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Updated: Jun 23, 2026
A New Technique for Quantitative Analysis of Hair Loss in Mice Using Grayscale Analysis
Published on: March 9, 2015
Use of the TrichoScan to assess female pattern hair loss
Bozena Riedel-Baima1, Alexander Riedel
1Sana Health Centre (Sana Gesundheitszentrum Berlin), Berlin, Germany. riedel-baima@gmx.de
Background:
TrichoScan is a method of hair growth measurement that combines epiluminescence microscopy with automatic digital image analysis. Miniaturization is considered a cornerstone of androgenetic alopecia (AGA) and is requisite for establishing the diagnosis.
Objective:
To examine miniaturization in women with AGA.
Methods And Patients:
Twenty-eight women with Ludwig pattern (aged 21-68, mean 46) were included. Miniaturization was estimated using the TrichoScan method.
Results:
Almost one-quarter (21.4%) of the women had miniaturized hair only on the top of the head (the crown), 28.6% had miniaturized hair throughout the scalp, and 50.0% showed no miniaturization but a preponderance of thinning in the crown area. In all patients, a comparative study of hair diameter revealed significant differences between the crown and the occipital region.
Conclusions:
Our results imply that, in female hair loss, miniaturization might be a relative and not an absolute measurement, and AGA in women could be diagnosed also in the presence of a difference in hair shaft diameter.
