Dr. William Rassman – Page 1181

June 10, 2010

Juvenile Norwood 3 Hairline? – Balding Blog

Dear Docs,

Please look at the pictures in this thread at BaldingForum. I’d like to get a hair transplant shortly.

How often do you come across a juvenile Norwood 3 hairline? How soon can you schedule a procedure and i’m interested to consult on proposed hairlines.

I was born with a weak hairline and in my 30’s, i’d like something I NEVER had in my teens and twenties; A hairline that won’t be the butt of jokes. Luckily my hair is coarse and wavy with thickness.

I originally met Dr. Bernstein in 2000 at a seminar in Boston. For background information, my grandfathers’ on both sides had hair. My father and his brother are both bald. My older brother 3 years older has a full and thick head of hair with zero recession.

The photos you showed go from being a baby to being in your 20s, and its common for a baby’s hair to be sparse and grow in, so that photo doesn’t really tell me anything. I need to see photos of your hairline before puberty, because if you’re telling me that you had a Norwood 3 at 12 years old… well, I have never seen a 12 year old with a hairline like that (Norwood 3 for a juvenile hairline).

As far as scheduling procedures, I’d want to meet with you or at the very least have a telephone consultation prior to setting up a surgery. If you’d like to setup a consultation, please call my office at 800-NEW-HAIR (or 310-553-9113) and have someone on my staff fill you in on available times/dates.

June 9, 2010

My Crown is Thinning at Only 14 Years Old! – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

well i seem to be having a thinning problem at the crown of my head. The real problem is that i am only 14. It appears that this runs in my family because my uncle is in his twenties and he has the same problem. I am an African American male.

I have also heard that African hair is fragile. i brush my hair with a boar brush that is quite hard. So i am wondering if the hardness of my brush could possibly make my hair look even more thin at the crown. currently i am also obtaining that popular waves hairstyle that is quite popular among african american males is this also a factor?

Block Quote

Boar brush African hair is fragile, but if your brush is indeed too ‘hard’ on the hair I’d suspect you would notice thinning everywhere you brush.

It’s not too common for male pattern baldness to start in 14 year olds, but it is not outside the realm of possibility and it could start with puberty. Considering you have an uncle with early loss, it certainly points to your genetics. You might even find others in your family line had similar issues in their youth. See a doctor, get a diagnosis, and have a miniaturization study done to see what is really going on.

June 9, 2010

Severe Histamine Reaction to Hair Transplant – Balding Blog

Dear Dr. Rassman,

I was reading through your blog with regards to histamine positive scalp. (Which I have). My question has to do with autoimmune response and hair transplants. I have a very over-active auto-immune response to some things, especially poison ivy/oak.

Several years ago (2006, age 50 at the time) I had a transplant done. Top-flight hair transplant surgeon! My hair was relatively dense, with receding hairline. The histamine reaction to the transplant was severe, with a tender and red scalp for over 8 months. Today, I have lost over 50% of my 2006 density, my hair has turned nearly white (was salt and pepper), and miniturization is everywhere (when there was none prior to transplant in 2006). A prolonged histamine response can cause antibodies to attack the body (or follicles). I am convinced this is what happened. Any thoughts from the information I have given you?

Well, if you are convinced that is what has happened, what more can I say?

I do not know of histamine response connected with hair loss. Maybe you need an allergist or a good diagnosis of what is going on with your hair. Maybe you have diffuse unpatterned alopecia (DUPA), which is causing more thinning everywhere. I really do not know without examining you.

I realize you are trying to establish a cause and effect relationship between histamine and hair loss, but I do not know how it is relating. When I talk about histamine reaction of the on the scalp it is the redness that a person sees when you scratch the skin/scalp. Your body releases histamine and makes the skin turn red temporarily. This is not an autoimmune response you are referring to. This is not the histamine reaction from poison ivy/oak. Moreover, histamine is used by your body in many other ways (other than auto-immune related). So you see, biochemistry and our human body is very complicated.

