November 2008 – Page 10

November 6, 2008

My Doctor Said Propecia Wouldn’t Cause Shedding – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hi I just got a propecia prescription but I wanted to ask you a question before I started to use it.

I’ve read on the internet that propecia may cause shedding but my doctor, when I asked him, said it wouldn’t. Can you possibly explain further (my doctor said that I was in the very early stages of loss). Hope to hear from you soon! Thank you.

Some people report shedding for a month or so when they start Propecia. We postulate that Propecia moves hair on an accelerated hair cycle and that the shedding that is reported is the result. I am not familiar with any permanence with whatever shedding that occurs (if, that is, it really occurs).

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November 6, 2008

Hair Growth After Transplanting Hair Into Scar Tissue – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Dr. Rassman I want to first thank you for maintaining such a top notch site. I have a question for you regarding transplanting hair into scarred tissue. I recently (4 months ago) had hair transplanted into a 1 and 1/2 inch long scar running front to back. I am seeing very little growth…if any. What seems to be present are a few graft which never fell out and have continued to grow. I am aware that growth in scar tissue may take a little longer than if it was to be transplanted into virgin scalp, however, to put my mind at ease I was wondering in your expert opinion, what is a reasonable timeline to expect growth in the scar? Thank you very much in advance for your reply.

It’s only been 4 months, so seeing a little growth is completely normal. I tell all patients to wait for a full 8 months before judging the hair transplant results. You just have to be patient.

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November 6, 2008

Hair Gel Caused Irritation Leading to Scabs That I Picked Off – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello, I am in desperate need of advice about my hairline’s growth. From 7th to 9th grade I would wear hair gel. The chemicals in the gel had formed dandruff that irritated and dried my scalp. I would excessively scratch my head because of the itching. Especially around my hairline. Tiny scabs would form and I would pick them off with my nails because they would itch too. Hair stopped growing on those little areas of my hairline where the scabs were. Now it looks like I have a receding hairline. It has affected my confidence and left me full of regret. I think I permanently damaged the hair follicles on my hairline, because instead of thick hair tiny baby hairs grow out instead. These baby hairs seem like they do not grow. I am seventeen years old now, and I limit my use of gel to avoid itchy dandruff. It has been about a year and a half since I stopped scratching so compulsively. I hope you understand my perception of this depressing situation. Have I permanently damaged the hair follicles on my hairline? Will I ever have any growth, or is their something I can do about it? Please give me your insight and knowledge of what I can do.

You need to be evaluated by a good dermatologist. Sometimes gels can produce allergies, which may cause itching. Continuous scratching of the hair will produce traction alopecia and if you scratch it often in the same place, the hair loss can become permanent. I couldn’t tell you if you’ve developed permanent damage, though.

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November 6, 2008

Can I Shave My Head Bald After FUE? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Well I am black male and currently shave bald. I want to continue to shave bald. I am thinking of FUE to give me some hair in a thinning area. I have few questions: What does the donor area look like when you shave bald after FUE, does it show scarring? I mean razor bald like MJ. Is it worth doing?

I’m confused as to why you’d want a hair transplant only to shave your head bald. All wounds to the scalp will cause some scarring. With FUE, the scars are tiny dots, instead of a straight line scar like that of the strip transplant and they may have a white color to it that would show up after healing an FUE donor area. With dark skin, that might be a problem and one way to tell that is to have a test FUE session done of just 2-4 grafts and assess the healing at 3 months. These tiny scars allow you to keep your hair very short without noticeable scarring if the whitish scar does not appear, but that being said, completely shaving your head may make these scars visible. Again, a test is worth a try.

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November 5, 2008

Country Singer Keith Urban’s Hair – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hey Doctor Rassman.

I notice you get quite a few celebrity hairline questions so i figured I would add one more to it!

I was wondering if you could tell me from the pictures provided what kind of hairline does country artist Keith Urban have? I ask because my hairline looks very similar….as i’m sure u can see he has a very large forehead (as do I) and it looks like he has receded on the sides (Mine isnt receded past the sides like his but it is mature, always has been) but it looks very clear that he isn’t balding because he still has alot of hair! and those short hair pics are from almost ten years ago!

Just thought it to be an interesting question, and I hope to get your opinion.

Here are the links: photos and side view photo

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I’m not a country music fan, but I knew he looked familiar. Someone on my staff reminded me that Keith Urban is married to actress Nicole Kidman, so chances are I’ve seen his face on the cover of People Magazine in the lobby of my office. The reason that’s important to note is that even though he’s a musician, he doesn’t seem to be the type to tour in a van. He’s married to an A-list actress, so chances are pretty good that he has a personal stylist.

