Yes, lupus can significantly change your hair texture, often making it very dry, brittle, and coarse, leading to breakage, especially around the hairline, creating a sparse, "lupus hair" look, and in severe cases, destroying follicles for permanent scarring alopecia. The immune system attacks hair follicles, causing thinning, fragility, and a distinct texture change, but controlling the underlying lupus with treatments can often restore the hair's natural texture and thickness.
The most common type of lupus, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), can cause dry, coarse hair to develop along the hairline. These dry, coarse hairs break off easily, causing the sparse-looking hair known as lupus hair. Other types of hair loss also develop.
Hair loss is a common symptom of lupus and can have a few distinguishing features compared to other causes of hair loss. Some symptoms that set lupus hair loss apart include: Thinning all over the head, not just concentrated in certain areas. Hair that feels weak and breaks easily.
Discussion. Autoimmune disorders can present with acquired textural alterations of afro-textured hair, especially in patients with ALA or AA. This finding joins other features, besides frank alopecia, that have been described in patients with autoimmune forms of hair loss.
People who have hypothyroidism, a condition that occurs when your thyroid gland doesn't produce enough thyroid hormones, might notice increased hair shedding and a change in hair appearance and texture, Mirmirani says.
Changes in hair texture happen for a variety of reasons, from the natural aging process to varying health conditions, to diet and your hair care routine. Whether your hair is curly, wavy or straight, thick and coarse or thin and fine, here's why your hair texture may change over time.
Autoimmune conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis can cause hair loss and thinning. The diagnosis is based on symptoms, a physical exam, and sometimes additional tests. Treatment of hair loss due to autoimmune conditions depends on the cause.
Hair loss in lupus is usually characterized by dry, brittle hair that breaks, and hair loss is more common around the top of the forehead. Physical and mental stress can also cause hair loss, as can certain medications, including corticosteroids such as prednisone.
Follicle Miniaturization
Persistent inflammation can cause hair follicles to gradually shrink over time, a process called miniaturization. As follicles become smaller, they produce increasingly fine and weak hair before eventually becoming unable to produce visible hair at all.
The two main symptoms of Sjogren's syndrome are:
Some lupus complications can include:
Diagnosing DLE involves a detailed medical history, thorough scalp and skin examination, and scalp biopsies. Early diagnosis and treatment are crucial to prevent permanent hair follicle damage. Treatments vary based on the severity of symptoms and extent of hair loss.
Lupus can attack many different parts of the body. Some call it the cruel mystery. Lupus is an autoimmune disease that can strike any part of the body, but the wide range of symptoms can be easily mistaken for something else.
In some cases, hair loss medications may be appropriate for those with lupus. According to a 2022 paper, the hair loss drug minoxidil may help with both TE-related hair loss and hair loss due to lupus inflammation. A doctor may recommend this treatment alongside a person's other medications.
Lupus causes swelling and irritation, called inflammation, that may affect joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart and lungs. Lupus can be hard to diagnose because its symptoms often are like those of other illnesses. A common sign of lupus is a facial rash that looks like butterfly wings across both cheeks.
Because lupus commonly affects the skin, it often causes inflammation on the scalp. This directly impacts the hair follicles. As a result, many patients will notice that their hair is thinning or falling out. Others may observe a distinct change in hair texture.
Low levels of iron can often change the texture of your hair. It can go from feeling smooth and silky to dry and brittle. The main answer to this is that when you're low in iron, your body takes ferritin, a blood protein that contains iron, from your hair follicles for use in other parts of the body.
The five cardinal signs of inflammation, first described by the ancients and later expanded, are redness (rubor), heat (calor), swelling (tumor), pain (dolor), and loss of function (functio laesa), resulting from the body's protective response to injury or infection, characterized by increased blood flow, fluid buildup, and chemical signals affecting nerve endings.
If a discoid lupus rash occurs on your scalp, it may cause hair loss. If a scar forms on your scalp, the hair loss may be permanent. Having a discoid rash that lasts a long time may increase your risk for skin cancer.
It is very rare, but it is possible to have a negative ANA test and still have lupus. In these instances, other antibodies are present. Many different laboratory tests can be used to detect physical changes or conditions in your body that can occur with lupus.
The "worst" autoimmune diseases are subjective but often ranked by severity, impact on life expectancy, and organ damage, with top contenders including Giant Cell Myocarditis (deadly heart inflammation), Vasculitis (blood vessel inflammation like GPA), Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (multi-organ attacks), Multiple Sclerosis (nervous system damage), and Type 1 Diabetes (pancreas destruction). These conditions can severely affect quality of life, cause permanent disability, and reduce lifespan if not managed effectively, though rare ones like Giant Cell Myocarditis are acutely fatal.
Choose a Gentle Shampoo
Due to the risk of hair loss with discoid lupus, the Lupus Foundation of America recommends using very mild shampoos and hair products, such as baby shampoo.
Lupus can cause the nails to crack or fall off. They may be discolored with blue or reddish spots at the base. These spots are actually in the nail bed, the result of inflamed small blood vessels. Swelling may also make the skin around the base of the nail look red and puffy.