Recently, we have had a few questions from clients about hair loss and bald patches appearing. This is not uncommon for people who tend to wear their hair in a tension-bound hairstyle day after day, especially if it is the same style. Below we have more information about this condition known as traction alopecia:



Traction Alopecia - which literally means hair loss due to traction (pulling). This may sound scary as the word alopecia is most commonly associated with devastating hair loss, but thankfully, traction alopecia is within your control. You can not only stop it from happening, you can prevent it ever returning! 

Traction alopecia is hair loss which occurs after persistent, gentle pulling on the roots over several hours or days. Unlike a hair pluck which is painful, persistent gentle pulling may go unnoticed until bald spots or alopecia starts to appear. It's caused by putting the hair under constant strain or tension and is usually caused by one or more of the following styles or hair applications:

• Very tight ponytails 
• Tight braids or cornrows
• Dreadlocks
• Extension braids
• Hair weaves or wigs attached with glue, clips or tape
• Headbands - even fabric ones - worn day after day
• Tight hairpieces and anything else that puts strain on the hair shaft

Prolonged tension leads to inflammation around the hair follicles that may ultimately produce scarring and lead to permanent hair loss. The above products or styles may have caused areas of thinning hair - usually around the temples or behind your ears. Constant tension on the affected area either pulls out the hairs' roots completely, or causes the follicles to become inflamed. As time goes by, the damage to the follicles causes them to waste away. If you don't stop the cause of the problem, it will reach the point where hair no longer grows.



People are often surprisingly resistant to changing their hairstyle. Many have long suspected the cause of their hair loss and seek consultation with a dermatologist to find a treatment to allow them to keep their current hairstyle.

Unfortunately the only measure that halts progression of traction alopecia is redistributing the tension in the hair. A return to normal is not possible for those who have early androgenetic alopecia or who have developed scarring from prolonged traction. However, if you spot the warning signs of traction alopecia early enough and you put a stop to whatever is causing it, for most people, a cure is available with their own hair brush.