My eyebrows have almost all fallen out...could this be keratosis pilaris of the eyebrows?

Question

I have all these white tiny "rice grains" coming out of my eyebrow pores. These things are stuck to all the hairs and they fall out and don't grow back. I lose 10-20 brows a day. The doctors say it's seb derm but I have tried all the antifungals and steroids to no avail. These things will not stop growing out of the pores. I also have a hair shedding disorder which started a yr previous to this but was only shedding a few brow hairs a day. My scalp biopsy said no scarring or inflammation.

William Rassman, MD (retired) · Answer

You need to see a dermatologist and probably get a biopsy to find the proper diagnosis and then that doctor may commence treatment

R. Stephen Mulholland, MD (retired) · Answer

Dear Suffering12,

Skin disorders that affect
permanent loss of hair can be quite numerous. 
What you describe could certainly include many possible pathologies and
inflammatory processes in the differential, including keratosis pilaris.

It is ensure that if you have an
inflammatory or non-inflammatory disease of the skin that may be affecting your
hair that it is treated appropriately. 
If you have not in the past, you should see a certified dermatologist
who should review your biopsy results and perhaps assess this new area with a
subsequent biopsy and histologic analysis.

If it turns out you do not have a
significant dermal pathology and your eyebrow hair just is thinning through
unfortunate natural or other genetic causes, then you may be looking at
stabilization and, ultimately, eyebrow hair transplantation.  Transplantation to the eyebrows can be very
successful, but it is important there is no underlying medical conditions
affecting eyebrow hair loss.

I have been performing follicular
extraction transplantation for many years, using both the ARTAS® and the NeoGraft® technology
and, for most women, this has been an excellent option or eyebrow hair grafting.  Eyebrow hair grafting would only be a
possibility when we are quite confident there’s no underlying metabolic cause
for hair loss which may result in subsequent regrowth of your own eyebrow hair.

Seeing an experienced specialist
with expertise in scalp, eyebrow and facial hair pathologies and
transplantation would be important.

I have two excellent certified
dermatologists that seem most of my unusual eyebrow and selected inflammatory
alopecia female patients and this would be a good place to start.

It sounds as though you’ve had some
expert opinions in the past and it may well be that those are the right
diagnoses and you’re on the right treatment course.

I trust this information has been
of some assistance and best of luck.

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Mulholland, MD

Certified Plastic Surgeon

Yorkville, Toronto

My eyebrows have almost all fallen out...could this be keratosis pilaris of the eyebrows?

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My eyebrows have almost all fallen out...could this be keratosis pilaris of the eyebrows?

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