At any rate, his hairline looks fine to me, but you never really know how much of it is the illusion created by his stylists. It could just be that his current look is hiding the high corners with big strands of hair falling in front or he could’ve had work done (though I doubt that). I’d say he has an early Norwood Class 3 that appears to be very stable with a persistent forelock. His long hair makes it very difficult to really draw any conclusions.

November 5, 2008

Why No Photos of Hair Transplants 3-4 Years After Surgery? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

hi doctor,
in most of the hair transplant sites one mostly see the after photos of 6 months or 1 year after the procedure. my question is what happens thereafter ? could you provide some 3-4 years after photos so to see the longetivity of results of transplant.

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The hair transplants are permanent. At the 1 year mark, the results will be fully visible. I’m not sure the benefits of seeing 2-3 years later, as the transplants will be the same as after 1 year. I have seen patients transplanted in the 1960s and 70’s with the terrible old plugs, and other than turning gray, they still have those same terrible old plugs. I have seen many patients 10 years out and they are happy and their hair is about the same as it was in their 1 year picture, so I just make a note on the chart saying “no change” and do not take routine photographs. If you are implying that some terrible disaster happens to the new hair and that is a concern for you, don’t worry about that one.

November 5, 2008

Propecia and Viagra – Balding Blog

hi doctor i would be really grateful if you could answer a few questions for me.firstly i am thinking of taking propecia because i want to stop my hair loss and i already suffer with maintaining erections. my question is does propecia work if you take viagra and also what harm do both drugs have in starting a family with my wife. MALE AGE 27 PLEASE ANSWER AS I NEED TO KNOW. we lost our first child due to cot death and are now ready to start trying again

If you have erectile dysfunction (ED), you need to see a doctor. The use of Viagra may solve the problem for you, but let’s make sure that you do not have a medical cause for the ED like diabetes. You can safely take Propecia (finasteride) and when you are in need of Viagra, you can take that as well. Did the ED come about when you started to use Propecia? There is much I would want to know if I were your doctor.

November 5, 2008

In the News – 10 Year Old Gets Hair Transplant – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

From the article:

Jacob Vara, of Corona [California], loves playing baseball and wears his Yankees cap everywhere.

He has worn it ever since he was 10 months of age when he tugged on a wire attached to an electric grill and spilled searing hot cooking oil on himself. He suffered second- and third-degree burns in an accident that left him with a softball-sized bald spot on the front of his head.

Read the full story — Corona boy undergoes rare hair transplant

Although the article states that they transplanted 1500 follicles from the back of his neck, I assume that means the doctors got 1500 grafts from the donor area (above the neck). The author of the article likely doesn’t fully understand what he was writing about, so errors like that can and do occur. Obviously, transplanting a child is not a usual procedure, but this is a case of a large bald spot due to a burn. I hope this young man has an excellent result that will give him confidence that he deserves.

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November 5, 2008

I Took HGH After a Hip Replacement, Now Seeing Female Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I’m a resonably healthy 45 year old female. However, I recently had to have a hip replacement and took HGH for 4 months prior to the surgery hoping it would help the recovery process. I stopped taking it immediately after the surgery and I have noticed considerable hair loss. The texture of my hair is also much drier and generally terrible. Is this going to be permanent?
Is there something I can do to improve these problems – particularly the loss?

Thank you

Human growth hormone (HGH) does cause hair loss and changes in hair texture. Discuss this with your physician, but I’d probably stop it and wait 8 months or so to see if you return to your normal state. If any of the readers have any experience here, I would love to hear from you at Balding Forum.

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November 4, 2008

In the News – College Students Losing Hair Due to Pool Chlorine? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Some students at George Washington University in Washington, DC have been experiencing hair loss after swimming in the pool. From the article:

Chemical imbalances in the pool, which began on Oct. 21, were caused by “a glitch in the (chemical) monitoring system,” said Kirk Southworth, service coordinator for Winkler Pool Management, which monitors pool equipment for the University.

One swimmer said his teammates lost about 70 percent of their body hair. The athlete also said he “could hardly taste my breakfast” on Oct. 22 after feeling cotton-mouthed from the previous day’s practice.

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Read the full article — Swimmers report hair loss, irritation

We’ve written here a few times that chlorine doesn’t cause hair loss, and I still stand by that. Even in the article, a professor at the school states that “hair loss is inconsistent with chlorine overexposure and high or low pH levels”. There’s obviously something in the water causing many people to lose hair.

Update: I’m open to any and all studies that show hair loss from chlorine are linked. I’ve not seen any, but seeing as how it is a chemical, I wouldn’t be shocked to learn there’s some link.