Dr. William Rassman – Page 1667

February 21, 2007

Is Propecia Effective in Your 50’s? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi Doc,

2 questions. Still have good hair with balding at crown. Is propecia effective in your 50’s? Heard it wasn’t. Age 54.

Also, after a few days on Propecia noticed brain fog and anxiety attacks. Any experience with propecia causing anxiety?

Thanks

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It works best when the hair loss is more recent. Men in their 50s generally have already passed the rapid hair loss phase, so the impact of this drug in the 50s is not as much as in the mid-20s. Anxiety is a known stress that makes genetic balding more rapid in many men, even 50 year olds.

February 21, 2007

Limitation for a Perm in an Aging Woman? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I am peri-menopausal (50 years old) and was wondering if getting a perm would hold, as with all the hormonal changes I am and will be facing may affect this?

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Having a ‘perm’ should add body to your hair and make it easier to style. The hormonal changes you are experiencing and will experience in the future should not be a factor in your stying decisions (to have or not have a perm).

February 20, 2007

I Had My Scalp Mapped for Miniaturization – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hey Doc, I have visited your site quite a bit over the last year reading various posts on MPB. I am a 21 year old male who has been noticing a receding hair line over the last year. I have been to many hair experts and one actual doctor regarding this issue. My doctor who I saw in December told me it was too early to tell if my hair was balding or just a maturing hairline. He told me to start using rogaine as a first step. However, I recently visited a Hair Club for Men just to see what they had to say about my situation. They mapped out my head for miniturization and it was very clear and apparent that my hair in the frontal area was miniturizing, aorund the temples and such. Moving backwards there was very little signs of miniturization on the top and none towards the back. They wanted me to start their extreme hair therapy which costs close to $2000 for six months. I obviously do not want to go that route and am very curious as to how you feel about my situation. My grandfather is bald and I have uncles who are bald and a 28 year old cousin who has already had hair transplants. How do you think my situation looks right now and what would you suggest as a plan. Thanks so much.

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I could have helped you more if I knew precisely what Extreme Hair Therapy is. Just from looking at the Hair Club website, it appears to be some shampoo, conditioner, herbal pills, and topical minoxidil. Assuming that you have a high degree of miniaturization in the frontal area, the best treatment is finasteride 1mg daily which should slow down, halt, or possibly reverse hair loss. This is not “extreme therapy” and I charge $85 for an office visit and to write a prescription for the drug (if I find that you have genetic hair loss). The consultation is free, though. Miniaturization mapping at my office is also free. Anything else would not be good medical care in a 21 year old with miniaturization. Some of the essentials for establishing a long term plan that your doctor should comment include:

Family history of baldness
Miniaturization mapping
Pattern of baldness
Characters of hair
Donor hair quality
Other medical conditions

This does not cost $2,000.

February 20, 2007

What Does A Poor Reaction to Propecia Tell Us? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi, i’ve been on Propecia for 10-12 months now, and I would say that it has slowed it down maybe 90-95%.

However there’s something that i’ve been wondering for a while now. If the rate of loss AFTER one has been on Propecia for this long was still quite fast *even though it would be a lot better than not being on it at all*, would this indicate:

1) That without Propecia, the hair loss would have been very aggressive?
2) That the person has not been very receptive to the drug.
3) Both.

I’ve always wondered, what does a less than average reaction to the drug tell us?

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The answer to your three questions is Yes, Yes, and Yes — all are possible.

There is no guarantee that Propecia will work. We see better results with the drug on young men with more relatively short term hair loss. This is a drug that is known to be effective at slowing down, stopping or reversing the hair loss, but what that means is clearly uncertain. Here’s stats from the official Propecia website’s FAQ:

A 5-year clinical study demonstrated the effectiveness of PROPECIA.

9 out of 10 men on PROPECIA had visible results (either regrowth of hair, 48% [134 out of 279], or no further hair loss, 42% [117 out of 279]) vs 25% (4 out of 16) on placebo (sugar pill), according to an assessment of photographs by an independent panel of dermatologists.
2 out of 3 men on PROPECIA regrew hair, as measured by hair count. All the men in the study who were not taking PROPECIA lost hair.
A majority of men on PROPECIA were rated as improved by doctors: 77% (210 out of 271) vs 15% (2 out of 13) with placebo.
A majority of men on PROPECIA reported their bald spot getting smaller, their hair loss slowing down, and the appearance of their hair improving.

What’s more, in the first year of the study, 86% (587 out of 679) of men on PROPECIA maintained hair or increased the number of visible hairs vs 42% (282 out of 672) on placebo.

