A new systematic review backs up previous studies and reports by patients indicating a link between COVID-19 vaccination and a rare autoimmune type of hair loss known as alopecia areata.
The study analyzed dozens of cases of this type of hair loss, many of which were linked to the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and showed up less than a month after receiving the jabs. It was published in the European Journal of Medical Research.
With alopecia areata, hair falls out in patches, some of which can eventually connect and enlarge. It typically affects the scalp, although people can also experience it on other parts of their body, including their face, arms, legs, chest and back. It may also involve itching, burning and other symptoms, and it can have a profound effect on a person’s mental health and appearance.
In some people, it manifests as alopecia totalis, which means hair loss occurs across the entire scalp, while others will experience alopecia universalis, losing all of the hair on their body and face. It occurs when the immune system attacks the hair follicles, and since we know that COVID-19 vaccines affect the immune system in numerous ways, this link is not surprising.
There is no cure for alopecia areata, but there are some treatments that can help, such as topical medications, oral medications and injections. However, these treatments do not work for everyone and come with their own side effects. This is yet another example of how Big Pharma’s “treatments” often serve to create additional profits for them via the lifelong need for medications to address their side effects, creating a cycle that sees people need more and more of their products over time.
The study’s authors found that 52.9% of those who reported alopecia areata following vaccination were experiencing it for the first time, while 47.1% noted that preexisting alopecia areata either got worse or recurred after getting jabbed.
The cases they studied spanned the globe, with the U.S., China, Japan, Switzerland, Italy, Brazil, Qatar and Taiwan among the countries represented.
Many of the most popular COVID-19 vaccines were implicated in the study, with 45.1% of the alopecia areata cases being linked to the Pfizer vaccine, 27.5% stemming from the AstraZeneca jab, and 19.6% associated with the Moderna shot.
Study's authors warn doctors to pay attention to side effects
The study’s authors urged doctors to be more aware of this potential side effect so they can diagnose it and treat it promptly. They also noted that some of the patients they studied who experienced alopecia areata (AA) after their first dose of the vaccine but went on to get a second one ended up experiencing even more severe alopecia.
“Therefore, we recommend that dermatologists carefully assess whether to administer the second dose if alopecia symptoms arise after the initial COVID-19 vaccine dose, to prevent irreversible AA,” the conclusion stated.
This type of hair loss has also been seen following infection with the virus itself, with one study involving more than half a million South Koreans finding that the incidence of alopecia areata was 82% higher among those who had a prior COVID-19 infection compared to those who had not been infected; this applied to both men and women in all groups older than 20 years of age.
Another autoimmune condition that has been linked to COVID-19 vaccines is Guillain-Barre syndrome, which sees a person’s nerves attacked by their own immune system and causes muscle weakness, trouble swallowing or breathing and a loss of sensation in the limbs. In a rare admission that the vaccines can cause serious adverse effects, the FDA even listed the syndrome as a potential side effect of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.
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