June 8, 2010

Betamethasone Dipropionate Prescribed for Treating Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello Doc, I am an underweight person (25 years,55kg ,height 176cm)of South Asian origin and i don’t have a family history of hairloss. All my siblings have great hair but I have been loosing hair since last two years.I tried Fin but it gave me the side effect even with the lower doses(o.5mg).I started using minoxidil(5%) a month ago but the loss hasn’t reduced a bit. My dermatologist has advised me to use betamethasone dipropionate (0.05%) on effected area. What’s your take on it? Should i use betamethasone dipropionate lotion or not coz after few applications it appears that the loss rate has gone up instead of decreasing.

Block Quote

Diprosone I can’t give you specific advice about what medication is right for you for multiple reasons, but the main one being that I do not even know what you have. What is your diagnosis for the hair loss? Do you have male pattern baldness (MPB), or do you have an autoimmune problem?

Propecia (finasteride) and Rogaine (minoxidil) are the only proven drug treatments for MPB. They are not perfect and by no means a complete cure, but they do work if given time. I don’t know how long you were taking finasteride, but you’ve only used minoxidil for a month and that’s simply not enough time to see any benefit.

Corticosteroids like betamethasone (marketed as Diprolene or Diprosone) are used to treat psoriasis and other skin irritations, but have never been proven to help with MPB. In fact, it might make your hair loss worse. I’ve written about betamethasone before here.

If you need a second opinion, I would make an appointment with a doctor who can explain these things to you in detail.

June 8, 2010

Dad Lost Hair in His Late 30s, I’m Losing Mine at 20 – Balding Blog

Hi Doc. Really nice blog! Been so helpful!

Just want to know. Is it normal to see hairloss several years before your dad did? I’m balding in the age of 20. My dad began losing hair in his late thirties.

All the best!

It seem you are an early bloomer. Hair loss can start as early as teenage years and doesn’t necessarily follow the exact timeframe as other family members. I suspect what you are going through is normal… for you. You need a good diagnosis with a doctor who will map out your hair for miniaturization to help make the diagnosis. Drugs like Propecia can slow or stop the balding process and change the course of hair loss over time.

June 8, 2010

Hair Loss After Running a High Fever – Balding Blog

I came down with high fever last November 2009. For several days, my temp was 105 degrees. After a week, my hair started falling out. the worst affected areas were the crown and the top. My dermatologist said I had a bout with TE. Today, May 2010, six months later, the shedding has significantly lessened and i guess has returned to normal BUT the hairs lost to TE still hasn’t grown back. How long does it take for those hairs to regrow?

I am 45, male and had very thick hair before this nightmare. My two older brothers have genetic balding but one older brother was ’spared’ and still has thick hair even though he is over 50. My hair is still thick except for the part of the crown where I lost a lot during TE. Will they ever grow back?

Thanks for your attention!

Fever It can take up to one full year to see hair regrowth start. Remember though, when it grows, it grows at a rate of 1/2 inch per month.

If you have genetic balding and the fever precipitated the hair loss it may never come back completely, but if it was just a telogen effluvium like your dermatologist says, that will be known to you by the end of this year.

June 8, 2010

The Finasteride FDA Probe Has Triggered Intense Anxiety! – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Dr. Rassman,

The latest news regarding the FDA and Propecia has triggered some intense anxiety in me. I have been using Propecia for 5 years, and have always had a little concern in the back of my mind. The fact is, its still a relatively new chemical.

In response to a question regarding the FDA looking into potential dangers of Propecia, you replied “In my opinion, Avodart and Propecia are both safe medications when used as directed…under the supervision of a physician.” You also quoted from the Merck spokesperson who referenced that there was already mention of male breat cancer in the propecia literature.

1. Shouldn’t we take this news as a warning flag that perhaps there is more to long-term use of Propecia than we might have originally thought?
2. You probably have had a number of patients taking Propecia for close to 10 years, or longer. In fact, you probably have a pretty decent sample size of patients using this drug. What have you seen in patients with regards to side-effects over the years?
3. You frequently answer questions about the hair-loss catch-up phase if someone stops taking Propecia. I am curious as to why someone would stop taking Propecia if they have been on it for several years or more?

