Lupus

Like diabetes, lupus, which is an autoimmune disease, may lead to hair loss for many different reasons.

Generalized hair loss is one symptom of systemic lupus erythematosus. Lupus flares can interrupt normal hair growth, leading to hair that is thin and breaks easily. The resulting loss is generally temporary and diffuse.

People with lupus are also very susceptible to skin diseases and infections, many of which can lead to hair loss. In addition to skin diseases and infections that affect other segments of the population, people with lupus may experience discoid lesions and subacute or acute cutaneous lesions. Discoid lesions, in particular, can result in scarring and discoloration and localized permanent baldness. These lesions, which are initially coin-shaped areas of red, scaly, and thickened skin located most often on the scalp, are often the first sign of lupus. On a more positive note, the majority of people who get this "lupus of the skin" do not go on to develop full-blown systemic lupus erythematosis. More indirectly, systemic lupus erythematosis can lead to kidney and blood diseases that also cause hair loss.

Hair loss may also result from some of the drugs used to treat lupus, particularly antineoplastics, corticosteroids, and immunosuppressives.

Information on this page, provided as a service by Peggy Knight Solutions, draws upon information from the following sources: the American Academy of Dermatology, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Lupus Foundation of America, the National Institutes of Health, particularly the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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