Dr Lam's Hair Restoration Forum

Dr. Lam,
I am a 47yr old African American woman. My hair is thinning very noticeably in the crown area. I usually wear my hair in a ponytail so the hair in the front will cover the crown area. My mom and my aunt are virtually bald on the top of their heads. So, it looks like I've inherited this problem. Have you helped other women with this history? Also, I've read a few years ago that a possible side effect of transplants for women is that they can lose "good" hair at the sight of the transplant. Is this still a side effect? Any advice you can give would be greatly appreciated!

DeeDee

the one thing that i am always worried about is a condition called CCCA (central centrifugal cicatrial alopecia) that can occur in AA women. i would have a dermatologist check it out and see if you need a biopsy. if it looks normal, then you can have a transplant. yes, i have managed this problem before but not CCCA so just check that out. you should not lose good hair at the transplant site if the hairs are not transected or cut during the transplant. however, you can have temporary shedding in this area. that is particularly common in women so i put almost all women on 3 to 4 months of rogaine at the male strength of 5% to limit this possibility. hope that helps.
best,
sml