I am sorry you have so much anxiety with the news, but at this point it is just an investigation. There is no link that Propecia causes breast cancer so don’t jump on the hysteria bandwagon. I would strongly recommend that you speak with your prescribing doctor about your concerns. Make educated and well informed choices, weighing out risks and benefits.

In my private practice of 10+ years of treating patients with Propecia, I have not seen a patient who presented with breast cancer. We have treated thousands of patients with Propecia/finasteride.

Most of my patients do not stop taking Propecia after several years, and many of them have been taking it for 5-10+ years with no issues. People might stop taking any medication for a variety of reasons, and the questions I post here are usually not from my patients so I’d have no way to know if there were medical reasons, financial reasons, etc. We should wait for any word from the FDA that points to real risks that we are unaware of at this time.

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):

June 8, 2010

Why Is My Hair Changing from Blond to Black? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Drs –
I have been on finasteride for about 3 months for mostly frontal thinning and receding. One thing I’ve noticed on close inspection of my fine, darkish blond hair (and this could pre-date my finasteride treatment, of course) is the presence of a few coarse, jet black strands coming in and even the color of existing strands darkening remarkably towards the root. Is there an explanation for hair color anomalies? Could this be related to finasteride treatment? Is this a sign of something sinister going on hormonally or otherwise? And lastly, could this be viewed as a positive development in my treatment?

There is an excellent review of the genetics of hair color here. There is mention in this writing that some people will go dark after having light colored hair in younger days. Maybe the pigment for black hair gets turned on genetically in rare older people. Or perhaps these random hairs have occurred from time to time, but you’re only noticing them now because you’re more focused on your hair looking for finasteride benefits. I’ve not heard of finasteride causing black hairs to grow or turning blond hair into darker hairs.

It seems you’re not alone with these random coarse, black hairs, as I found others asking about the same thing (see here). Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer.

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):

June 7, 2010

When I Move to Another Country, Will the Water Make Me Lose Hair? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi. I am from Europe in Slovenia. In 5 months i’m gonna move to Canada for studying. So I wanna know, is “different” water gonna hurt my hair and started to make me bald? I am 18 years-old. And if water is bad there (in Canada) or if there’s “hard water” there or filled with chlorine… so if I don’t wash my hair with that water and I wash it with bottled water from stores, will that be OK, will the water be good for my hair, prevent baldness because of the “bad water”?

Thank you in advance for your answer.

Block Quote

Canada When you go to Canada, look around to see if the people there are all bald. If the people’s hair in Canada look like they do in Slovenia, I wouldn’t worry too much.

Hard water (with a high mineral content) won’t make you go bald, though you might notice your hair lacking body or shine. If you are still worried and don’t want to even chance it, I suppose you will be spending lots of money on bottle water… or you could invest in a water filter.

June 7, 2010

I’m a Woman and Was Prescribed 5mg Finasteride Daily – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I am a female, aged 68 years. My doctor just put me on finasteride 5mg daily. Is it now safe for women? And is the dosage too high? If I cut the pill into fourths, would that still be too much?

I would ask this question and your concerns with your doctor. If you need a second opinion, you need then see another doctor.

Please understand this from a medical perspective and I’m not just trying to brush you off. You provided your gender and your age, but I cannot advise you with just that information. For example, is there a breast, ovarian, or cervical cancer history in your family or have you had one of these cancers in the past? There are many variables, so that is the role your doctor plays in these decisions.

Finasteride is not FDA approved for treating female hair loss (I assume that is why you were prescribed it), which means that your doctor prescribed it to you off-label and you need to ask him/her about this. For men, 1mg is recommended for treating hair loss and 5mg is for treating the prostate… so it is unusual for a doctor to prescribe 5mg finasteride for treating female hair loss.

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):