November 26, 2001: In the November 26, 2001 issue of People Weekly, Christopher Reeve confirmed that for three decades he has suffered from Alopecia Areata, "an incurable disease affecting 4 million people that results in varying degrees of hair loss." Reeve said in the interview: "I first had it when I was 16. All my life it's come and gone. It started with a bald spot right at the crown of my head. In all that time some hair (on my head) would fall out and then grow back. But in the last year it has been more apparent than usual. (For the first time) it's affected my eyebrows, but they are growing back. There's no real explanation for it. It's kind of like allergies. Sometimes people have a good season and a bad season. So in the last six months in particular I've lost more hair than usual. The fact is I'm in the best health I've been in since the accident in '95. I'm stronger and I'm progessing with physical therapy. That's why it's so ironic that because my hair fell out, people have been concerned about my health." Reeve receives cortisone shots in the scalp every three weeks to treat his hair loss.
Whether this claim was for real, or was just a cover story (so to speak), I guess we can't know.
I've always thought the claim that Reeve died from blood infection due to a pressure sore, was a little suspicious, however.
Everybody who's known bedridden or chair-ridden persons well knows that pressure sores are a hazard; but that with good care they can be prevented. Pressure sores are more likely to occur with people whose care is neglected.
So I find it odd that Reeve, a wealthy man with all kinds of help, ended up dying from a pressure sore. But that is the official story-line.
Thanks for the info. I agree...dying from a pressure wound seems unlikely since he had the best of care...his wife!