April 2006 – Page 16 – Balding Blog

April 5, 2006

Dreadlocks Causing Hair Loss in Woman? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I have a dear friend, young, beautiful girl (caucasian) who has come to believe that her really long dreadlocks – which she has been growing for 7 years…is causing perhaps permanent bald spots on her scalp. She is really beside herself about it, and wondered what she could do to be sure, and if so – to cure the problem.

Dreadlocks can produce traction alopecia (hair loss from constant pulling). The best thing for her to do is to get rid of them and then wait for recovery of the hair. After 7 years, the hair loss may be permanent, but until the pulling stops, you will not know one way or the other. Recovery from traction alopecia may take up to a year.

April 5, 2006

Does Wheat Grass Eliminate DHT? – Balding Blog

I’ve heard that drinking wheatgrass juice eliminates DHT completely from the system. Is this true?

It appears to be recommended as an alternative or a dietary supplement for individuals with prostate problems. Like all herbal remedies, there is more folk lore than facts backing up such claims. I would presume that claims for blocking DHT would deal with prostate problems and hair loss, just like proven approaches with the drug finasteride.

April 4, 2006

Tricomin – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

what do you know about the shampoo Tricomin, is it useful in fighting hair loss or another propoganda?

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To date there have not been any FDA approved medications other than topical minoxidil or oral finasteride 1mg (Propecia). The company that produces Tricomin talks about phase 2 clinical trials (the company states, “this product was initially intended to be released as a hair-growth compound. The early-stage Phase II clinical study of the product had very positive results on some of the 36 male subjects who, applied the treatment topically twice a day for 24 weeks. “), but without completed trials, this type of hype does very little for the safe minded men who want an effective medication for their hair loss. I suggest that you wait for the results of the clinical trails to know what is going to happen to this drug rather than speculate on it.

The shampoo should be no different than the ‘medication’.

April 4, 2006

Hair Loss InformationAny Special Creams I Can Apply to Scar Right After Surgery? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello,I have just had my third hair transplant.The one befor this last one was about ten years ago.The doctor removed the old scar and alot of scar tissue,and he stitched me inside and out and closed the cut pretty nice from what I can see.I still have the stitches in and wont have them removed for another week and I was wondering if there any kind of cream or gel I can apply now or after the stitches come out to reduce the appearence of the scar.I am in the army and I am being deployed to Iraq so I have to shave my head and would like not to see a big scar on the back of my head. Thank you for any advice you can give me.

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Everything takes time. There is no way to accelerate the healing process you are going through. If after the stitches come out you are still red, then you can apply some 0.5% hydrocortisone cream every 12 hours, but only apply it three or four times and then wait 5 days to see if it resolved. You can then repeat the process again, waiting another 5 days in between each treatment cycle. Do not continue this for more than a month.

April 4, 2006

Repeated Bleaching Causes Follicle Damage? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Bleach - art

Is it possible that hair follicles could have been damaged/destroyed by hair chemicals, such as repeated bleaching of hair? If so, is it possible to restore damaged hair follicles?

Hair follicles grow through the skin. These follicles arise from the bulb which is located 5-6 mm below the skin edge. Between the skin edge and the bulb, there is a ‘tunnel’ which allows the waxy sebum to rise out of the follicular unit to the skin. In theory, this tunnel could become a two way highway allowing chemicals, dyes or bleach to find their way deep into the hair follicles (note: the drawing is simplistic for illustrative purposes only). Through this route, it is possible to damage the machinery that grows hair either by killing it, or damaging it so that the hair that grows out might be a smaller gauge hair that has a different character to it. The question you ask is whether or not this process be reversed, and the answer really depends upon how much damage was produced. Generally the hair is quite a robust organ and will recover from insults. Hopefully in your case, the damage is such that it is reversible.

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April 4, 2006

Propecia Gives Me Pimples – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Whenever I take finasteride 1mg I get these red pimples on my face almost like acne. I think it is probably reflex hyperandrogenicity. Is there any solution to this? Without finasteride I can’t fight my hairloss. How can I stop this reflex hyperandrognicity without stopping propecia? I tried reducing the dosage to .5mg .25mg even .10 mg. But all those dosages still made me breakout in my face.

Check with your dermatologist, for you are guessing the diagnosis here. This is not a common complaint with Propecia, but we do see acne in teenagers that is clearly hormonal.

April 4, 2006

I Had a Hair Transplant, But I Want the Corners Lower Than “Normal” – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello, I had 1200 grafts last year, and they have done well, but the hairline is too far back in the corners. It is probably just fine for most men, but I wanted a more rounded hairline. I think that I got the male “template.” I have a widows peak, it does not, nor the area of about 1 inch to either side, need to be lowered, just the area in the corners. I have heard of hair line advancement, could this help? Most literature says that all men should look the same, as it comes to hairlines, its just not what I want. I travel to Sacramento and San Jose frequently. Hope to hear from you.

Picking a hairline is a negotiation between you and your surgeon. I have restored the original hairline in men and if this is part of your Master Plan, then it can be done. Be sure to get a great doctor, because these rounded corners can be a difficult part of the art of hair restoration.

