroid solution to help reduce scalp inflammation or a stronger prescription-strength shampoo may be recommended. 

Recovery Time

By the time they are 6-12 months old, in infants, seborrheic dermatitis usually clears up by itself. In puberty in some cases, the condition may return. Due to hormonal changes, maybe this. 

Without treatment, some adults may also find that their seborrheic dermatitis clears up. Experiencing flare-ups for many years are however most adults with the condition. Helping prevent and treat flare-ups is by using preventive treatments such as antidandruff shampoos. 

Summary

Seborrheic dermatitis may result in some hair loss is very rare and severe cases. Tending to be reversible is this. 

In seborrheic dermatitis, however, hair loss is not common. It may be due to another cause that might require medical treatment if there is significant hair loss. 

Relieving the symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis and treating the inflammation it causes, there are many effective treatment options. 

Helping treat the symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis is using OTC anti-dandruff or medicated shampoos. To discuss other treatment options, people with severe or persistent seborrheic dermatitis should see their doctor.