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We all know that COVID-19 commonly causes respiratory symptoms like coughing, but did you know it can impact your hair health too?
Some people report COVID hair loss as a side effect of contracting the virus. And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hair loss is a potential long-term complication of infection.
Before you start panicking about permanent hair loss, you should know that illnesses that cause fever, including COVID-19 can sometimes trigger temporary hair loss.
Below, we dig deeper into COVID hair loss, how long it lasts, other conditions that can trigger hair loss, and how to treat excess shedding.
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COVID-19 can cause a wide variety of short-term and long-term symptoms. The most common symptoms include:
Fever or chills
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Fatigue
Headache
Loss of smell or taste
Muscle and/or body aches
Congestion or runny nose
Sore throat
Diarrhea
Nausea or vomiting
These symptoms may appear two to 14 days after exposure to the virus and can vary from mild to severe.
In some people, COVID-19 can cause long-term health complications that may continue for several weeks or months after initial symptoms go away, including:
Shortness of breath
Fatigue
Cough
Chest pain
Joint pain
Researchers are still looking into the effects COVID has on the body, but some people report having hair loss months after infection.
There’s plenty of evidence linking hair loss and other hair changes to COVID-19 infections.
Here’s a summary of some of the notable research:
A study of COVID-19 patients published in November 2020 noted that 14 people out of 58 reported hair loss as a long-term complication of COVID-19. On average, they started to experience hair loss about 58 days after their first symptoms of COVID-19.
Researchers of a small 2022 study looked at the link between COVID-19 and a type of hair loss called acute telogen effluvium (ATE). Out of 39 adults with confirmed mild to moderate COVID-19, all of them experienced excessive hair shedding within three months of infection. The authors concluded that COVID-19 is a frequent trigger for ATE.
A 2022 review of 58 COVID-19 cases found that most people experiencing hair loss as a side effect infection were female. Additionally, most lost hair at two months post-infection, with many seeing regrowth at the five month mark post-infection.
A more recent 2024 study involving 500 female participants with COVID-19 found that 61.4 percent reported hair issues. About 68 percent had increased hair loss after COVID-19, 29.6 percent reported new hair problems post-infection, and 2.3 percent noticed hair shedding only during the infection. The most common culprit? Telogen effluvium. However, some people’s hair loss was due to seborrheic dermatitis, trichotillomania, or alopecia areata.
After a few years of collecting data, researchers now confirm that hair loss is a common side effect of COVID-19.
And although it seems that women are more likely to experience COVID hair loss, many men are facing this issue too.
Spiked a fever? Don’t be surprised if you experience hair loss after the fact.
This form of hair loss, known as telogen effluvium, is a common form of hair shedding that can happen after the body goes through a stressful event. Think infections, hormonal changes, surgery — and illnesses that cause fever. Some medications can also trigger telogen effluvium.
This condition forces all the hair on your head to enter the telogen phase (rest phase) of the hair growth cycle. After several months, hair might start shedding in handfuls, causing noticeable thinning.
So if you’ve been battling COVID-19 and notice hair falling out in the shower, on your pillow, or clumping in your hairbrush, you might be experiencing this form of hair loss.
Here’s the good news: This type of hair loss doesn’t lead to a receding hairline. Instead, you’ll likely notice general thinning across your scalp. And it’s not permanent. Eventually your hair will start to grow back, but it can take several months for hair follicles to produce new strands again.
There’s currently no evidence that COVID-19, including the Omicron variant, causes permanent hair loss.
Permanent hair loss can happen for various reasons, like male pattern baldness. This occurs when hair follicles shrink and lose the ability to produce new hair thanks to the effects of androgen hormones.
Another potential cause of permanent hair loss? Scarring from fungal infections that affect the scalp.
Telogen effluvium doesn’t permanently damage your hair follicles, so your hair will eventually grow back once you address the root cause.
Don’t worry — COVID-19 doesn’t cause male pattern baldness. Early in the pandemic, some studies suggested that men with male pattern baldness might face a higher risk of severe COVID-19 symptoms.
For example, a small study in May of 2020 found that 67 percent of hospitalized COVID-19 patients also had pattern hair loss.
Another larger-scale study from later that year noted a link between hair loss and graying with a higher risk of heart disease, which is a risk factor for severe COVID-19.
Newer research tells a bit of a different story.
A recent study in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, using data from the genome-wide association study (GWAS), found no genetic link between male pattern baldness and COVID-19.
In short, COVID-19 doesn’t cause permanent hair loss, and there’s no apparent connection between balding and severe COVID symptoms.
