September 2010 – Page 8

September 2, 2010

Is Finasteride Making Me Out of Breath? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hey guys. I have been taking proscar (in 1/4’s) for about 10 years but recently I’ve noticed a decline in its effectiveness. So I upped it to 1/3’s. I’ve been under a fair amount of pressure lately and I’m not sure if that is the cause but it seems like I’m always out of breath. I’ve read on various hypochondriac forums that it can be a side effect of the drug. Can you please set the record straight on this?

Thanks so much!

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Shortness of breath is a rare, severe side effect of finasteride… so the hypochondriacs are correct. I don’t recall any of my patients reporting respiratory issues from the medication, but it is listed as a known side effect.

I hope you discussed changes in finasteride dosage with your prescribing doctor before you did the increase.

September 2, 2010

Minoxidil on Eyebrows? – Balding Blog

Hello Dr,
I used to have very thick eyebrows and due to over plucking for many years, one of them is incredibly sparse. I heard that using minoxidil daily will help to make them look fuller. My question is, are there any potential side effects? I have read online that using minoxidil can cause permanent hair on your forehead and face and other ghastly things, are these true? Also, if the treatment does work, will I have to continue using it forever? And is there a chance it will cause me to lose the hairs I currently have as well? Thank you for your time, it is greatly appreciated!

If you plucked your eyebrows and they are sparse, the hair missing from the overplucking probably will not return. Hair transplants work well to fill in the missing hair in the eyebrows.

Minoxidil will probably not help grow new hair at the eyebrows, but I suppose you can give it a shot. If it works, you will have to use it forever. Side effects would be the standard minoxidil risks found here.

There are other treatments available that may also be worth a shot, like a transparent gel with fibers to give the illusion of fullness, Latisse (the eyelash medication), and an eyebrow conditioner that may or may not do what it claims. Check out the write up at NY Times — After Overplucking, It’s Time to Call the Professionals.

September 1, 2010

Hair Transplant Refund? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr.Rassman –
I have had a hair transplant at a clinic about two years ago and the results are horrible. I am aware that there is a consent form but is there grounds to ask for a refund?

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Refund If you have issues with your surgery results, the first thing to do is speak with the doctor who performed the surgery. Be frank and tell him/her what you want. It doesn’t hurt to ask, but full refunds are rarely given.

What is done is done and unfortunately there is no going back. Repairs might be possible, but a hair transplant is forever. That’s really the most important reason that every patient chooses the right doctor and does their research. A surgery on your body is not like buying a car. Do not go bargain hunting. Meet past patients to see the kind of results that the doctor does.

One other thing you can try — visit various forums and get in touch with other patients that have similar problems. You may even find you are not alone with that particular doctor. The collective experiences of patients such as yourself may be more valuable.

September 1, 2010

Hair Loss from STDs? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello doctor. I have a question concerning STDs (venerial disease) and hair loss. I hope this question does not sound absurd, but I am really unfamiliar with the connection between STDs and hair loss. Are there any STDs that can trigger or cause hair loss in a male?

Also, can herpes/crabs be passed onto the hair on your head? For example, if someone were to touch their vagina and then run her fingers through your hair, is it possible for someone to get an STD this way?

Again, I am sorry if this seems really absurd as I am not familiar with the possibilities of the transmission of STDs. Thank you very much.

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Crabs Don’t they teach sexual education in high school? You will not get a sexually transmitted disease (STD) if you touch a vagina and then touch your head… perhaps unless you have a bleeding, open wound on your scalp. And even then it’s quite a stretch.

Syphilis can cause patchy hair loss in later stages, but by then you’re probably also going to experience several other warning signs. There’s no STD that causes male pattern baldness, though. Pubic lice (also known as crabs — see image at right) and herpes won’t cause hair loss.

If you think you might have an STD, I would think balding is the last thing you should worry about. Get yourself to a doctor!

September 1, 2010

I Cut My Proscar Into 10 Pieces – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi,

Like a lot of other people taking finasteride, I have opted to cut Proscar into my daily amounts to save money. I began by taking 1/4 of a 5mg Proscar pill per day and then moved onto 1/5 per day – Both of which left me with some side effects.

Recently I have attempted to take 0.5mg per day, by way of cutting 5mg into 10 pieces. The pieces I am left with are all reasonably similar in size (for the exception of perhaps one piece, which may end up slightly lesser than the others).

My question is, should there be any problem with going about 0.5mg per day in this fashion? It’s likely of course that some days I may be getting slightly more or slightly less than 0.5mg, but should that slight possible variation effect my attempts at reducing DHT within my body?

Thanks.

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Proscar Wow, you’re the first person I’m aware of that can cut a Proscar pill into 10 pieces. Not that there is some sort of competition for these things, but the pill just seems too misshapen to be cut into 10 equal parts. I’d think a pill cutter might be too difficult to use for that, so perhaps you’re using a knife.

In any case, to answer your question… there is nothing wrong with what you are doing. If you are doing it to minimize the side effect risks, 0.5mg finasteride should still have some impact on DHT. If you’re doing it just to save costs, you should consider getting the generic 5mg finasteride since it’ll be cheaper than the name brand Proscar.

September 1, 2010

Propecia and Dry Eyes? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr. Rassman, have any of your patients ever complained of Propecia causing Dry Eyes? I’ve been experiencing severe dry eye for a while and until now I hadn’t really thought that cause might be the Propecia. My eye doctor wasn’t aware of that being a side affect but she was going to research it. I’m thinking about stopping it for a month or so to see if I notice any improvement.

Thank-you

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Dry eyes is not an officially reported side effect, but I have heard other doctors in my field report rare occurrences of it. I would speak to your doctor and consider stopping the medication after weighing out the risks and benefits of your treatment (with your doctor).