Hair Loss from Infections?

[Deborah]

Hi,

I just recovered from an infection with a badly abscessed tooth, then a bad sinus infection and pink eye, all in very quick succession. While still recovering, I got a pretty wicked cold but did not take any medicine for that. I seem to be experiencing more hair fall now, not at alarming rates, but certainly more than usual.

Could this be from the various infections or the antibiotics I had to take? I have never experienced this before, but I wonder if the stress on my body from the infections plus the antibiotics could be causing this. I guess I hope that is the answer because if it is, as I recover more fully hopefully the hair loss will stop.

What do you think?

P.S. Who manages to gets pink eye at 66 years of age? Lucky me. :rolleyes:

[Mlarmour]

It is possible to get hair loss from the stress your body has been under recently it’s the infections being one after another. I had dengue fever a couple years back and a couple months after when I was finally better my hair started falling out - I lost 50% of my hair volume - and that was a delayed reaction to the stress my body had been under.

[Ylva]

It is possible to get hair loss from the stress your body has been under recently it’s the infections being one after another. I had dengue fever a couple years back and a couple months after when I was finally better my hair started falling out - I lost 50% of my hair volume - and that was a delayed reaction to the stress my body had been under.

It's not a delayed reaction - it simply takes about 2-4 months for hair to fall out once the follicle has decided to throw it out, but that it happened around 2 months after your sickness, it certainly does seem pretty strongly linked to that particular occurrence.

[The-Young-Maid]

I think your hair loss is normal OP. Your body has gone through a lot of stress and was trying to heal itself. The last thing it was thinking about was growing hair. I'm not sure how much you might lose but it'll probably only last a month or two. Nothing to worry about. Just make sure you're taking care of yourself and you hair will bounce back.

[Cg]

I commonly have a large shed after infections and some, but not all, antibiotics. It's safe to say the contained stress you experienced will not have a permanent impact on your hair's thickness. In my case, the shed usually doesn't last longer than a month and has no perceptible effect on hair thickness. If you are otherwise in good health I expect something similar for you.

[lapushka]

I have never had hair loss from taking antibiotics. Maybe it depends on the kind? There are several different ones out there, and one isn't the other. I had one type once that gave me a yeast infection straight away when I never had had that with other types of antibiotics. So it goes to show that there's so many different variations out there.

I would try and recuperate now. Infections themselves often wreak havoc on the body; you can't leave them alone, they require antibiotics if they're bacterial infections or you'll be even worse off.

Good luck to you.

A little more hair loss is quite normal in stressful situations. I wouldn't worry over it so much. As long as everything stays within reason, and there's no clumps (tufts) and/or balding... you're fine! :flower:

[Deborah]

Thanks ladies! I agree that it seems like a normal reaction. I'm not going to worry about it. Remember that cute old song; "Don't worry, be happy"? That's going to be my theme song. :cloud9:

[SpottedBackson]

Yes, these can definitely affect your hair. The fact that you had so many complications back to back also hints at potentially compromised immunity which can also contribute to hair loss.


I was once on six courses of antibiotics in the space of a year because I had compromised immunity and by the end I was losing so much hair I just cut it all off into a bob.

[KL]

Yes it totally can happen. This spring I had major autoimmune problems and I lost about 1/3 of my volume over the summer. It's all growing back at once now. The shed lasted about a month and a half for me. It is a pretty common thing that can happen when your body is under a lot of stress. Though it is totally no fun, it can happen.

[Nini]

It could just be a seasonal shed too :)