November 2006 – Page 5

November 21, 2006

60+ Year Old Female – Hair Transplant Possibility? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I’m a 66 year old female taking thyroid and blood pressure pills for an underactive thyroid and high blood pressure. Would having hair transplantation be successful at this age? How much would it cost? My hair has become thin and brittle, as well sparse. Please let me know what is the possibility of a successful transplant without complications.

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To answer the question, I would want to understand the quality of your donor area and the degree of miniaturization you have in the hair of that permanent zone. Then I would want to know the extent of the hair loss and the size of the area that you want to treat. I would want to map out your scalp for miniaturization as I would need to know that information in order to ascertain if you will be helped or hurt by a hair transplant. Evaluating women for hair transplants is a real art combined with science. I met a doctor at the recent annual International Society of Hair Restoration Surgeons meeting that told me that their medical group did surgery on better than 95% of women who came to them. I would suspect that the doctor has terrible results and many unhappy patients. Get a good doctor who knows about this and get yourself evaluated properly.

November 21, 2006

What is Diffuse Unpatterned Alopecia (DUPA)? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello!
I have seen many dicussions related to Diffuse Alopecia or DUPA, but I have never understood the causes. Is it genetic hair loss expressed in a diffuse pattern, or is it a kind of disease caused from something else?

Thanks a lot for your time!

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Diffuse Unpatterned Alopecia (DUPA) is a condition where the hair has miniaturization throughout the scalp without a particular pattern to it. Women who have genetic hair loss have something that acts and looks like the male patient with DUPA. It is generally believed that in men, DUPA is genetic and hormonal. At times, it will respond to Propecia (finasteride 1mg) in slowing down its advancement and in about half of male patients it does get better (slightly) with Propecia.

November 21, 2006

Dandruff Getting Worse on Propecia – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Ever since I started Propecia I noticed that my dandruff was getting worse. I have had nice results with stopping my hair loss from Propecia and I think that it may be regrowing my hair, but the increasing dandruff has become an embarrassment for me. Any suggestions?

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I have had a few people complain of increasing dandruff. There seems to be a benefit with using a mild steroid (1/2% hycrocortisone) a few times a week. I generally tell people that three applications, 12 hours apart would be ok, but not to use it heavily or too much steroid can be absorbed in your system through the skin. The use of Nizoral shampoo has worked for many of these people.

November 21, 2006

What Tests Should My Doctor Perform to Diagnose My Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

(male) I’m going to a new doctor in a week for my hair loss.My hair loss has taken over my whole life.A specially the itching.Every 5 seconds that go by I’m itching my head eyebrows and eyelashes.And what I see is miniturised hairs on my entire head , eyebrows and eyelashes..I dont know whats going on.Question is can you please give me a list of tests that I should have my new doctor do. Thanks for everything….

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You are a man with a long history of hair loss. With severe and generalized hair loss and hair miniaturization, you may be suffering from a systemic disease with skin and hair symptoms. Your doctor must take a thorough medical history, including history of past medical conditions and medications used, and perform a physical examination (perhaps the most important key to diagnose your problem). Getting your hair mapped out for miniaturization is critical to determine if the hair loss is patterned hair loss, which may have more typical genetic causes. There is really not a set of tests that could be suitable for every situation. Leave this to your doctor and get back to us if you are still having questions after your evaluation.

November 21, 2006

Why Could I Be Losing Eyelashes? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I am 29 yr old female and I am losing some eyelashes on the middle part of my upper eyelid. Is it do to a lack of some kind of vitamin or could it be because I had an eyelash perm? But I was losing a couple before I had that done.What do you think?
Thanks for your time

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Eyelash loss is often due to blepharitis, which is an inflammatory condition of the eyelids. Any mechanical manipulation may cause eyelash loss. It may happen with false eyelashes or eyelash perm. The other possible causes include hormonal problems, such as a thyroid problem (hypothyroid), and pulling eyelashes due to psychological conditions (trichotillomania). Your eyelash loss may be part of a condition called alopecia areata, which is an immunologic disorder that may cause patchy hair loss in different areas. I recommend that you see a dermatologist for this problem.

November 21, 2006

Taking Propecia with Vitamins – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello – my question is quite simple.. I understand that taking Propecia in the morning is best (due to increase in hormones then).. But what about taking it with other pills? Have you ever heard of, or have any reason to believe that taking it with a Multi-Vitamin as well as an allergy medecine (Zyrtec-D) might affect Propecia’s effectiveness?

Thanks!

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To my knowledge, there are no negative effects of taking all those medications at once. I suggest that you consult your prescribing physician.

