Month: May 2007

Firstly i’d like to say this site is a great resource! and has been extremely useful reading over the last few months.

Some background…I’m a 21 year old male, with extremely thick hair (both in hair diameter and in density). Around a year ago i began to develop my mature adult hairline and since then there doesnt appear to have been much if any miniaturization past the future hairline.

I had two questions, firstly i know most mpb loss starts at the temples before balding at the crown is evident, but i was wondering if it was possible (or has happened in your experience) for a person to begin balding at the vertex before there is any significant recession from the temples? as hair loss in this area would be much more distressing to me than progressing to a norwood 3 for example.

My second question is to do with predicting my future pattern, my father is a norwood 7 who says he had significant thinning at the temples and crown by my age and from looking at wedding photos was a norwood 4 or 5 by 23. His father also followed a similar pattern.

The other side of my family i.e. my maternal grandfather had a norwood 3/ 3vertex pattern until into his 70’s. So my question is seeing as my hair loss is at least slower than my father could i be expected to have avoided a norwood 7 future or can this advanced pattern start at say 22-25? (basically, at what age would you say i was ‘safe’ from suffering my dads fate!)

You can certainly have balding at the vertex without any frontal recession.

There is no definitive way to predict your hair loss by just looking at your father or uncles or grandfathers. It may offer a clue, but there is no good way to predict balding at this point. I tell men to find someone that they think that the look like (hair loss pattern) in their family and find out what age each step took in the development of the hair loss. That will give you just an idea, because there are probably many genes involved and varying expressions of those genes that may skip generations, so it may be impossible to determine who you might take after or what you pattern might be. If you are asking for some sort of assurance that you will not go bald, the best way to to this is to have a miniaturization study and following the progress of the miniaturization over time.

Hi doctor I have three major concerns:

1. I have been using Tricovivax (“Minoxidil 5%”) for about two months and I have noticed a massive rate of hair fall, shedding, and thinning. Even my family members are telling you are starting to have bald spots in your head.
2. I am very concerned with thinning at the back of my head (donor) are and when my doctor mapped my hair for “Miniaturization” noticed that my donor area is thinning too; and he applied the “pull test” and noticed a large amount of hair being pull.
3. Is setting long time at the computer screen during work will accelerate my hair loss since the computer screen emits radiation?

Thanks a lot doctor

I am pleased to hear that you have had a miniaturization study done. By your brief description, you may have a condition known as DUPA (diffuse unpatterned alopecia) or chronic telogen effluvium. Using drugs such as minoxidil or finasteride may not help in these cases. You need to follow-up with your doctor for options, diagnosis, and treatment. Sounds like he started off by taking the first correct steps.

Sitting at a computer screen will not cause hair loss.

I’m a 27 year old male. About 3 year ago, at the age of 24, I went to work abroad for a year. At the time of leaving home I had a full head of hair.

When I was abroad my diet deteriorated. During this time my hair became very unhealthy. It became brittle and it stared to fall out. I returned home 2 years ago and my diet has returned to normal. My hair’s condition has improved and it has stopped falling out.

Though it has improved, progress is very slow and it has not returned to its former condition.

Could you help me, please?

A normal diet should not have any significant impact on hair loss. If you were malnourished during your travels abroad, it may have had some impact. However, once you start the hair loss process, I have found that it is difficult to stop the hair loss process. Some have explained this phenomenon by analogizing to a light switch that is turned on, but can’t be turned off. You should have your scalp hair mapped for miniaturization to see it there is a pattern to this hair loss. You have a component of genetic hair loss which may not be related to the diet issue.

I am not sure if you have been asked this, but could you explain the hair counting thing? Does counting the hairs that come out in the shower really tell you anything? Thats not really a good indicator of anything is it?

Counting the hair in the shower (hair by hair) would mean that you are likely obsessive about hair loss. It would be logical that if you are losing hair, the hairs lost in a single shower would vary by time of day, the vigor of your washing and massaging, the number of times you actually apply shampoo in a single shower, etc.. Generally all non-balding people lose about 100 hairs a day. If you see a change in number of hairs (a gross change) over a long time frame and keep all of the things you do constant, you may be losing hair.