An Investigation into the Healthcare Seeking Behavior of Patients with Alopecia Androgenetica

This study aims to investigate the treatment options chosen by male patients with androgenetic alopecia and to conduct a preliminary analysis on consumer behavior, using buyer''s decision process to analyze factors the influence patients'' choice of treatment. Subects 18 years of age and above with male androgenetic alopecia types 2~5 were investigated by using a structured questionnaire. A total of 350 questionnaires were distributed with, 247 responses received, out of which 204 were valid, and the response rate was 58%. According to the study outcome,most(96.1%)of patients with androgenetic alopecia resort to covering up using residual hair, while majority (88.7%)of patients aren''t aware that hair loss is treatable,not to mention the fact that there are four types of treatment. After seeking medeical help, most patients (98.5%)become informed that hair loss is a treatable condition. 87.3% of patients thought about or actually sought medical intervention for hair loss. However, despite seeking medical help, 76.4% failed to take part in any treatment at all. Regarding the choice of treatment, hair tonic is most widely used(74.5%), while hair piece was least chosen(0.5%). Yet after one month of exploring treatment modalities for hair loss, most patients(64.7%)chose not to receive any treatment, while none selected hair piece or hair transplantation(0%) Prominent differences were noted among the 3 factors contributing to market segmentation,namely, ""attitude and suggestions from others such as close family and friends,"" ""urgent economic need or unemployment,"" and ""urgent need to attend an important function or to establish a decent image.""