Here’s Patient NU, whom I have featured on this site previously. The corners of his hairline were lowered dramatically and the patient wanted his central frontal hairline to look like actor Andy Garcia. Each of us has a different look and different taste, thank God. If we did not, then the world would be farily dull. The patient shown below had let his hair grow out to shoulder length for a number of years, and then recently cut it to crew cut length. He clearly enjoys the freedom of having his hair just the way he wants. Also, it is worth noting that he had temple transplants many years ago, and his results are available here and here.

Other examples include patients EO, KB, and IU.

April 4, 2006

Facial Hair from Rogaine for Women – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hi,
I am 26 years old, female, and hair loss seems to run in my family. After turning 21 my hair started to fall out. My hair is very thin now all over, but more noticeable on the crown. I beleive I have diffused hair loss. I have tried Rogaine but, unfornately had unwanted facial hair growth. The hair grew in but fell out a month later. I also plan to have a child in the next year and hear that hair loss is associated with pregnancy. Is there any other treatments (pills or topical) besides Rogaine than can regrow hair? How much hair loss is expected and will it grow back?

thinning and desperate

Rogaine does get absorbed through the skin (as will any medication you apply to the skin) and facial hair is a rare but known side effect.

There is no way to tell if you will lose hair with pregnancy and I would not revolve my life around what may happen. A baby is a major life changing experience. If you lose hair with pregnancy, you will probably grow it back and I would expect that regrowth to match what you had prior to the pregnancy within a year or so. Unfortunately, there are few good solutions for women in your situation at this time.

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April 4, 2006

Did My Neck Hair Cause My Head Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

my hairline has receded gradually around the temples for approx the past 5 years. The recession is more obvious on one side than the other (the right side more that the left). I have one question:

Can excessive hair growth (lower neck) be a factor in hair loss?

I have hair growing on my lower neck region. This growth roughly coincided with my hair loss approx 5 years ago. It would have started as soft, blond type hair. Eventually I would have plucked them out. They are now growing quite thick. This growth is heavier on the right hand side of my neck as opposed to the left side.

Looking forward to your reply. Many Thanks

This is actually a good question. Why? Well DHT is the cause of both the growth of the neck hair and the loss of the frontal scalp hair. DHT is the result of testosterone metabolism and it is one of the hormones that a boy’s body uses to create this thing we become, a man. These attributes include beard and body hair growth (including neck hair), a change in voice (lower tone), sweating and under arm odors, nose and ear hair (I hope you love this one), and interestingly enough, loss of the neck hair as you get older (the same hair that was grown by DHT).

I have only seen one patient who went on finasteride (Propecia) and lost body and leg hair from the blocking effects on DHT, but if you are losing your hair from male patterned genetic hair loss you should probably be on this drug anyway. Be sure to get your scalp mapped out for miniaturization before you start it and you might want to get a neck hair count to see if the actual neck hair density decreases from the drug.

Asymmetrical hair loss in the front is common with genetic balding. The one thing for sure is that the “good” side will eventually follow the “bad” side in terms of thinning or loss. Finasteride may stop this progression or even reverse it.

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April 4, 2006

College Students with Stresses – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello doctor,
I am a 19 year old freshman at university. The transition seemed like a decent one. I didn’t feel like I was experiencing too much stress during the first month. However during the end of first simester when essays and midterms were coming up I started sleeping less, my face was covered with large zits that would not surface and then leave marks (some of which I still have 2-4 months later). During this period which started about 5 months ago, I was on an emotional rollercoaster too. I had almost no time to see my friends. My social life was quickly becoming extinct. I had no self-esteem because of my new-developed acne problem. It was bad. I think I have started to get the hang of the stress, now that winter is almost over everything seems a lot easier to deal with. But what I have been noticing for the last 2 months is a lot of thinning at the hairline. It was not so bad about a month ago but now my scalp is becomeing VERY visible to the point where I cannot use all the hair I have at the front to cover somewhat “balding” areas. There are no patches persay. It is ver diffuse, but also very noticable. I have had at least 3 people commnt on it. It is beggining to scare me. I have always had fine hair but my scalp has never been visible before. I started taking Vitamin B Complex about 2 months ago for the stress, and am now taking this product called samson’s secret which is full of nutrients that nurish the hair for about 5 weeks.
My question is, does this sound like a temporary thing such as telogen effluvium? And if so when should I be expecting to notice my hair back to normal? Also I am worried because final exams are coming up next month along with more essays worth an even larger percentage of my mark. I am doing amazing but that only makes my expectations of myself even higher, causing me to stress out lest I mess up and the GPA I have worked so hard to achieve and maintain falls. Does this mean that I am only setting myself up for more hairloss and a vicious cycle that will make it extremely hard for the hair to grow back?

I realize this is a rather long post, thank you so much for your time.

Stress definitely plays a part in hair loss. However if you have a component of genetic male pattern hair loss , hair will not grow back. If this become a big problem for you, you may consider making an appointment with a hair transplant surgeon who can map your scalp hair for miniaturization pattern and formulate a Master Plan for future hair loss.

You have many issues, and some of these things like self-esteem are inside your head as much as outside. For example, when I turned 60 four years ago, the changes in my body should have taken my self-esteem down to low levels, but I somehow managed to focus on the good things in my life. I have said many times, you are the director, writer and actor in your ‘life story’, so write it the way you want it to be. Direct it to work out that way (if hair loss is the issue then tackle it correctly). Act like the man you want to be and get your grades up, for that is clearly in your power. The world will not march to a down tune, only to an upbeat one.