Doctors diagnose alopecia areata by taking a biopsy of the scalp and then sending it to pathologists who study the skin cells under a microscope to determine what may be causing the hair loss. People with alopecia areata are more likely than those who don’t have the condition to develop related conditions, too, such as thyroid disease, diabetes, allergies and asthma, Dr. Cotsarelis said. A handful of drugs can manage alopecia areata, but some treatments aren’t effective for some people, Dr. Lamb said, so patients may need to try multiple approaches before settling on something that works. The good news is that with alopecia areata, “your hair always has the ability to regrow if you get rid of the inflammation,” Dr. Cotsarelis said.
