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New AA diagnosis for 7 1/2 year old
On April 10th my daughter came down in the morning and laid her head on my lap. I noticed two very visible bald spots on the crown of her head and one smaller one a bit hidden, and not entirely bald. I asked her if she had hit her head, or bumped it somehow and she said no. We eventually took her to urgent care 3 days later and they said it was Tinea Capitis. I also believe they said it was TC because I went in there believing it was. They had actually never seen TC. They basically went with what I was saying and Rx a oral anti-fungal for one month. That next day I took my daughter to our home clinic for lab work since the Rx she had could cause liver damage. We did not see our pediatrician that day
One month later we went in for our follow up with our normal pedi and she thought it wasn't characteristic of TC. She did the follow up blood work which came back normal, and then sent us a referral to a dermatologist. We saw the dermatologist today and he said he doesn't believe it was ever TC, but has always been AA.
She does not have any red, swollen, scaly, or really any characteristics of TC...except for the broken hairs and bald spots. He noted that she had exclamation point hairs in the area of AA. He gave us a Rx for a topical steroid, and gave us orders to come back in 2 months time.
Basically through the process of digesting all of this, I realize now that 1) He gave us no information other than a diagnosis and a tiny pamphlet and sent us on our way. 2) I have no idea what to do going forward, and 3) I am still in denial it could be TC.
I've requested to be seen at the pediatric dermatologist here in Minnesota, associated with the University of Minnesota for a second opinion.
At this point, the 3 spots have not changed at all. They haven't gotten worse, they haven't gotten better....there is some very fine regrowth...but I honestly don't know if that was always there or not. We haven't discussed the diagnosis with our daughter yet because I don't think we're entirely there yet to reveal this to her. She's been spending the past 5 weeks believing she had TC...and we've been using the shampoos, the entire family has their own brush, etc. etc.
I think I'm mostly wondering if others have gone through this same wishy-washy diagnosis and how do you really come to terms, or even believe 100% in the diagnosis??
Thoughts, advice, suggestions, etc. would be great!
Thanks!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by scottntamijack on
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Hi...My daughter is 9 years old and is currently suffering from her 2nd alopecia attack. She lost about 6 sections of hair when she was 7 years old. We gave her the steroid shots, and her hair came back immediately. Whew, We thought. Yay we thought. Then about 18 months later, we noticed some slight hair loss again, and within 5 months, she had lost almost all of her hair. She is now almost completely bald.
We have tried shampoos, lotions, steroid creams and prayer. The only thing that seems to be working on her at this point is prayer, and I only say that because even though we see no hair coming back, she has the best attitude. She wears a hat or headbands that cover the top of her head, but only because of the sunburn prevention. She is never sad about it. We have explained to her that this is how God made her, and she is somehow serving God's purpose with this, possibly providing inspiration for someone now or in the future when they remember seeing her and how positive she was.
I wish I had advice for you from a healthcare standpoint. We have seen doc after doc. One thing I have learned is acceptance. There is no cure for this disorder. Some people find treatments that work. Others suffer their whole lives. I encourage you to provide the most positive environment for your daughter, and...Do what you think will work for her. Remember that if she sees you stressed over it, she will be stressed over it.
Good luck and God's speed.
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Permalink Reply by mardy on
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I've been thru all the treatments as a kid shots.cream.and puva nothing ever worked i just felt like a guinea pig and why were my parents doing this to me...had my ups and downs with this majority of my life once I got out of school and graduated my hair was great lil spots here and there but nothing to bad ... I always associated my hair loss to stress as I worry about everything and anything seems like.....just be there for your daughter.. not all treatments work some work for others may not work for her.. my AA turned into AU about 4 years ago and I'm in my 40's my AA started when I was in the 4th grade.. my mother had thought my little brother had pulled my hair out.. maybe hopefully one day they will come up with a cure for this......I wish the best for your daughter
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I can only tell you one thing that might help differentiate...Is the skin at the bald area smooth, like shiny smooth? If it is, it is probably AA. My daughter's bald spots shine like Mr. Clean.
Tinea capitis looks more scaly. Look up images in Google, and you should see the difference.
Hope this helps.
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This is the TC. It kind of looks shaved.
This is AA...
One thing I can tell you is if it is not getting much bigger, it just may be a mild case. My daughter lost 5 circles just like that when she was 7 and it never really advanced much past that size.
One thing to consider is if the TC medicine is not going to hurt her, then there is really no harm in treating her for TC. That is really the only sure way to discern between the 2.
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If I can give one more piece of advice, and you will need to tailor this for you and your daughter. I told my daughter everything I found out about it, even used bigger words like autoimmune disorder, explained that her body was fighting her hair follicles like they did not belong there, etc. I answered every question and she helped me in the research. Now when people ask her about her hair loss, she is more than willing to educate them. I believe her knowledge has helped her to be comfortable with it.
Good luck..
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