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Trichology is a field of science, and specifically medicine, where the focus is on human hair and scalp. In Greek, the word “trikhos” means “hair”. Trichology examines and diagnoses problems related to the scalp and hair, searches for their causes and proposes specific treatments.
Trichology as a science
Trichology is a relatively young field science. It was established in 1860 – in London, Professor Wheeler, considered a precursor trychologii, began research on the process of hair loss. In Poland, the problem began to be dealt with quite late. In 1970 Wojciech Kostanecki, considered the precursor of Polish trychologii, has published the book “Hair Diseases”. Today trichology as a specialization, it is a separate field of medical studies, and some universities offer a separate field of study with this name. It is also possible to take various types of courses trichological, and since 1974 the International Association has been operating Trichologists (IAT – International Association of Trychologists) established at the University of Southern California as a non-profit organization.
Hair loss treatment – when to seek help from a trichologist?
Trichology is a very specialized field. Going to a trichologist, it is worth checking what education he or she has – whether it is a graduate or just a student trichological. It is worth looking for a competent person. Trichology it deals not only with hair loss, but also with the treatment of such serious diseases as seborrheic dermatitis, alopecia, dandruff, psoriasis, all kinds of irritation and inflammation of the scalp.
What does the trichological examination look like?
By going to trichological examination, it should be remembered that poor hair condition may not be a problem in itself, but a result of other health problems in our body. Good threefold before research will collect from the patient a very detailed interview about his health, currently treated and past illnesses and lifestyle. It is worth taking the latest test results and other medical documentation for such a visit. A common reason hair loss there are, for example, hormonal disorders.
On the day of the visit at a trichologist do not wash your head – we do it the day before. Itself trichological examination it is non-invasive, painless and does not require any special preparations. Good office trichological is equipped with equipment that allows for multiple (up to 400 times) enlargement of the image of the scalp and hair follicles. Research such a microcamera allows to detect many current problems and estimate the number of so-called follow hair – that is, new, growing hair. Often carried out research by trichologists there is also an analysis of the elemental composition of the hair. It can tell you a lot about your current diet and nutritional deficiencies, which can also be at the root of your problems.
Elemental hair analysis – a test useful not only in trichology
Few people know it study it also detects heavy metals and may be important in the diagnosis of poisoning with these dangerous elements. Therefore elemental hair analysis worth doing not only in case of problems with hair loss. Why is research so useful? First of all, its result is not affected by short-term changes. Hair grows at a constant rate (approx. 1 cm / month) and it stores all the minerals supplied by the blood – therefore, their chemical composition will reflect our general state in which we are, regardless of any temporary changes. Hair accumulates elements – their concentration is higher than in the blood, and the test is painless, non-invasive and carries no risk of complications. In the case of digestive system diseases, it allows you to assess the nutritional status – not only the diet affects it, but also the absorption of nutrients, which is often disturbed. A change in the elemental composition may indicate hormonal disorders (e.g. iodine levels may indicate thyroid disorders). In the case of various types of diseases of the nervous system (e.g. multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, autism), it is worth analyzing the hair to exclude heavy metal poisoning causing such symptoms. The test is also useful in various types of metabolic diseases – related to metabolism (e.g. in diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, gout, hyperlipidemia).