August 2011 – Page 8 – Balding Blog

August 5, 2011

I Had An Injury 7 Months After My Hair Transplant – Balding Blog

Dr.Rassman
I had a ht in October of 2010 and things were going well up until the seventh month when I was injured and lost allot of blood. I would like to know, would this loss of allot of blood affect my ht even though things were looking good before this happened. If it would hurt it, does that mean the hair i’ve lost from the transplanted areas will never grow back or will they grow back after I’m back to normal. I’m in my ninth month and things look much worse than they did in my fifth month. I didn’t think the injury I had would have any effect upon my HT results. I’ve been told that right now my hemoglobin is just a little bit lower than it should be. Do you think I’ve wasted all my money and will have to have this done over again. I’m hoping lost transplanted hair will grow back again.

I am assuming that your injury did not directly impact your transplant area. If that is the case, then the hair transplant should grow like your normal hair if the original surgery was successfully and skillfully done.

If you are having hair loss in the transplanted area, see your surgeon and get his/her opinion. I can not tell you much without seeing you.

August 4, 2011

My Diffuse Loss Has Regrown After 5 Months, But Do I Need to Continue Propecia? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I began to experience Propecia side effects about one month ago, and about two weeks ago stopped taking the drug. After two weeks without the drug the side effects had disappeared. My dermatologist told me to take Propecia every other day from now on to limit possible side effects. In addition to Propecia I am taking Procerin, applying Rogaine, and shampooing with Nizoral three times a week. I wrote in in February about diffuse hair loss through out my head; today you can hardly tell I lost any hair. I have been taking propecia since March 4.

My main question is if this drug could have provided such benefit in such a short time, and if not how can i be sure that I do not need it? As learned in my other question, I had been through very stressful times before the loss occured. I am 18 years old with no immediate family history of hair loss. On a side note, my temple points had seemed to be gone back in the winter, though now they are back in full.

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It sounds like you are getting the response you need and want from Propecia (finasteride 1mg). You’ve been taking it since March, and so it’s entirely possible that you saw regrowth in that time from the medication.

I doubt that the other things you are using are helping as much, but that’s one of the risks in using a few products at once. You have no way of knowing which one is the most beneficial. Stopping the finasteride could result in losing the gains you’ve made… or things could maintain if the finasteride didn’t actually help you (for example: if your loss was temporary and related to stress). I have no way to know that for sure via the Internet, though.

You’re under the care of a doctor already, so you should be asking these questions to him/her. Regardless of how you regrew your hair, I’m pleased that you’re seeing success with your regrowth goal.

August 4, 2011

Is It Normal to Have Weak Hairline Corners? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I am a 21 year old male. When I pull the hair at the corners (above the temples) I can lose 2 or 3 hairs at a time. The hairs here seem to fall out much easier compared to the rest but is this just normal?

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It’s not necessarily “normal” for the hairline corners to be weaker than the rest of the hairline, but it could be due to the maturation of your hairline or early balding. Or it could be something as simple as styling product (hair spray, gel) in your hair that is trapping the hairs going through the regular growth cycle from falling out during your daily activities.

August 4, 2011

I Have Fine Hair and Wake Up to 20 or More Hairs on My Pillow – Balding Blog

Hello,

I’m a 21 year old male. I’ve always had a thick head of fine hair. Over the past 3 years i’ve been concerned with hairloss, probably way over paranoid. There hasn’t been any change in my hair line and no one has mentioned anything to me regarding it looking thinner. I just worry cause i seem to shed alot of hair. I can find 20+ hairs on my pillow (granted i do move alot in my sleep). Strands will come out when i comb and run my hand through my hair. My hair just seems to come out relatively easy. Is this common for finer hair?

To determine if you are losing your hair, you should have an examination. Losing hair on your pillow doesn’t really mean anything to me as you normally lose 100 hairs per day, often at night if you are a rough sleeper, scratch your scalp, or brush it too vigorously.

The presence of different hair thicknesses (fine vs coarse) and hair character (curly vs straight) does not impact the number of hairs you lose every day, nor does it cause more or less hairs to be found on your pillow.

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August 4, 2011

Do Transplanted Hairs Take on Characteristics of Hair That Used to Be There? – Balding Blog

Hi,

I used to have a kind of cowlick on one of my temples. Over the years my hair in that area has gone. Since then I have had 2 successful transplants including replacing the hair in that same area. The new hair on the same temple has grown into a cowlick again even though the transplanted hair from my donor area is straight and the rest of the transplanted hair is straight.

Is this unusual in that transplanted hair has somehow taken on the characteristics of hair that was previously there? Do the cells on the scalp somehow have a ‘memory’ or ability to control the characteristics of what new hairs are placed there? Hope this makes sense!

Thanks

The transplanted hair almost always takes on the character of its source. In body hair transplants (chest to scalp) the donor hair often changes a bit, getting longer than when it was growing on the chest. There is no memory that I know of, but I do believe that the character of the skin may influence the character of the hair on a mechanical basis alone.

