August 2006 – Page 12

August 11, 2006

Hair Loss Information » Propecia and NutraSweet Products, Follow-Up – Balding Blog

A couple of days ago I had sent an email indicating that there is a belief that nutrasweet products interfere with the efficacy of propecia. The following site describes one such incidence.

http://205.238.137.71/hairloss-forums/viewthread.cfm?f=1&t=11649#33739

Please give me your opinion on this as I have been using propecia for 8 weeks with no effect.

I looked at the reference you cited. The piece proposes that nutrasweet may interfere with the action of Propecia, but it is conjunctural, not factual. Formaldahyde, if it were a significant metabolite of nutrisweet, would/could cause liver disease, which is not a reported side effect.

August 11, 2006

I Am Fine With a Receding Hairline — I Think – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello. I was wondering if TE can cause any kind of receding of the hairline. Also i did have burning and redness on the scalp and everything happened all at the same time. I must say if it is mpb, i am totally fine with it(One step at a time) although i feel that stress could be a contributor, yet i i heard it also might not be. My hair is thin on top but it is also thin on the sides but not as thin. I was wondering if you could possibly tell me what it is? My hair grew back thin after it was thin before but not as thin, and this all happened after i had perming done to the scalp which caused the redness and irriatation of the hair. I did not have a receding hairline in high school and i am 21 (male) and just now noticing things. Thanks.

Knowledge is power, so smarten up and take charge of what is happening to you. If you are fine with whatever is happening to you, leave it alone and do not obsess with it. If you are not fine with it, then see a good doctor. Sounds like you are not fine with it and may be denying it if it really bothers you.

August 11, 2006

18 Year Old Female’s Bald Spot – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I am an 18 year old female, about to enter her freshman year of college. In my freshman year of high school (2002), one night before bed, I was brushing my hair and I screamed. I ran out to my mom and yelled that I was dying!!! I bent over and showed her the spot on my head the size of a quarter where there was not a single hair. Now, four years later, I do not have that one spot, but when I am in the shower washing my hair, I notice large amounts of hair that fall out into my hands, then, after my shower, I often wonder how much more will come out when I comb my hair with a wide tooth comb, and again, a lot. I do not know the cause of this, and I was wondering if you could please help me in telling me some of the causes of this that are in an 18 years olds life. Thank you.

See a dermatologist and let him/her examine you to answer your questions. It does require a good doctor and the knowledge that he/she has between their ears. Sorry, this isn’t the type of question I could easily answer over the internet without examining you first.

August 10, 2006

Reconstructing Temples in Patients – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Some posters on an Internet board (hairsite.com) say reconstructing temple points is a must for a Norwood 6 guy’s transplant to look natural. Is this true? Do you often reconstruct temple points in your patients who have advanced balding?

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Temple transplants are unusual. I offer them, but suggest to most patients to defer on them until the first session has grown out. Most pass on temple hair transplants, because the existence of good frontal hair usually solves most of their problems.

Temple transplantation shows the quality of a doctor. If the angles are not perfect, if the recipient sites are not small, and if distribution is not well placed, temple hair transplants look terrible.

I wanted to show a transplanted temple prominence, close up. The temple before photo is on the left — the after is on the right. The after photo was taken 9 months post-procedure. if you look very closely, you will see a few hairs in the transplanted area that were present prior to the transplant. Also note that the transplanted hairs have less gray than the hairs on the pre-operative photo. Color differences in transplanted hair reflect the color of the hair taken from the back of the head. This patient liked less gray, which is now his ‘new temple’ look.

Before
After

August 10, 2006

Scalp Pimples Cause Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Male – Age 20, Question: Do Scalp Pimples cause any amount of hairloss whatsoever?

Hi, usually over the summer i get oily hair for some reason and with that i get scalp pimples. they occur in random places all over and can get to a decent size. they hurt only when i would accidently scratch over top of them or when i try to pick one. my question is, do scalp pimples in moderation cause hairloss, i mean i was wondering because since its a pimple it would cover the hair follicles resulting in no oxygen, etc.? and when the pimple drys out it leaves sorta a scab like cap over the hairs until its washed away or picked off. prove me if i’m wrong here. i’m just concerned. thanks

Pimples in the scalp generally do not cause hair loss unless infection gets out of control. You need to see a good dermatologist to control them, for that is no way to live.

