Author: Dr. William Rassman

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My Doctor Said I Only Need to Take Propecia Every Other Day – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hi I have been using Propecia for just over 6 months with no visible benefits so far. I understand that it can take anwhere up to 18 months for you to see results.

The trichologist that I have been seeing and who prescibed the Propecia has told me that the half life is such that I only need to take it every other day. Which is what I’ve been doing for the last 6 months. Is this correct?

Thanks for your site its a great help.

Half life of Propecia is around 4 hours. The half life is the time it takes half of the drug to be out of your blood stream. Let’s do the math…

6am – take Propecia (assume 100% got into your blood stream…)
10am – 50% of Propecia is in your blood stream
2pm – 25% of Propecia is in your blood stream
6pm – 12.5% of Propecia is in your blood stream
10pm -6.25% of Propecia is in your blood stream
2am – 3.125% of Propecia is in your blood stream
6am – (a day later) only 1.5625% of Propecia is in your blood stream

Realistically, all the Propecia is out of your blood stream after 24 hrs. That is why you take Propecia once a day.

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Using Grecian Formula or Youthair – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I had a HT procedure done 5 months ago. It went successfully. I addition, around the time of my HT, I decided to begin using propecia and Minoxidil. It has been a great success. My new hairline has been lowered by about 1/2 to 3/4 inch below the the hairline established by the HT.

While I am extremely happy with the result. I want to tackle another problem, gray hair especially near the temples. I want to try either Grecian Formula or Youthair which contains some lead based compounds such as lead acetate. Is it safe to use these product with propecia and minoxidil?

I am not familiar with the Grecian Formula or Youthair that you mention. From a medical perspective, I would be cautions of lead based products. Lead is a poison. And while I hope you are not ingesting these products, the application on skin/scalp can still have a systemic effect as it is absorbed through your skin. See Lead Based Hair Products: Too Hazardous for Household Use – Results.

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Hair Loss Information3000 Grafts Transplanted in the Front Does Not Look Like Enough – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Good day and thank you for past respones. My question is..Does 3000 grafts at the front of my head cover alot of area?. I ask this because thats what I had done. Thing is though after 1yr. I feel there should have been more hair in obvious areas of need. Maybe I expect too much density or what was done never sprouted. Thank you…

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Hair transplantation does not give you 100% of the hairs that you lost. As a rough estimate, it replaces 15 to 35 percent of your original hair density in a single session. Usually this is enough to achieve a positive cosmetic effect, with these factors also playing an important and subtle role in making the transplant look more full:

  1. coarseness (thickness) of your hair
  2. contrast between your hair and skin color
  3. curliness of your hair

As an example, a man with black hair and fair skin with very thin and straight hair would not have a full hair appearance as compared to a man with blond hair and fair skin with coarse and wavy hair.

If you are concerned about your hair transplantation results you should see the doctor who performed your surgery and express your concerns. It is impossible to tell you if your expectation is too high or if the surgery was not a success without a good physical exam. You can also look at NewHair.com for before and after pictures of patients who had similar surgery performed.

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Hair Loss InformationIf I Already Lost Half My Hairs, Should I Still Be Losing 100 Hairs a Day? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have already lost more than half the hairs on the top of my head. I have been reading on your blog, that it is normal to lose up to 100 hairs a day. However, given my current state of hair loss, does the number of “normal” hairs to lose decrease? In other words, since I have lost half the hairs on my head already, should I only be concerned now if I lose more than 50 hairs a day?? I ask this question largely because I am about to start taking Propecia and I want to guage an idea of what kind of benefits I can hope for. Thank you!

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While it is normal to lose 100 hairs a day, there should be 100 other hairs growing at other parts of your head to replace the lost hairs. It is just difficult to find the growing hairs and easy to see the falling hairs. If you are bald and have lost 50% of the hair population, then you will cycle about 50 hairs per day, not 100, and that is what you will see on your pillow (if all of the hair loss was at night when you slept).

If you have considerably thinned and are still losing hair (100 or 50 or 20 hairs a day), you may have hair loss that is genetic in nature (male pattern hair loss). If this is the case and you are worried about this, you may consider having your scalp hair mapped for miniaturization to see the pattern and state of your hair health.