August 3, 2011

Hair Loss InformationAm I Losing My Hair or Am I Going Crazy? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

This 28 year old man came to see me, because his family said he was crazy when he mentioned that he thought he was losing his hair. He came in convinced that he is following his father’s pattern and feels that the hair in the front, top, and crown have all lost volume over the years. This is a great challenge and using the HairCheck tool showed that he has lost 40% of his hair in the front, and 47% of his hair in the crown when compared with his permanent zone at the back of his head.

Armed with this information, he was happy that he isn’t going crazy, but I don’t know that any patient has left my office truly “happy” after being told they’re losing hair. I actually thought when I first saw him that he would have no balding present at all. My eyes told me what everyone in his family told him — that he had no hair loss problem. The measurements proved otherwise. His hair is coarse (black with light skin), but because of his hair character he would have to lose over 60-70% of his hair bulk to see the impact of the loss that I measured above.

Click photo to enlarge.

August 3, 2011

Hair Loss InformationRapid Diffuse Hair Loss After Using Accutane – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

hello, I am a 25 year old male. At the age of 18 I underwent treatment for acne with the drug accutane. After the six months of treatment I had diffuse hair shedding, literally pouring on to the pillow and sink. Since then I underwent two more treatments with accutane each about two years apart. once again the intense hair shedding began both during and after the treatment. Now a couple years later I still suffer from the shedding.

My hairline has not suffered any recession, my only concern is the crown area where I have a very pronounced cowlick which twists and turns revealing scalp. In this area i lose alot of strong healthy hair bulbed on the bottom like a telogen hair the area becomes red, ithcy, and very suceptable to sun burn even with long hair. In the 8 years I have been suffering this I have not noticed any significant pattern of baldness.

What my question is, is can this be male pattern baldness, a skin disorder, or a following result if the use of the horrible accutane? I have an appointment with a dermatologist for this matter but I would also like your educated opinion. thank you

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Accutane (isotretinoin) is known to cause hair loss. Or you could also have male pattern baldness (genetics) unrelated to the Accutane use. Or even a combination of the two — in other words, Accutane may have accelerated your genetic loss. There’s really no way for me to know for sure via the Internet without an exam.

A visit to your dermatologist is the correct next step.

August 3, 2011

My 82 Year Old Mom Has Burning Scalp and Hair Loss – Balding Blog

My mom is 82 years old and has always had a full head of hair with no scalp issues. About 1 and a half years ago she experienced burning, itching scalp, loss of hair and weight. This ended in about November, and started again in February till current. What could possibly be cause? She has had all blood work done, however has been under stress for quite sometime. She has stopped getting perms and coloring her hair. She sets own hair with rollers and uses a setting gel. Any suggestions?

You just listed many of the causes of hair loss in women over 80. Stress can cause hair loss as well. She should see a good, caring doctor. I couldn’t tell you why she’s having scalp issues or weight loss.

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August 2, 2011

Cubs Manager Mike Quade’s Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I’m watching the Cubs game on ESPN tonight and I noticed their manager Mike Quade appears to have no hair on his head at all, including a lack of eyebrows and maybe even eyelashes. Thats gotta be alopecia right? I didn’t realize it could cause complete hair loss like that. I thought it was more spotty.

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After looking at some photos, I immediately assumed that this was some form of alopecia areata (probably totalis or universalis), so I looked into it a little to see if he’s spoken about it in the press. Sure enough, an article about Mike Quade in the NY Times from last year says, “Quade was 3 when he was found to have alopecia areata, a condition that caused him to lose his hair. Playing sports, he said, was a path to acceptance, a means of softening the taunts from other children.”

So there you go. Different forms of alopecia areata can cause different types of loss, and you can learn more about them at the National Alopecia Areata Foundation (NAAF) site. It appears that Mike Quade has alopecia universalis.

Another professional sports figure with alopecia areata that comes to mind is NBA player Charlie Villanueva, and he is as a spokesperson for the NAAF.

August 1, 2011

In the News – Singer Lady Gaga Uses Rogaine? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Snippet from the article:

Lady Gaga is reportedly taking an anti-baldness drug.

The 25-year-old singer – who has experienced hair loss because of how often she has dyed her tresses – has started using Rogaine in order to reverse the years of damage she has subjected her locks to in the name of fashion.

A source is quoted by The Sun newspaper as saying: “Over the years Lady Gaga has put her locks under a lot of stress. She’s poured so much chemicals over them that it’s damaged her follicles.

“She’s hoping by using Rogaine, she can repair some of the harm.”

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Read the rest — Lady Gaga Taking Anti-Baldness Drug

Judging by photos, it appears that singer Lady Gaga not only has her hair bleached, but that she also wears wigs. Rogaine (minoxidil) is the only FDA approved treatment for female hair loss, so if she is losing her hair from chemical damage, this would be a likely treatment path.

Her hair loss was in the news a few months back, but do I know if she’s actually using minoxidil or if this is just tabloid gossip? No clue.