Presentation is typically with localised, round bald patches developing suddenly over one or two weeks, without any preceding symptoms.
Most commonly involved areas include:
During the active disease at the edge of the patch, there may be small, broken hairs with a tapering shaft - 'exclamation mark' hairs. (1)
Hair loss can take many forms ranging from loss in well-defined patches to diffuse or total hair loss, which can affect all hair bearing sites (2)
The scalp shows no sign of inflammation, scaling or scarring.
Round, demarcated, bald and smooth areas can be seen on the scalp or within the facial hair (1).
There might be associated itching, burning, or tenderness in these patchy areas. Finger nails changes affect around 10-30% of people with alopecia areata. Changes may be seen before, during or after an episode of hair loss.
The finger nails may be pitted and ridged.
The condition usually resolves in a period of three to six months but repeated episodes of hair loss are not uncommon.
Reference:
Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.