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Hair Loss InformationI Have Thousands of Translucent Hairs on My Scalp – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have male pattern baldness, yet I have thousands of tiny translucent hairs on my scalp. They are short, and do not seem to grow much, if any. When light is shinning from behind me the hairs are very noticable and people look shocked, as I look bald when no back light is present. What are these hairs and why don’t they grow to full length? Have not been able to find anything written about these type of scalp hairs on the internet.

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Polar bearCongratulations! You are a polar bear. A polar bear’s fur is translucent despite its apparent white hue.

Kidding aside, what you are describing seems to be vellus hairs that commonly grow all over our body (look closely at your face… its all over — except for our palms and soles). These hairs are not like normal hair on the scalp and will not grow to normal scalp hair length, and in each follicular unit (which normally has 2-4 hairs normally) there is usually one vellus hair (which is not seen with the naked eye). When there are translucent hairs on the scalp that do not grow (instead of full pigmented hairs) then that is often seen in advanced balding/thinning. These hairs are usually miniaturized and do not grow normally as the genetic factors come into play. You should have your hair mapped out for miniaturization to find out what is going on.

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Hair Loss InformationHair Loss and Blood Pressure Medication – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have been taking LisinoprilHctz10/12.5 and ziac 2,5 together for high blood pressure i recently stopped the ziac and increased the lisinopril to 20/12.5 my hair started coming out ,my question does a beta blocker block dht to some fashion, because from what i have read it should make my hair fall out when taking it not when stopping it.I thought it was my imagination but it has happened 3 times now, or maybe its the shock of getting off the drug,, any ideas!!!

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You are on some medications for controlling of your high blood pressure. I am gathering that you have stopped Ziac, one of these medications, a few times and every time experienced hair shedding afterwards. The medication Ziac combines two antihypertensive agents; a synthetic beta1 selective blocking agent (bisoprolol) and a diuretic (hydrochlorothiazide). There is no report of enhanced hair growth with any of these components. Although physical and emotional stress can enhance hair loss, I don’t believe that getting off medication qualifies as one. Think back and see if there was any other factor enhancing your hair loss, besides changing medication.

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Hair Loss InformationPropecia and Fertility Levels – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I am a 23 year old male and have recently started using Propecia. I have two questions concerning the drug. My first is whether or not it works better in younger men, since the hairloss is caught earlier (maybe easier to reverse the process). I heard that the sooner you catch the problem, the more of a chance you have of at least retaining what you have. My second question is whether or not the decreased amount of ejaculate, as a side effect, (which I have experienced to a degree) has an effect on my fertility levels. Thanks much for your time.

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Propecia seems to work better on younger men, particularly those who are at the earlier stage of hair loss. The decreased amount of ejaculate may be one of the side effects of Propecia, but it has no impact in fertility levels. Furthermore, the decreased amount of ejaculate has no correlation with a decrease or increase in libido.

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Hair Loss InformationDutasteride Causing Frontal Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dear Doctor: Have you heard anything about the use of .5mg of Dutasteride associated with frontal hair loss or thinning? I have been taking .5mg Avodart and 2% Keto shampoo for the past 3 months. I have noticed a cessation of the hair loss on my crown, and a mild thickening, but my widow’s peaks appear to be progressing with a mild diffuse thinning. Any thoughts? Also, I am hearing that topical caffeine is beneficial for hair growth. Any thoughts? Thank you very much!

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Dutasteride, as far as I know, has NOT been linked with causing frontal hair loss. Moreover, dutasteride is not FDA approved for the treatment of male pattern hair loss. I do know that there are patients that use it for treating hair loss, but it is a very potent drug and I trust you have had a long discussion of all of dutasteride’s pros and cons with the physician that prescribed it to you.

I’ve written on topical caffeine before…

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Hair Loss InformationBald Spots in Facial Hair from Electric Razor? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have developed a bald spot in my facial hair. Two actually, each about the size of a quarter and in close proximity to each other. i never had these spots untill about 9months ago. The spots themselves are very smooth without a trace of facial hair. The only correlation i can figure is that roughly around the same time i started using an electric razor i noticed the spots ( not the 1st time or anythig but thats the only thing i can think of ). Also i am 1/2 native American but assume genetic bald spots are there from the get go. Any info would be very helpfull (especially the scientific name of this condition).

Thanks!!

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Loss of beard hair can be caused by a variety of conditions such as ringworm, alopecia areata, or genetic factors, amongst others. You need to see a good dermatologist to evaluate your situation. I would doubt the electric razor is the cause.