Telogen Effluvium or Androgenetic Alopecia? How to Tell Different Types of Hair Loss Apart
You suddenly notice more hair on your brush and in the shower drain — and the immediate question is whether this is a temporary episode that will resolve on its own, or the start of permanent, progressive hair loss. Telogen effluvium and androgenetic alopecia are two completely different phenomena, with different courses, different prognoses, and different treatments, but they're often confused because both present as the same thing — more hair loss than usual. We explain how to tell them apart by pattern, timing, and trigger, and when both types can occur at the same time.
Redakcja VitMode — Hormony i endokrynologiathe VitMode editorial team, no individual bylinesPublished14 min readAbout 14 min left
How this article was made
- Author
- Redakcja VitMode — Hormony i endokrynologia — the VitMode editorial team, no individual bylines
- Method
- Prepared from primary sources: clinical trials, meta-analyses and guidelines. We describe study findings separately from our interpretation.
- Source verification
- Cited PubMed papers are automatically checked for a matching identifier, title and publication year.
- Medical review
- none — this article has not been reviewed by a physician
- Last updated
The content is educational and does not replace medical advice. Read the full editorial process
Table of contents
TL;DR — key takeaways
- →Two different phenomena hiding behind one misleading symptom
- →How the normal hair growth cycle works
- →Androgenetic alopecia — a different mechanism, a different course
- →Pattern and timing — the most important differentiating criteria
- →The pull test — a simple differentiating method
- →What most commonly triggers telogen effluvium
- →Not every study confirms deficiencies — an honest look at the data
- →Differential diagnosis at the doctor's office — what to expect
- →When it's worth consulting a dermatologist
- →Summary table
- →Our editorial recommendation
