Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Hair Problems
The average person has 5 million hairs. Hair grows all over your body except on your lips, palms, and the soles of your feet. It takes about a month for healthy hair to grow half an inch. Most hairs grow for up to six years and then fall out. New hairs grow in their place.
Hair helps keep you warm. It also protects your eyes, ears and nose from small particles in the air. Common problem with the hair and scalp include hair loss, infections, and flaking.
It sits within Skin, Hair and Nails.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Hair Problems
708 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- A Study to Evaluate the Safety and Effectiveness of Upadacitinib Tablets in Adult and Adolescent Participants in Japan With Alopecia AreataAbbVie
- Serum Ferroptosis Biomarkers (GPX4, MDA) in Alopecia AreataIstanbul Training and Research Hospital
- A Study in Young People and Adults to Learn About the Medicine Ritlecitinib for Treatment of Patchy Hair Loss, Known by the Medical Term as Moderate Alopecia AreataPfizer
- Tirzepatide for Treatment of CCCAJohns Hopkins University
- Characterization And Clinical Outcomes of AA Patients Treated With RitlecitinibPfizer
- A Phase 1 Trial to Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacodynamics, Pharmacokinetics, and Immunogenicity of VIS171 in Participants With Autoimmune Disease(s)Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc.
Research already completed
- A Clinical Study to Evaluate the Safety, Effectiveness and In-Use Tolerability of Hair Growth and Scalp Health Serum in Subjects With Mild to Moderate Hair Thinning.NovoBliss Research Pvt Ltd
- Ritlecitinib for Cicatricial AlopeciaEmma Guttman
- Scalp Care Efficacy Evaluation for Premium Revitalizing ElixirHungkuang University
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- Common Hair ProblemsVisualDX
Treatments and Therapies
- Laser Hair RemovalVisualDX
Related Issues
- African-American Hair: Tips for Everyday CareAmerican Academy of Dermatology
- Formaldehyde in Hair Smoothing Products: What You Should KnowFood and Drug Administration
- Hair Dye and Hair RelaxersFood and Drug Administration
- How to Stop Damaging Your HairAmerican Academy of Dermatology
Genetics
- Autosomal recessive hypotrichosis: MedlinePlus GeneticsNational Library of Medicine
- Keratoderma with woolly hair: MedlinePlus GeneticsNational Library of Medicine
- Monilethrix: MedlinePlus GeneticsNational Library of Medicine
- Uncombable hair syndrome: MedlinePlus GeneticsNational Library of Medicine
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: DandruffNational Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Hair DiseasesNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Hair Diseases, Dandruff. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Hair Problems, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.