Posted on January 10, 2023
Any stressor can cause hair loss. You usually see it about 6 months after. Covid is different as it causes hair loss more quickly – around 2-3 months after infection. This hair loss is ONLY SEEN WITH LIVE INFECTION. Not the vaccine. The fancy doctor name for it is “telogen effluvium.”
This was a journal article out of Journal of Medicine and Life, published May 2022. “Prevalence of telogen effluvium hair loss in COVID-19 patients and its relationship with disease severity.”
This article was full of interesting tidbits:
- Olds et al. study reported 10 cases of TE post-COVID-19 infection. The majority were female and had a severe disease that required hospitalization and systemic medications.
- The influenza pandemic in 1918 had an epidemic of TE. The mean duration of hair loss was 9 weeks.
- COVID-19 could be considered a main trigger of severe hair shedding, though it appears faster than the pandemic of 1918 and is usually seen at 2-3 months after infection.
- Is it due to proinflammatory cytokines like tumor necrosis factor, interleukin 1b, interleukin 6, and interferon types 1 and 2? These inflammatory cytokines are associated with throwing hair into catagen phase.
- Is it microthrombi? A small blood clot could obstruct hair follicle blood supply. ].
- A study showed normal levels of iron, ferritin, vitamin B12, and thyroid function tests.
- This study showed men and women with hair loss, but other studies like the Mieckowska et al. study showed all patients were female median age 55 with no history of hair loss.
- Another study of 465 patients showed average age 44, and 68% were women.
- The most common findings: decreased hair density, empty follicles, or regeneration of short hairs.
- Most patients recover, though some had persistent hair loss.
- In this study, 38% of patients had mild symptoms, 62% had moderate symptoms, and no patients were hospitalized. They had significant hair loss 2-3 months out. They lost on average 35% of their hair.
- Strace study had 128 patients. TE was seen in 66.3% of patients, 62.5% developed hair-related signs and symptoms within the first month of being diagnosed with COVID-19,
In their discussion they state TE can occur as a result of medications as well- hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, or other drugs used in COVID-19 treatment.
My thoughts?
I see this in patients who had mild covid infections and took no medicines. I think it is interesting that many of the studies show a higher prevalence in women. As time goes on, we will figure out more. My advice though is for those of you who had covid, if 2-3 months out you notice increased hair loss, jump on it. See my page for advice HERE.