Androgenetic Alopecia Strongly Impacts Psychological Well-Being of Male Patients

Androgenetic alopecia significantly impacts psychological well-being among patients, new findings suggest, with particular effects observed in men with severe hair loss and in all patients with early-onset androgenetic alopecia.1

While social media is a primary information source, it does not influence treatment decisions or psychological distress.

Arzu Ferhatosmanoğlu, MD, from the Department of Dermatology and Venerology at Karadeniz Technical University School of Medicine in Turkey.

“In this study, we aim to present the disease severity and sociodemographic characteristics of male and female patients diagnosed with [androgenetic alopecia],” Ferhatosmanoğlu et al. wrote.1 “Additionally, we aim to assess their level of knowledge regarding treatment options, the psychological impact of the disease, whether they use social media to seek information about [androgenetic alopecia] and its treatments, and any gender-based differences in these aspects.”

The investigative team included individuals in their study who had visited a university hospital in Turkey and reported having hair loss concerns between January 2023 - January 2024. These potential trial subjects would also have to have received a clinical diagnosis of androgenetic alopecia following their informed consent to take part. In total, 390 patients were enrolled in the analysis.

The team would not include participants if they were under the age of 15 or if they reported a cicatricial alopecia diagnosis. Sociodemographic details were collected by the investigators over the course of this study, some of which included sex, age, height, and weight, as well as information related to the age at one's disease onset, disease duration, and disease severity level.

The Hamilton-Norwood Scale to assess the severity of male subjects' disease and the Sinclair Scale was used for female subjects. Among males, categorization of stages IVA through VII on the Hamilton-Norwood Scale as severe androgenic alopecia took place. Among females, Sinclair stages 3, 4, and 5 were labeled as severe.

Inquiries regarding utilization of social media platforms such as Instagram, Google, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and TikTok, were carried out by the investigative team to assess information regarding hair loss. An array of treatment approaches for androgenic alopecia were evaluated by the team, some of which included microneedling, minoxidil spray, mesotherapy, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), and hair transplantation. Widely implemented home remedies such as applying garlic were also recorded in the analysis.

Ferhatosmanoğlu and colleagues assessed impacts of hair loss on quality of life by having study subjects fill out the Hairdex-48 index, a 48-item questionnaire that is based on a 5-point Likert scale (0–4), with scores ranging from 0 - 192.

Overall, the investigative team concluded that on average, the age of androgenic alopecia onset was 23.9 years for males and 29.46 years for females.1 Severe disease was identified among 38.5% of male subjects and 41% of females. The team noted that significantly greater emotional and functional impairments were observed among males compared to females (P = .05 and P = .003, respectively).

Participants who developed the condition prior to the age of 20 were also shown to have substantially higher psychological distress levels.1 Specifically, the investigators pointed to their elevated scores in functional limitations (P < .001), emotional impacts (P = .007), and views on stigma (P = .037), as well as lower levels of self-confidence (P < .001).

Although the research team noted that use of social media was observed among 69.3% of subjects to look at information related to hair loss, with Google, TikTok, and Instagram being the most frequently accessed, such online engagement was not found to be associated significantly with participants’ treatment choices (P = .971) or levels of psychological distress (P > .05).1

“These findings underscore the importance of patient education and awareness in managing [androgenetic alopecia],” they concluded.1 “While social media is widely used for hair loss information, its role in treatment decisions remains unclear. Future research should further explore how social media influences patient behaviors and treatment outcomes.”

References

1. Ferhatosmanoğlu A, Karaca Ural Z, Aksu Arıca D, et al (2025). Comprehensive Evaluation of Androgenetic Alopecia: Demographic Characteristics, Psychosocial Impact, and the Role of Social Media in Treatment Choices. J Cosmet Dermatol, 24: e70167. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.70167.

2. N Sawant, S Chikhalkar, U Khopkar, et al. “Androgenetic Alopecia: Quality-of-Life and Associated Lifestyle Patterns,” International Journal of Trichology 2 (2010): 81–85.