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If you’ve noticed your hair thinning after recovering from a COVID-19 infection or hair loss after Covid vaccine, it’s a good idea to speak with a dermatologist or your primary care provider. They can help you explore your options.
Hair shedding after COVID usually stops once you get over the illness, but it can take a few months before your hair starts to grow back, with full regrowth happening over six months to a year.
Interestingly, early research is looking into regenerative treatments like platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and human follicle stem cells (HFSCs) to tackle COVID-related hair loss.
These therapies use your body’s natural healing abilities to encourage hair regrowth, but more clinical trials are needed to confirm their effectiveness.
In the meantime, here’s what you can do to deal with COVID hair loss:
If you’re exploring hair loss treatments, you’ve probably come across finasteride (Propecia®) and minoxidil (Rogaine®).
Finasteride reduces dihydrotestosterone (DHT), an androgen hormone and by-product of testosterone that can damage hair follicles and lead to male pattern baldness.
It won’t help with hair loss from COVID-19, since DHT has nothing to do with acute telogen effluvium hair loss. But if genetic factors are at play, finasteride might lessen the effects of male pattern baldness.
Minoxidil is a topical medication that works by stimulating blood flow to your scalp and moving your hair follicles into the anagen, or growth phase, of the hair growth cycle.
Minoxidil isn’t FDA-approved to treat telogen effluvium. But your healthcare provider may prescribe it off-label if they think that it can help stimulate regrowth and restore your hair.
We offer minoxidil solution and minoxidil foam online, and topical finasteride & minoxidil spray to help you target hair thinning.
Medication is one option to stimulate hair growth. But did you know that simple hair care habits can also help reduce the severity of COVID hair loss?
Here’s what to try:
Eat a balanced, nutritious diet. Eating a balanced and healthy diet can help reduce your risk of hair loss due to nutritional deficiencies. There’s also evidence that certain diets like the Mediterranean diet may help with long COVID. Want tips on how to eat better for a healthier head of hair? Read our guide on what you should eat for hair growth.
Take steps to limit stress. Stress is a potential trigger of telogen effluvium. Limiting your exposure to stressful situations and learning relaxation techniques may help you better manage stress.
Use a hair loss prevention shampoo. The right shampoo can help to limit hair fall and keep your hair looking and feeling its best. Our Hair Thickening Shampoo contains saw palmetto to prevent hair loss while promoting volume and moisture.
Our guide to How to Make Hair Grow Faster For Men lists other tips you can use to keep your hair thick and healthy while promoting optimal growth.
Does COVID-19 cause hair loss? It’s possible.
COVID-19 infection affects people differently, but data shows hair loss is a fairly common long-term side effect of this illness.
Let’s recap what we know about COVID hair loss:
COVID shedding has nothing to do with genetics. Telogen effluvium is a form of hair loss often resulting from extreme stressors like high fever, infection, or injury.
COVID hair loss usually isn’t permanent. Unlike male pattern baldness, telogen effluvium hair loss is temporary and hair typically grows back after the stressor goes away.
Hair loss may not be COVID-related. Excessive hair loss after COVID could be something else, like male pattern baldness, especially if it doesn’t resolve after a few months or you notice bald patches or a receding hairline.
Experiencing hair loss after COVID? A good first step is to talk to your primary care provider.
Ready to start your hair loss journey? Take our free online hair loss assessment and we can connect you with a licensed healthcare provider who can recommend options like those in our range of hair loss treatment products for men.
Want to learn more about hair loss medications? Check out our guide to the best treatments for thinning hair.
Hims & Hers has strict sourcing guidelines to ensure our content is accurate and current. We rely on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We strive to use primary sources and refrain from using tertiary references. See a mistake? Let us know at [email protected]!
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The information contained herein is not a substitute for and should never be relied upon for professional medical advice. Always talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits of any treatment. Learn more about our editorial standards here.
Dr. Knox Beasley is a board certified dermatologist specializing in hair loss. He completed his undergraduate studies at the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY, and subsequently attended medical school at Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans, LA.
Dr. Beasley first began doing telemedicine during his dermatology residency in 2013 with the military, helping to diagnose dermatologic conditions in soldiers all over the world.
Dr. Beasley is board certified by the American Board of Dermatology, and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology.
Originally from Nashville, TN, Dr. Beasley currently lives in North Carolina and enjoys spending time outdoors (with sunscreen of course) with his wife and two children in his spare time.
Bachelor of Science, Life Sciences. United States Military Academy.
Doctor of Medicine. Tulane University School of Medicine
Dermatology Residency. San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium
Board Certified. American Board of Dermatology
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