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August 10, 2006

Hair Loss from Anemia – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

i was recently in a hospital for severe iron deficenty my red blood count was 2 out of normal of 14. it was determined that i have been aneimic for close to a year. i experienced a lot of hair loss during that period. my question is if aniemia was root cause will the hair grow back? thank you doctor

From your description I am not certain if you are male of female. The cause of hair loss is generally very different between men and women. Gender differences aside, hair loss from severe iron deficiency anemia should reverse if it is corrected. However, people generally respond differently to such stress on their body and the hair growth may be varied. If you are a female, anything that causes hair loss can become permanent if you have the genetic code for female genetic hair loss. In other words only time will tell.

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August 10, 2006

Hair Breaks 3 Inches From Root – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I have a question for my friend.. She has had hair breakage about 3 inches from the root. She has had over 15 surgeries in the past 7 years due to a motorcycle accident.. Her hair breaking has been an issue for over a year or 2.. She has had blood work done and nothing was found wrong. She has made an appointment with a hair specialist to do a test on a piece of her scalp. Is there any other simple reason that the doctors would be looking over like her nutrition? I am concerned for her and I wanna help her as much as I can.. If you have any answers for me I would appreciate it.

Stress from surgery can cause hair to fall out. I have often stressed (no pun intended) the importance of miniaturization mapping of the scalp to see the pattern of hair loss. This may be of benefit to your friend.

With regard to hair breakage (if it were you), I would want to know more about how you manage your hair, how you brush/comb it, what shampoos and conditioners you use, what changes you have implemented prior to noticing the breakage problem, and what the nutritional status of your body is (the hair may reflect vitamin and other nutritional deficiencies).

August 10, 2006

Copper Peptides for Follicular Enlargement? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Have you ever heard of copper peptides for follical enlargment, hair growth, wound and scar tissue healing? Is there anything to it?

skinbiology.com

thanks

That site suggests that if you have guinea pigs, pigs, rabbits, rats, dogs, and a few other mammals, that they can repair their tissues and possibly live longer. I am not sure that I want my 14 year old dog to outlive me, but perhaps that’s just me.

I actually have used copper peptides to reduce the degree of redness in wounds in those people who are prone to get red after a scratch or surgery. Originally, the company claimed that it accelerated hair growth after a hair transplant, so we tried that on a number of people and did not find that it worked as a growth accelerator. The observation of reduced redness is what called my attention to some value for the compound.

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August 10, 2006

Asymmetrical Facial Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I have a question about facial hairloss. I am 34 years old male and have never had a problem with hair loss untill about 5 months ago. Thats when I noticed a diamond shaped bald spot on the side of my chin it was at the time smaller than a dime. It has since grown to be over two inches. About a month ago I saw two more small bald spots on the other side of my chin. They have since grown together and are now about the size of a nickel.

Can you tell me what might cause this and do you think I need to see a doctor?

Any info you have would be very helpful. Thank you

Balding spots that are not symmetrical may represent infections like ringworm, or autoimmune problems like alopecia areata. I would suggest seeing a dermatologist.

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August 9, 2006

Taking 0.5mg Finasteride Twice a Day – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi Sir,
I take Proscar and break the pills in 1/4. Considering the fact that finasteride remains only a few hours in the body, would it be better if I’d break the pills in 1/8 and would take it twice a day?

thanks

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What you say may be true. The problem is that the 5 hour half life is a reflection of blood levels for the drug (5 hours drops the concentration in the blood by half). The more important number may be tissue level of bound drug that binds to the receptor targets. I believe that this number is much longer than 5 hours (maybe a few days). Thinking this through is an intellectual exercise only:

The pill might be able to be taken less often, rather than more often.
A smaller dose might be just as effective. I was told in a personal communication some years ago with Dr. David Whiting (who was involved in the original Merck studies to determine the best dose to use) that half of a Propecia (0.5mg) is 80% as good as a whole pill.

It may be in nobody’s interest to really solve this problem for you so your guess is as good as anyone. I tend to stay with what is known and that happens to be Merck’s story on the commercial pill. Other than saving some money, I am not sure that for most men without any side effects of the drug that taking less of a dose has any advantage over the recommended dose.