November 20, 2006

Cyst Removal on Head Causing Female Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

i have been on the depo shot for about a year now and have noticed that my hair on the top of my head is thinning. now i didnt notice this until about august i think it was after i had a cyst removed from my head. it is by the area where it was removed but all they did to remove it was make an incision and it was tough coming out so they had to pull and dig a little. my question is could that removal of that cyst have caused this and in either case, will it grow back?

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Any procedure in the scalp may trigger hair loss at the surgical site. Two main factors may cause this local hair loss:

Shock loss: If you are predisposed to balding, you may have already had miniaturization to some degree and the surgery on the scalp may have only facilitated the process of hair loss. This phenomenon is called shock loss, and it may or may not be reversible. It varies per person.
Undermining the edges of incision: In order to remove a mass or cyst from the scalp or sometimes to reduce the tension of the skin edges, the surgeon may cut some of the hair follicles. Dissection of hair usually results in permanent baldness in the affected area. This baldness in a scarred area is similar to the hair loss that patients get after a craniotomy or scalp trauma.

My suggestion is to wait it out for 6 months. If the bald area doesn’t grow hair during this period, the baldness may be permanent. At that point, if the location of the scar is noticeable, you may want to see a hair transplant surgeon. The treatment options for this condition will be either to primarily remove it if the scar is small enough, or to use hair transplant to fill the bald area if it is too large.

November 20, 2006

Vitamin A & D and Female Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

(female) regarding hair loss. I have tried it all, propecia, rogaine, the works. what i’d like to know is, I take loads of vitamins and supplements. I have hashimoto’s which I read I should take among others Vit.A and/or omega 3 fish oils. I was taking 5,000-10,000 of A and 400 iu of D. Then I thought I should get my a & d from fish oil instead. I take (2) 2500 Vit a and 250 vit.d a day.My question now becomes this. Would I need to take the same amount of Vit.a & d in the fish oil as in a regular a/d capsule which is from say carotene. I know a & d can become toxic and causes loss of hair and I’m wondering if that is my problem. What is a safe amount?? And which/ or both do you suggest.

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As a rule, a normal healthy diet should provide you with ALL the essential vitamins and minerals for a normal healthy person. Millions of dollars are spent on marketing supplements to a health conscious society and it gives a skewed perspective on our health and subliminally gives us the message that we need to take these extra supplements to make us better (lose weight, grow hair, increase our sex drive, build muscle, feel happy, get smarter, reverse aging, etc). As long as things are not done in the extreme and it seems to help, there is nothing wrong with taking supplements. But there is no hard medical science to support majority of the claims.

With respect to Propecia, it is only FDA approved for male pattern hair loss in men. It is not approved for women. For more information on the use of Propecia in women, see: Treatments Available for Female Hair Loss. With respect to Rogaine, you can try it out, but it would take about a year to notice any benefit. I do not know if you had tried it for a year before you abandoned it. With respect to vitamins and supplements, if they work for you, then I see no reason to change the regimen. With respect to your thyroid condition, you should follow up with the doctor who is overseeing your treatment and follow his recommendation. It is not something you cure with just supplements.

November 20, 2006

Diagonal Balding Line on Scalp – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I’ve had some fairly serious events occur in my life as of late and have been very stressed. I’ve gone to a doctor and am believed to be suffering from depression/anxiety. I noticed recently that I have a strange part on the top/back of my head. It starts about where my cowlick is and runs diagonally for about 4-5 inches. It is very noticeable and I am pretty sure I haven’t had this before.

I’ve had thinning all over, including the front, and have been on propecia for about a month resulting in a decreased amount of shedding. I look at other people and pictures of those who are balding and I have yet to see such a distinct line of no hair on anyone. What could this be?

Thanks

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Without seeing you and examining you, it would be impossible to guess on what is happening to you. If you are losing hair from genetic causes, then the character of your hair (the way the hair lays down) can accentuate the thinning in one area over another. You must be examined by an expert.

November 20, 2006

Will Propecia Only Prevent Shock Loss in Younger Men? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Dr. Rassman,

You frequently mention the safeguard of taking Propecia to prevent shock loss. You also mention how shock loss is more frequent in younger men and so I’m left with the impression that Propecia will only help young men prevent shock loss. I’m 36. I seem to have stabilized my hair loss with propecia. If I’m a NW 3 and have been on propecia for 15 months, what are my chances of shock loss? Also, if I’m going for a mature hairline, how many grafts are needed for a typical NW3?

Thank you

I believe that Propecia can and does prevent shock loss in anyone having a hair transplant at any age (although nothing is 100%). The young man is most vulnerable to this complication. At your age, your chances of developing shock loss are slim.

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