February 20, 2007

I Didn’t Know Weaves and Wigs Would Make My Traction Alopecia Worse! – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I’m a 38 yr old black female. My hair started thinning in the crown about 10 yrs ago. I started braiding it to keep out the chemicals. About 3 1/2 years ago I was diagnosed with traction alopecia. Had never heard of it before. I started wearing weaves and wigs to cover up the ugliness. I never realized that this would make my situation worse. Now the balding has spread to the top and front of my head. Is it too late for a hair transplant that would work. The hair on the sides and back is relatively thick, but it seems so unhealthy. At the rate I’m going I feel like I should just shave my head bald and call it a day. I feel so ugly. I did see a dermatogolist for the diagnosis, but I never got any advise on what I should do to help the situation. Can you recommend anyone to see on this side of the country??

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If you are diagnosed with traction alopecia, you need to keep your hair short with no weaves and wigs. After stopping the insult, you should wait for at least six months and see if your hair regrows. In many cases, traction alopecia may cause permanent damage to the hair follicle and may not reversible. Repeating the evaluation of your hair after this period of time will show the areas of permanent hair loss. At that point, a hair transplant specialist can evaluate you for further treatment options if the hair failed to grow back. Then, if you are using a wig, be sure that it is converted to clips to prevent the transplants from developing traction alopecia.

February 20, 2007

Oily Scalp Help – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi doctor, i have a oily scalp. How do i deal with that. I excercise regularly and my fitness is very good.. But how come i cant get rid of the oily scalp. I even shampooed daily.

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People with oily scalp should use shampoos that are promoted for oily scalps. You need a stronger detergent in the hair shampoo and that is what makes the difference in shampoos. Daily washing is a good idea to prevent buildup of sebum.

February 20, 2007

How Can Lasers Kill Hair AND Grow Hair? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Doc…what’s your lay person’s take on laser therapy?? Seems odd you can use a laser to remove hair and also try grow it…sorry to bug you, just emailed you not too long ago…anyhow, they’re advertising lasercomb on tv, thought I’d ask what you thought of it…

To be honest, I am having difficulty believing that the comb works. A few passes with a comb through your hair each day brings hair back? My brain tells me not to believe it. The lasers that kill hair are different so look at them as a totally different product with a commonality in name.

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February 20, 2007

Procyanidin B-2 and Propecia – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Doctor Rassman –
I was surprised to read in an earlier blog concerning Procyanidin B-2, that you were “impressed” with this approach (given that it is not FDA approved). I do understand that the ingredients are natural and no side effects occurred during clinical studies. My question is this: Would taking the Procyanidin B-2 in conjunction with Propecia be harmful or cancel out any results of Propecia? Obviously, if the two combined act synergistically, then why not give it a shot? Lastly, do you think it is worthwile to try?
Thanks!

Any full understanding of Procyanidin B-2 and Propecia is not available in the literature. There is nothing to suggest that Procyanidin would not work with Propecia, so I would try it if you have the ‘adventure’ in you. The problem, of course, is that if it works you have no clue to which of the two is actually working.

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February 20, 2007

Shouldn’t I See My Hair Receding If I Am Balding? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I have always had a high forehead, but I’ve had two comments in the last month saying I’m growing bald. My hairline has always definitely been higher by my temples, but I’m now unsure if it’s getting worse. When I lift my hair to show my hairline though, I don’t see any thinning. Shouldn’t this be a gradual process where I could actually see the hair receding or doesn’t it work that way? Also, my dad and all of his brothers are completely bald, but they all showed signs by the time they were 20. No one on my mom’s side is bald. Would that mean if I was balding, it would be in the same pattern as my dad and his family? I’m almost 26, should I be balding at the same age as then and same rate?

You need to determine if you are developing a maturing hairline. You should also get your hair mapped out for miniaturization to determine if you are really balding. Recession is different that maturing a hairline and you need to understand the difference. If you do not show miniaturization, the it would be safe to assume that you are not now presently balding.

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February 20, 2007

Why Do Older Men Get Bushy Eyebrows? – Balding Blog

Is there a medical answer for why whenever men get older they loose the hair on thier head and thier eyebrows get bushier?

Eyebrows I believe that the explanation of this is related to the effects of DHT. Included are other “benefits” such as:

The appearance of nose hair
The appearance of ear hair
Increase in body hair
A more coarse beard

You can’t just select one of these secondary sex characteristics probably caused by DHT, but I have seen a couple of patients who took finasteride (Propecia) and found that they lost some or all of their chest hair. They did not report the impact on their nose or ear hair, however.