Ophiasis is a form of

alopecia areata Alopecia areata, also known as spot baldness, is a condition in which hair is lost from some or all areas of the body. Often, it results in a few bald spots on the scalp, each about the size of a coin. Psychological stress and illness are pos ...

characterized by the loss of hair in the shape of a wave at the circumference of the head. It gets its name from

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

ὄφις ''ophis'' 'snake' because of the apparent similarity to a snake-shape and the pattern of hair loss. The term "sisaipho" is used to characterize the inverse pattern. Sisaipho is, almost, the reverse spelling of ophiasis. It is also called "ophiasis inversus". This form of hair loss "...targets the body's own hair follicles, resulting in hair loss..." and although the immune system could be attacking hair follicle melanocytes, dermal papilla cells, and

keratinocyte Keratinocytes are the primary type of cell found in the epidermis, the outermost layer of the skin. In humans, they constitute 90% of epidermal skin cells. Basal cells in the basal layer (''stratum basale'') of the skin are sometimes referre ...

s,” the foundational cause of this disease is yet to be confirmed.

Pattern of hair loss

This is one among many types of patterns of hair loss, “in which they have band-link hair loss across the

occiput The occipital bone () is a cranial dermal bone and the main bone of the occiput (back and lower part of the skull). It is trapezoidal in shape and curved on itself like a shallow dish. The occipital bone overlies the occipital lobes of the cereb ...

.” Hair loss can take the form of patches of hair being removed and there can also be spontaneous regrowth as well.

Duration of hair loss

Ophiasis hair loss is one form in which the hair loss can further deteriorate and can extend “for more than a year.”

References

External links

* {{Disorders of skin appendages Conditions of the skin appendages