to the editor: I enjoyed the article on hair loss disorders in the July 1, 2003 issue of American Family Physician.1 However, I was surprised that the authors’ discussion of androgenetic alopecia (male-pattern baldness) excluded an important alternative to surgery and pharmacologic therapy: no medical treatment.2 Certainly, the safest and least invasive way to address the psychosocial impact of hair loss is through psychosocial counseling. An earnest conversation about body image and reassurance that hair loss is a normal part of life might help some patients avoid the costs and risks of pharmacologic therapy or surgical intervention, and those associated with the quack remedies hawked for this medically benign condition.
Letters to the Editor
Psychosocial Counseling May Be Best Treatment for Hair Loss
Jonathan U. Peled,
Second-year Medical Student, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 1300 Morris Park Ave., Bronx, NY 10461
American Family Physician. 2004;69(6):1362.
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This series is coordinated by Kenny Lin, MD, MPH, deputy editor.
