July 2011 – Page 3 – Balding Blog

July 22, 2011

Hair Loss InformationCorrecting a Bad Hair Transplant – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

What if my transplant is bad and I’m scarred badly?

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I really don’t have enough info about what is bad about your transplant, but since I’m sure I’ve answered questions about repairs before, perhaps another physician’s opinion would be valuable to the readers of this site. Coincidentally, I recently read a post on the IAHRS site from Melike Kulahci, MD that answers your question about corrective procedures — Is It Possible To Have a Normal Looking Head After a Bad Hair Transplant?

Side note: I have met Melike Kulahci, MD at the various physician meetings and she is clearly one of the outstanding doctors in this field today. We have shared some stories from time to time and we agree on most of the clinical issues before us.

July 22, 2011

Hair Loss InformationIn the News – Interview with Hair Club Founder, Sy Sperling – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Snippet from the article:

Sy Sperling is more than just the founder and former president of Hair Club, the hair-loss treatment company celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. “I’m also a client,” he says, just as he did decades ago on camera for TV commercials that made the business a household name. Today, Mr. Sperling holds another title— retiree, as he sold the brand he built from the ground up in 2000 to a private-equity firm for $45 million, which sold it in 2005 to publicly traded Regis Corp. for $210 million. But the 70-year-old will be making an appearance this fall—sporting a chestnut brown coif—at Hair Club’s New York City birthplace for an event commemorating the company’s anniversary.

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Read the rest — Hair Club: A Lifeline For the Balding Man

I remember a time where you couldn’t go one day without seeing Sy Sperling on television. The link above contains an interview with Sy where he reveals how he got into the business of selling hair systems, why he’s no longer with the company he founded, and how a professional baseball player helped get the whole business off the ground.

July 22, 2011

Hair Loss InformationIs There Professional Jealousy of Dr Gho’s Technique? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Comment received in response to the recent post about Dr Gho’s technique:

Sorry doc, but the difference between his procedure and yours is that his does not deplete the donor. He has proven this over and over again both with patients and peer reviewed journal articles. He uses a smaller, wave tipped needle and a special storage solution to make this possible. I would suggest that you look into his procedure further before making blanket assumptions and accusations out of what appears to be professional jealousy? With respect.

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I have no professional jealousy here. When I watched his video at one of the medical meetings where he presented his technique, what I clearly saw was FUE. I polled the doctors that viewed it (unofficially) and most people agreed that what they saw, looked like FUE to them. On my next trip to Amsterdam, I will call and ask him to allow me to view his technique up close.

July 21, 2011

Hair Loss InformationISHRS – Comparing Strip Harvesting and FUE – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

For whatever reason, we seem to receive questions about the same topic in clusters. One week, I’ll get a bunch of Rogaine questions… the next week, it’s Propecia time. This week, I got a few about the strip technique versus follicular unit extraction (FUE).

I found a nice article on the ISHRS site that compares strip harvesting to FUE, which I hope will answer some of those questions I’ve got in the past few days. Topics include graft survival, scar formation, and technical expertise.

Link: Comparison between Strip Harvesting and Follicular Unit Extraction: A Fair and Balanced View

July 21, 2011

Hair Loss InformationLLLT for Temples? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello! I am writing you because I have thinning hair in the temple area. I am a 25 year old black male that hair in the temple area have been thinning. I have not tried any medicine to date, but am looking for a good doctor in my area to go see for information on a way to regain my hair. Also wanted to know is laser therapy a good way of doing this and what is the average price range? Thanks in advance!

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I have written about the laser hair therapies in the past, and I’ve been unimpressed with the results compared to the promises and claims the companies make. This goes for the in-office large machines and the at-home handheld lasers. I’ve yet to see regrowth as claimed.

You can read those past posts on the blog, listed under LLLT (low level laser therapy) here.

