Finasteride, Toppik, DermMatch, and Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hi Doctor,
I’m on finasteride 5mg (cut into 4 pieces) from past 7-8 months. I have been taking it regularly but have missed it once/twice in a week some times(from a month back). I had no hair loss from past 6 months may be coz i was regular with finasteride and also coz i had head shave. Now im experiencing more hair loss, im counting hair follicles each time i comb my hair. Its around 30 – 40 follicles. Now im totally scared, could you please tell me what can i do to prevent further hair loss.

Also im using toppik and dermmatch for better look. I use once in 3 days. I was using dermmatch when i had short hair and since my hairs have grown im using both for better look. Do you think these concealers can cause hair loss if used regularly ??

Also if i need to send a picture of my hair how can i do it ? Please help me out here, and thanks in advance.

Toppik Having your head shaved won’t prevent hair loss. Taking your finasteride each day will help halt the hair loss in most men. You should discuss the increase in hair loss you’re seeing with your prescribing doctor, who should hopefully be able to compare your results with photos taken before you started the medication. You might also consider minoxidil, which is available over the counter.

Toppik and DermMatch do not cause hair loss. You can send photos to photos@baldingblog.com, but reference this post when sending so I know you’ve written before.

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March 10, 2009

Female Hair Loss After a Stroke – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

(female)
I recently started taking alot of new medications after i had a stroke. Can drugs such as plavix and lisinopril cause hair loss? My hair is coming out by the handfuls every time I brush or wash it. I am a severe diabetic and also take medicine for that.

Female hair loss is different from male hair loss. Women rarely develop the typical balding pattern as men do. Moreover, female hair loss can be attributed to many different factors, including stress, hormone imbalance (menopause, thyroid disorders), anemia, autoimmune causes (lupus), etc. While men can certainly have the same issues, the cause of hair loss in men is mostly from genetic male pattern baldness (MPB).

You seem to have many medical issues, including diabetes, stroke, and high blood pressure. They can all contribute to your hair loss and unfortunately there is no specific cure for it. Even if you stop taking the medication you will still lose hair and these very medications can be the cause of the hair loss. The best option to date for women is topical Rogaine (minoxidil), which you can try — and it is available over the counter. Even Rogaine will not solve your problem completely, though. I would discuss your issues with your physician and see if there are other issues (like low thyroid) that can be contributing to your thinning hair.

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March 10, 2009

Can I Have Sex After a Hair Transplant? – Balding Blog

I had a FUE about 3 months ago, I was just wondering if being sexual active could cause a negative outcome in my hair growth since there is large amount of testosterone being produced during this time…? Thank you

Very active sex is safe within a couple of days after a hair transplant (FUE or strip). I tell this to people as a routine, but passive sex is ok the night of the surgery. Why are you waiting?

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March 9, 2009

Hair Loss InformationTaking 1mg Finasteride Every 3 Days? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Do you think it is suitable for a person suffering MPB to combat their hair loss by taking (1mg)Finasteride every 3 days?

Could there be any disadvantages to this?

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I mean no disrespect, but I am always amazed when people invent their own medications, doses, and rules. Sometimes it is based upon fears that are not reasonable, and perhaps sometimes it is to cut costs. The recommended dosage is 1mg finasteride each day to treat hair loss. Taking it every 3 days will mean you have 2 days of no protection from the medication… so your hair loss will likely continue. The drug is out of your system in a day, which is why it’s a daily pill.

March 9, 2009

Why Does Propecia Only Block 80% of DHT? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Is the reason Propecia only blocks about 80% of DHT because the remaining 20% is Type I DHT and not Type II DHT?

No, it is because the way this particular drug (finasteride) works is through competitive inhibition with DHT. To understand this, look up competitive inhibition of drugs, or look at this page. Without getting too technical, this process makes it almost impossible to get 100% block from drugs like finasteride, because the drug and DHT are constantly competing for the binding site on the enzyme 5 alpha-reductase.

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March 9, 2009

Is Hair Loss from Mold Permanent? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I know you said in another post that mold can possibly lead to hair loss; however I am wondering whether such an issue may be reversed. If you do experience hair loss as a side effect from over exposure to mold, will the hair return once the mold is removed? Or is the loss permanent? Thank you for your time.

Diseases like ringworm (a mold) can be treated successfully unless the presence of disease is a complication of a compromised immune system (like from HIV). In most cases, the hair grows back once the mold/fungus is successfully treated.

