Loss of hair from the scalp, common in older men. Its onset and extent are influenced by genetic makeup and the level of male sex hormones. There is no cure, and expedients such as hair implants may have no lasting effect. Hair loss in both sexes may also occur as a result of ill health or radiation treatment, such as for cancer. Alopecia, a condition in which the hair falls out, is different from the “male-pattern baldness” described above.
The condition of having no hair (especially on the top of the head); SYN. hairlessness, phalacrosis.