Bariatric Surgery-Induced Telogen Effluvium (Bar SITE): Case Report and a Review of Hair Loss Following Weight Loss Surgery

Bariatric surgery is a potential modality for the management of obesity. Bariatric patients may experience skin disorders and hair loss postoperatively. A 24-year-old woman with polycystic ovarian syndrome-associated obesity successfully underwent bariatric surgery. Within seven weeks after surgery, she developed diffuse and progressive hair loss, characteristic of telogen effluvium. Alopecia following bariatric surgery may be acute in onset, occurring within the first three months and often associated with telogen effluvium. In addition, bariatric surgery postoperative hair loss may be the result of nutritional deficiencies; in this setting, it is often chronic in onset, occurring six months after surgery. Also, hair loss in bariatric patients may be multifactorial in etiology. We introduced an acronym to facilitate the description of patients who experience bariatric surgery-induced telogen effluvium: Bar SITE.