Why is Dr. Bernstein bald? He is practically a Norwood Class 6/7. Does he suffer from DUPA or is he just adamant about not getting transplanted?
Some say bald is beautiful! Dr. Bernstein is comfortable with his looks and understands the burden of balding. When he was younger, had the transplant solution been as good as it is today, he might have gone for it. Hair transplantation is a personal decision and not for everyone.
I was hoping someone could shed some light on hair transplatation for life-long bald spots. I have a bald spot (birth mark) about the size of a quarter over my right temple. I have a full thick head of hair otherwise… I can obviously hide such a small spot but prefer to have my hair cut short. Would this type of bald spot be a candidate for hair transplantation or because hair has never grown in this spot,it would be unlikely to grow via a transplant. Thanks in advance for your insight.
I would have to see the bald spot (send a photo and reference this blog post), but a hair transplant would probably work. If you want to keep it short, it would require a high density hair transplant.
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How many hair transplants is done every year in the U.S? How many of these are fue operations?
For the numbers of hair transplants done in the United States, the answers vary depending upon the source. I have read that the estimates are now around 100,000+ procedures annually. The dollar value for surgery runs somewhere between $500 million and $1 billion annually. You can find some stats at this article from the NY Sun — The $1.2B Growth of Scalp Restoration Surgery.
More complete statistics can be found at the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery 2007 Census Report (PDF file).
There are no figures on Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) procedures that I know of. I suspect that the numbers are very low (less than 1,000 patients per year), as most doctors do not want to do this type of procedure due to the required skills and patience that are not most of the doctors’ forte.
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I have 2 small bald spots on my head where somebody hit me in the head with a wrench several times. It just happened 2 days ago but im wondering if it will grow back, it didnt just bleed it’s just red and i can still see the holes where the hair grows out of but my question is do you think it will grow back and if so how long
You were hit with a metal wrench not once, but SEVERAL times? Forget about the hair for a second — what about your brain? You should see a doctor to make sure you don’t have any lasting trauma or a concussion. Sometimes brain bleeding occurs slowly and may not be evident for days or weeks, so seeing a doctor is a good idea.
If you can try to not get hit on your head (particularly with wrenches) for several more months, you will know if your hair will grow back or not. At this point though, there is no way to tell.
Hi Dr. Rassman, Im a 19 year old male who has been losing his hair quite quickly since the age of 18. I honestly had VERY thick curly hair all through my life honestly had a huge curly afro like the guy from american idol when i was about 16. And now my hair on the top of my head and my crown has thinned and a bald spot is coming in. my question is, even at 19, could you get a successful hair transplant? You honestly can plainly see the balding pattern that im getting by visual and its the same pattern as my grandpas who im almost positive had more hair than me still at 30 but he is now completely bald. I was just wondering if at 19, it is virtually impossible to rethicken the hair. My hair loss is not insane but you can see the Horseshoe balding pattern and easily notice my thin crown spot. Please any positive advice, this is really really depressing me in such a horrible way. i would think since you can so easily see my balding pattern id be a good candidate for HT. always my back and side hair is still extremely thick and in good condition
If you have genetic male pattern balding as you describe, you may be a great candidate for Propecia (finasteride 1mg), but hair transplantation would likely accelerate further balding. I realize that in your urgency to regrow your hair, you’re wanting to do whatever it takes. But unless you are completely bald already, I would generally advise against a hair transplant for someone your age. This is a decision that will stick with you for the rest of your life, and is not something you should be rushing into. You need to see a doctor and have a good physical exam and educate yourself on hair loss options and then develop a good Master Plan for your hair loss management. Hair transplants can be part of a Master Plan if indicated and done at the appropriate time.
My son is 31 – he took prednisone for 7 days. He experienced hair loss which never got better only worse. Could this medication, for such a short time, trigger this.?? He blames himself and is very depressed. I am so concerned not only about his hair loss but on how down on himself he is. Thanking you in advance.
I highly doubt a very short course of a medication such a prednisone would cause hair loss, although it is possible. Actually, we routinely prescribe prednisone to our hair transplant patients after surgery to reduce inflammation and swelling. Your son may have a component of genetic male pattern hair loss and needs to be examined. He should get his hair mapped out for miniaturization to see if he has genetic hair loss.
I don’t think topical finasteride is regularly available at a pharmacy, but there’s a doctor that I’ve seen offering it. Why doesn’t Merck offer this and is it as good as the pill?
According to the website of one doctor that sells it, “Topically applied finasteride is reserved for use by those who wish to block only 5-10% of the DHT activity in the scalp, which is a lower level than typically achieved from ingesting tablets.” So why would you want to use a messy cream on your scalp and not block as much DHT as a single daily pill can?
If it doesn’t work as well as the 1mg finasteride pill in treating hair loss (if it works at all), this is probably why Merck doesn’t offer it. I really don’t know what Merck’s reasons are, but I doubt that there is real data to support the doctor’s declaration and I would insist on seeing where the “block only 5-10% of the DHT activity in the scalp” comes from. I am skeptical and I wouldn’t have a way to validate such claims.
Note: Bottle is for illustration purposes.
I know this is years down the line, but when Juvista comes out, do you think that Juvista combined with tricho closure on HT scars (either after the process or in a revision) will allow men to cut their hair down to a 1 grade or even to the skin without the scar being too obvious? I know your response would be conjecture at this point, but it would be interesting to get your thoughts.
The scarring may be reduced, giving it a better ability to blend in (without being hyper- or hypo-pigmented or raised), but the hair will not grow on the scar. Scarring is very individualized. Even under the worst case scenario without a trichophytic closure, some people heal great and are able to cut their hair really short without visible scarring in the donor area. How well you scar is also a genetic factor (much like hair loss) and there is only so much you can do.
If Juvista does as it sets out to (eliminate scarring with a simple injection at incision site), it could be great for a percentage of those that it works for, but the drug just failed in its most recent clinical trial. Read Renovo, Shire Developing Anti-Scar Drug and Bad news on drug rocks Renovo for more.
So, the short answer to your question is… probably not.
can i get an idea what the price would be to increase hair density in pubic area? male 50 yrs, good health. donor area good.
We charge per hair graft — a hair graft contains one, two, or three hairs. Generally, a hair graft is approximately equal to two hairs. Our complete fees are available on the Fees and Financing page, but in short it is $6 per graft (or $5 per graft on stand-by basis).
The pubic area requires anywhere from 500 to 1000 grafts. This is an over-generalization and depending on the patient you may need more or less.
I recently had a sports injury on right above the hair line in the center of my scalp. Six stitches were put in and later removed. it has been over a 2 months now and very little hair growth has occured since the injury. The scar is about an inch long vertically and about 1/4 inch wide. I was wondering if there were any ointments or other treatments other than a hair transplant that I could use to encourage hair growth. Thank you in advance for your timely response.
Based on what you describe, I doubt hair will grow on the 1″ x 0.25″ scar, and while there are no medications or products that will cause hair growth on this tissue, hair transplanted into the scar will work in most cases. A small scar like what you are describing should not cost a lot to get it fixed. First, I would wait out a period of 6 months before concluding that it is a permanent problem. Without examining you, I can not tell.
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