Month: March 2011

Hello Dr. Rassman
This man who died last year had hair 20 feet long. How did it ever reach this length, i thought anagen phase was only 7 years. Or is it just fallen hair dreadlocked to attached hair. here is the link — OddityCentral.com

Indeed, that is odd. One explanation is that Tran Van Hay (the man with the longest hair) was stuck in a castle waiting for a prince to rescue him.

Another explanation is that while the anagen phase may last as long as 7 years (rate of hair growth at 1/2 inch/month) and produce approximately 4 feet of hair length, if the hair at the catagen/telogen phase (when the hair disconnects from the scalp) was intertwined with the hairs that remain in anagen (growth phase) the hairs will add length. This would create a dreadlock of sorts, but each strand will stay intertwined with the growing hairs. Note that in the photo at the right, that isn’t a hat he’s wearing.

My 114 year old grandmother (she actually lived to 114) had hair that was many feet longer than the 4 feet limit discussed above. I wasn’t yet a doctor when I saw her hair taken out of the bun she had it in. As a hair specialist today, I know that 6-8 feet hair length is not possible. Her hair was washed on rare occasions. When it was washed, it was a festive event when granddaughters worked to unravel her bun and let the hair fall to the floor. The hair was washed with soap and water (not shampoo or conditioner) and rung out by hand, but it was never brushed or combed. In hindsight, I believe I witnessed the hair “dreads” that formed from the failure to brush or comb the hair, where the hair that was growing had meshed with the disconnected loose hair. I remember that her hair was never aggressively combed or brushed, just washed and rung out and then allowed to dry on its own. Those were the days before hair dryers were common in the home (I remember this was in the 1960s, when she was already in her hundreds).

Snippet from the non-hair-loss article:

A Texas construction worker badly disfigured in a power line accident two years ago has received the nation’s first full face transplant at a Boston hospital.

More than 30 doctors, nurses and other staff at Brigham and Women’s Hospital led by plastic surgeon Dr. Bohdan Pomahac performed the 15-hour operation last week on 25-year-old Dallas Wiens of Fort Worth, Texas. He was listed in good condition at the hospital today.

The electrical accident in November 2008 left Wiens blind and without lips, a nose or eyebrows. In Boston, doctors transplanted an entire new face, including a nose, lips, skin and muscles and nerves that animate the skin and give sensation. The donor’s identity was not disclosed nor would the hospital say exactly when the surgery was done for privacy reasons.

Read the rest — Boston Hospital Performs Nation’s First Full Face Transplant

An amazing story of perseverance. The problem that this poor man has is monumental, as is the surgery and the recovery process. His attitude and drive make him unique. We all wonder how we would respond to such an injury, asking ourselves if we are fighters or quitters?

Snippet from the non-hair-loss article:

A quarter of doctors who know that a colleague is underperforming or incompetent do not sound the alarm, a confidential survey reveals. They fear retribution, believe that no action would be taken, or assume that someone else is dealing with the problem.

Martin Roland of the University of Cambridge and colleagues confidentially surveyed 3000 US and UK doctors in 2009. The results suggested that almost 1 in 5 doctors had direct experience of an incompetent or poorly performing colleague in the previous three years.

Read the rest — Doctors fail to report incompetent colleagues

In the March 12, 2011 issue of New Scientist, the journal quoted a University of Cambridge survey of 3000 US and UK physicians regarding their feelings about the competence of their colleagues. Poor performing colleagues who create errors in patient care reflected an alarming 21% of practitioners in the US and 13% in the UK!

I suspect that these numbers are far worse in fields of medicine like hair restoration, because of the absence of peer review of the activities of these doctors. I could name names, but because of the legal system in the US there is no protection against slander lawsuits lodged against me… so instead I speak loudly about the problem and report to the medical boards those physicians who I know are involved in illegal and immoral acts against patients.