ABSTRACT
Androgenetic alopecia is also known as common balding, hereditary balding, male-pattern balding and female-pattern balding. Some authors speculate that the pathogenesis of balding differs between men and women. However, the histopathological findings are similar in both sexes. Many women with a genetic predisposition to baldness first notice the onset or an acceleration of shedding and thinning around the time of menopause. However, some less fortunate women, especially those with strong family histories for balding, begin to thin in early adulthood. In the majority of cases, thinning is localized to the crown of the scalp, with sparing of the occipital and lower parietal fringe of hair (Figures 8.1 and 8.2). Two patterns of hair loss can be seen: Hamilton’s ‘male pattern’ and Ludwig’s ‘female pattern’. In fact, there is considerable overlap between the sexes, with many women demonstrating a ‘male’ pattern of hair loss, and some men showing a ‘female’ pattern, with diffuse crown thinning and retention of the frontal hairline.