July 21, 2011

Hair Loss InformationDutasteride Recommendation for a 27 Year Old? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I need to know what dosage of dutasteride you would recommend to a 27 year old patient who has been on propecia for 5 years and is still experiencing hair loss even on the propecia (1mg/daily). I fear that the propecia is just not strong enough. I want to zero the DHT some days so the follicles in my frontal area can have a shot at regrowing. I am not able to accept hair loss and am willing to do whatever it takes to stop the DHT which is hurting my DHT-sensitive follicles. Please help!!

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I can tell you’re desperate to maintain your hair, but I do not recommend dutasteride at this point, as the dosage is still unknown for treating hair loss. I hope you are under the care of a doctor, as these are prescription medications… and in that case, your prescribing doctor should have the answer for you.

July 21, 2011

Scars from Strip Harvesting Surgery – Balding Blog

I have a terrible scar from a previous hair transplant in the donor area. What can be done about it?

If you find that you have a scar from your donor harvest that you find is unacceptable, these options need to be discussed with a competent doctor. The scar often has ridging from the nature of the closure and that will be determined by the doctor who evaluates you. Scars from the donor area are not uncommon and when the surgery is done by a competent surgeon doing standard of care work, scars may still form and be the result of the way your body heals. The treatment of scars are as follows:

Do nothing
Perform a scar revision with a surgeon who can do trichophytic repairs and use ACell in the wound to give you the best opportunity to heal it.
Have FUE into the scar. This can fill in the scar, but hair direction may not be controlled by the surgeon, making the results often disappointing. Two sessions into the scar may be needed.
The use of Scalp Pigmentation has been a significant breakthrough in our hands. Risks include change of color (unusual for the back of the head where hair covers the pigmented area protecting it from the sun). This will not address any ridging in the scar area.

July 20, 2011

Hair Loss InformationAll Men on Both Sides of My Family are Bald! – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dear Doc,

I am 18 years old. Every single male in my family is bald except for me. From my father, older brother, both grandfathers, uncles and cousins on both my mother and fathers side. Everyone! I should be concerned right? Is there anything I can do to prevent going bald before it has begun?

Thank you in advance.

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You should connect with a good doctor and have your hair bulk measured for a baseline measurement, and then have that done every year to be sure that the balding did not kick in.

I would not recommend the use of drugs like finasteride unless or until you actually show a decreasing hair bulk. This is a very sensitive way to follow your course. If most of your family is balding, keeping your hair forever doesn’t look to be in the cards.

July 20, 2011

Hair Loss InformationDUPA and BHT – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

hello mr Rassman long time reader here, you doing a great job here i must add. my question today is regarding my Diffuse Unpatterned Alopecia (DUPA). i’ve had dupa since the age of 17 im now 24 and i still have a decent amount of coverage.

i was thinking about a possible body hair transplant in the future and was wondering if hairs in the beard, pubic area and chest are viable as im looking for the fullest coverage. i for one don’t care about growing this hair out i would plan on keeping it very short shaved. as i am still 24 and still going through changes in terms of body hair i want to wait till im in my 30’s so i have more hair to harvest

what do you think of my chances in terms of having a transplant like this? would i need to take meds after this to maintain the new hair? is the hair permanent? thank you for your time

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Body hair may or may not be permanent. I have never done a complete body hair transplant for a DUPA patient so I can not talk with experience under my belt. I suspect you can find someone willing to experiment on you to achieve the goal you defined above, but it would not be my recommendation.

July 20, 2011

Does Stress or Lack of Sleep Contribute to Gray Hair? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi Doc,

Is there anything (medicine or lifestyle related changes) that can be done to reverse or at least prevent greying of hair?

Does stress or inadequate sleep contribute to or accelerate greying of hair?

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I can advise you to get adequate amounts of sleep to be healthy and figure out ways to reduce your stress, but that advice would not necessarily deal with your graying issue. Gray hair may be caused in whole or in part by genetics in your case.