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March 9, 2009

Hair Loss Information » Do Women Want Men with Full Heads of Hair? – Balding Blog

In an article in New Scientist Magazine published in late November, 2008, called “Getting It On”, author Mairi McLeod discusses and analyzes proclivities of male and female roles in the sexual game that goes on in real life. Sex drive is a focus of the article and the turn-on elements of each sex is a focus of the article.

Snippets from the article:

“A woman’s status affects her choice of sexual partner….. women who a high level of control over their own finances end to place higher importance on physical attractiveness in a man than on his financial prospects….. if increasing female economic power leads to greater demands for good-looking sexual partners, it may pay men to invest more in their appearance. Given the explosion in the male grooming industry, it seems that men are already onto that one”.

That might explain the increased incidence of hair transplantation in men, to make them feel sexier in attracting more women.

A similar article by the same author is at The Scotsman.

March 9, 2009

China’s Last Eunuch Was Bald? – WRassman,M.D. BaldingBlog

China’s Last Eunuch Was Bald?

Mar 9, 2009/by William Rassman, M.D./2 /Hair Loss Causes

I read this news story about the last eunuch in China, named Sun Yaoting. At only 8 years old he was castrated… and looking at photos of him before his death in 1996 shows he was clearly bald. I thought castration was the “cure” for hair loss, not that anyone should ever go that far of course. So what’s the deal?

Here’s the news story: LA Times
Here’s the photo of him from the cover of a book: Book cover

Assuming that the castration was complete, there at least two explanations that come to mind:

He had testosterone production from non-testicular sources. We known that women have testosterone and when they lose their estrogen support at menopause, they developing balding.
This may show the phenomenon called apoptosis (a cell that has reached the end of its lifetime) and that the hair in the “patterned” areas had reached the end of their life.

I haven’t read the book and don’t know if there are photos throughout, but I would love to know what he looked like at age 40, 50, 60. Was he that bald at 40, 50, and 60 years old? We only have scant facts here, and I tried finding other photos online but just came up with that same one used on the book cover.

March 9, 2009

Can I Just Do a Trial Surgery of 100 Grafts to See the Results? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Thanks for lots of info. I have lost most of my top hairs, considering the expensive cost am thinking to try first 100 graft hairs and see the results and then may go for 400 more. Is it reasonable? I had consultation with a doctor in Canada but he recommended to have few sessions of total 1000 at least. your comments please.

Thanks

The number of grafts should reflect a plan for you and your doctor, which is long term. I do not know anything about you so it is impossible for me to tell you what you may want to hear. If I felt that it did you no harm and it met your needs (or some of them), I would consider doing what is in your best interest. Generally, I like my patients to undergo as few surgeries as possible and to KNOW that it will look like before they do it. We accomplish this by giving our prospective patients access to those who have had transplants in the past.

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March 6, 2009

Hair Loss InformationI Just Had a Hair Transplant, But My Doctor Told Me I Don’t Have Great Donor Hair – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Doctor can you please help me with this topic. A few days ago I had my first HT procedure for 4300 grafts. My Doctor told me that the hair under my ear is thinning therefore not leaving me with the best of donor hair. How is it possible that hair from the back is falling out?

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Screwed There are some inconsistencies in what you’ve told me. 4300 grafts in one surgery indicates that the donor area is very rich with hair and the densities are high. That is not consistent with problems in the donor area, which can be seen in diffuse unpatterned alopecia (DUPA), for example. People with DUPA never can get yields like you have received. When I learn of a single procedure of 4300 grafts, I assume one or more of the following:

Very high densities
Loose scalp
Grafts cut down into one hair grafts — which means in normal densities, you got about 2300 grafts (and paid more money for less actual grafts)
Doctor who is dishonest and lied about the numbers to rip the patient off

That last item is far more common than I would want to see. The times that I get 4300 grafts (usually over 9,000 hairs) from a donor site (without cutting the grafts into 1-hair grafts) are substantially less than 5% of all patients. As the originator of the megasession, I feel this makes me an expert on the subject.

Poor donor hair under the ears almost always reflects upon donor hair in the back of the head to some degree. The existence of a poor donor supply on the sides of your donor area should be similar to the hair in the back of your donor supply and as such, 4300 grafts just does not calculate in my book. I wrote the original articles in the medical literature dating back to 1993 on this very subject (see NHI Medical Publications).

For your sake, my fingers are crossed that your grafts grow in nicely and you got the 4300 grafts you paid for… and I am hopeful that you did not get screwed.