What causes hair loss on eyelash or eyebrow?

4 min readOct 13, 2019

Both one and the other help to balance the traits. So when they are lost, the face loses symmetry and the expressions are different. Madarosis (hair loss on eyebrow) may be due to different causes.

The fact of having more or less amount of hair on the eyebrows or eyelashes comes, like many other characteristics of the person, determined genetically.

But there are other situations that may result in eyelashes or eyebrows becoming thinner, that is, less thick.

Reasons for hair loss on eyelash or eyebrow

The medical term to refer to eyelashes and eyebrows that are sparsely populated is that of madarosis (ciliary for eyelashes and superciliary for eyebrows).

When the eyebrow gets depopulated, the cause must be sought.

The causes that can lead to this situation are multiple. Some, quite evident; others, clinically relevant that justify doing more studies and a series of tests.

Causes of madarosis

Inflammation or irritation in the skin of the eyebrows can hinder the growth of hair at this level. In addition to generalized alopecia (or hair loss), it can occur due to:

Dermatitis or eczema that specifically affects this area (psoriasis is the most significant).
Effect of radiotherapy. More evident is the madarosis secondary to the application of radiotherapy in the area (for example, in the presence of a tumor in the eyelid, which requires this type of treatment). The chemotherapy, in many cases, involves the appearance of widespread alopecia, which also includes the hair loss of eyelashes.

If you suffer from eczema or psoriasis in eyelashes and eyebrows these may be less populated

Syphilis and leprosy They are rare in our environment and advances in antibiotic therapy have become rare cases of madarosis due to these infections.
Previous trauma and a deep open wound that heals by scarring will also leave the area that it occupies depopulated.
The same reason may explain why the area that a burn occupies is not repopulated by the hair.

When hair loss eyebrow or eyelash becomes a more serious disorder?

There are other causes that can cause a hair loss at eyebrow or eyelash:

Hypothyroidism. Nowadays, rarely does a person lose hair from the eyelashes or eyebrows due to a hypofunction of the thyroid because it is normal for him to be diagnosed and remedy earlier. But it is also true that the symptoms are so nonspecific and diffuse (tendency to gain weight, tiredness, low mood …) that sometimes it is difficult to give importance or go to the doctor to make the appropriate study.

Other diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus or those that affect various organs or systems can also lead to madarosis. In many clinical reports, then, the definition “alopecia of the tail of the eyebrows” appears because it is precisely there, at the outer end of them, where more hair is lost.
Alopecia areata of the eyebrows. This disease is characterized by the fact that the person loses hair from the head “in plaques” and the disorder also affects the eyebrows, eyelashes, beard and body hair, usually associated with a pathological state of nerves and anxiety.

There are diseases that alter the body and cause this alopecia

AND IF THE EYELASHES GROW INWARD

Sometimes it happens that the eyelashes deviate and curl towards the inside of the eye. Towards the cornea instead of having a curvature towards the outside.

The disorder is known as palpebral trichiasis and corrected with mechanical or electrical hair removal. Although sometimes it is necessary to resort to surgery (a thin strip of skin and muscle is removed along the eyelid) to avoid complications.

If the eyelashes curl into the eye, they can cause corneal damage.

And it is that if there is no remedy. The cornea can be affected, in addition to that, it bothers every time it blinks.

Or do you have double tabs

It may also happen that eyelashes born in inappropriate places. Even if two rows of eyelashes have been given. Specialists refer to this situation as Districhiasis, a disorder that can be congenital or acquired. You should consult your doctor because depending on how hair growth occurs (inside the eyelid). It can end up irritating the cornea.