Do You Speak Hair Loss/Restoration?

1. the devising or choosing of names for things, especially in a science or other discipline.

Terminology or “buzz words” are common to all professions and if one is an outsider listening in on a conversation between professionals of any given field you will find that you are often a stranger in a strange land! No matter what the profession, there are certain terms that are essential in maintaining a coherent conversation.

The following are some of the terms that are frequently used in the Hair Loss/Restoration industry.

LLLT – Low Level Light/Laser Therapy

LT – Laser Therapy

Hair Piece – A term used for both men and women (but mostly for women)

Toupee – Something a man wears to cover baldness but not used in the Hair Restoration/Replacement Industry because it has an old school and rather
negative connotation.

Wig – Self explanatory

Medical Wig/Medical Prothesis – Designed specifically for someone with a sensitive scalp to due to chemotherapy, radiation therapy of a certain form of Alopecia

Alopecia – Partial or complete absence of hair from areas of the body where it usually grows.

Alopecia Areata – A condition that causes round patches of hair loss can lead to total hair loss.

Alopecia Totalis – Loss of all head hair usually connected to auto-immune disorders and/or stress related disorders.

Alopecia Universealis – Rapid loss of all hair including eyebrows and eye lashes. It is the most severe form of Alopecia Areata.

Traction Alopecia – Gradual hair loss

Trichotillomania – Hair loss caused by pulling ones hair or eyebrows out.

Follicular Unit – Sebaceous oil glands, nerves, small muscles and occasional fine vellus hairs. Usually 1-4 hairs in a follicular unit.

FUT (Follicular Unit Extractions) – Traditional form of transplant using a linear incision made below the occipital bone at the rear of the head.

FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) – Less invasive way of performing a hair transplant. Done manually, semi-automatically using a mechanical handheld device or robotic device called ARTAS. Rather than a linear incision this removes one follicular unit at a time to be transplanted elsewhere.

DHT (Dihydrotestosterone) – Considered the main cause for male pattern baldness and blocks blood flow to hair follicles. Common treatments are Laser Hair Therapy, Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) therapy, special shampoos and other wet products help stimulate blood flow to the follicle helping hair to grow again if there is a living follicle present.

So, now you too can understand the language (nomenclature) of the Hair Restoration profession….just make sure that you use the above language in the right context!