Dr. William Rassman – Page 1714

November 9, 2006

When Can I Get My Hair Transplant? I’m 22 Now! – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I am only 22 and started losing hair at around age 20. I have been on propecia for roughly 4 months and it has already completely stopped my hair loss. I would rate my hair coverage about a 7 now. Given the fact of my age and great propecia results would a hair transplant be a viable option now given the fact that I dont think I will get the growth I am after from the propecia drug alone? Cheers

Taking Propecia for only four months is a relatively short time. I would wait out a full year before concluding what will happen to you. Get your hair mapped out for miniaturization to get detailed metrics for what is happening on your head. When this is done before and after starting Propecia (after 12 months or so), then you will get an idea what nature has in store for you. Do not rush to a hair transplant now. Give the drug a chance to become effective first. Even though you’ve already started the Propecia, it’s still not too late to get your scalp mapped! It’s better to get the mapping done now, rather than not at all.

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November 8, 2006

Hair Loss InformationI Am Getting Confusing Advice From Doctors – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have done my research on hair transplant for about nine years now. I have always had thin hair but it seemed to progress durring my early twenties. I am 29 now I ahve never had any proceedure. I have had 4 consultations with Dr. Bernstein who has repeated to me that I am not a good candidate for a proceedure. Dr. Bernstein proscribed propecia to me. I have taken it for 4 years (proscar actually) and it has really slowed my hair loss if not completely halted it for teh last 4 years. I do have thin hair all over and thus not great donor area and it is thinner up top and especialy in front.

Yet I still just want some more hair in the frontal area to just look better if even for a couple of years. I have had numerous consultaions with many other surgeons and I have a scheduled appointment to have it done by another doctor.

After reading many things online and reading your blog I am starting to have doubts.

I know I will never have a strip surgery but I am wondering about the validity to any of these proceedures. there is so much garbage out on the internet. i do not know what to believe anymore or who to believe. i just want someone who knows that i want to look better but at the same time cares about who i am and does not want to suffer. i rather be ripped off but i dont want to be deformed or anything.

I really wanted to have this done by Dr. Bernstein but at the same time he tells me to just cut my hair short and i look fine. Every other Dr. I ahve met has said the same thing about Dr. Bernstein – he is ultra conservative. The doctor who wants to do my surgery this week indicated that he did not undertsand why Dr. Bernstein did not want to perform FIT or FUT on me. He suggested that Dr. Bernstein’s techniques are not very advanced. Another doctor was pushing strip surgery and saw me for about a total of 30 seconds.

I already have been financed for $7,000 for 900 grafts. Not sure if I should do it anymore because I am so confused – yet I really wold like to have more hair in the front.

Please, Please give me some advice. should I go through with this. I was 100% ready and then i started to surf around on the net and suddenly i am worried and paranoid. Some of the doctors seemed very professional and honest about the results especially long term. Other than losing my money are there any cons. I figure I will just shave my head in a couple of years if I lose everything anyway. Is there any way to find out who are the bad doctors out there to help me focus on what to do?

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As I have said time and time again, this is a buyer beware business. I have edited out the many doctors you asked about, because my job is not to slander anyone. I left Dr. Bernstein’s name in your questions, because I know him and he is honest and always professional at making decisions that are in the patient’s interest. Remember, Dr. Bernstein did not make any money in this case and will not make any money when he is telling you to hold off on a surgery. He, like myself, is a hair transplant surgeon and when an honest doctor is telling you to hold off, he is going against his short term financial interests. In the long term, being protective to patients is always good business; trust and reputation are things that have no price for us, for a good reputation is really invaluable. It is clear from your question that you are not sure about what to do, so I would always tell someone like you that a good decision today is a good decision tomorrow.

There are a number of websites worth looking at for doctor recommendations, including IAHRS and HairTransplantNetwork.com. Also, please read my previous blog entries for ways to select a doctor, learning about pricing of transplants, and cheap tricks some doctors pull to get you to have a surgery —

November 8, 2006

If Intercytex Has Completed Phase I Trials… – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr. Rassman,

Thanks for taking time out from your busy schedule to help answer our questions.

I was quite interested in one of your blog entries about Hair multiplication and the process that is involved with it. You mentioned a failed experiment by Dr. Unger where the new injected hair did not settle in well. For all of us looking for the answer to hair loss, i am sure safety is the most important.

My question is that if Intercytex has completed phase I (safety trails) this means that they have overcome one major obstacle that should be put to rest.

If not, that does Dr. Unger have any more comments?

Thanks once again for your time and work.

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Just because phase I trials were completed, it does not necessarily mean the technology is valid. Phase II and phase III still need to be completed, then followed by FDA trials. Based on the Intercytex presentation at the ISHRS meeting I attended last month in San Diego, phase II trials should be completed by the end of 2008.

Personally, I would not hold my breath.

November 8, 2006

Cigarettes and Hair Transplantation – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Done hair transplant 20 days ago. i have started smoking again but my doc advised against it. will smoking stop the growth of newly implanted grafts?

Smoking is bad for your health in general and it contributes to poor wound healing and poor circulation. If you are saying that you recently had a hair transplant and are now smoking, it might impact growth as the circulation does go down in the scalp with smoking. It is impossible to state that smoking will stop the growth of your implanted grafts, but why risk it? I can say that of those people who may have had less than targeted end-results, most were smokers. Maybe it is a good time to stop smoking.

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November 8, 2006

Dry Skin and Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hi Dr., I recently had a consultation and I think I was told that retin A caused hair loss. I believe the doctor sai that it dries out your skin and this causes hair loss. I have recently began using minoxodil on the sides of my head and for some reason it causes my face to dry up and I was wondering even though minox. is prescribed to treat hair loss, can it cause it by drying out my skin.

Is that correct? Thank you.

Rogaine Foam Minoxidil (Rogaine) can be a skin irritant for some patients and Retin A is an acid which burns the skin and will cause dryness. Some patients have told me they stopped using minoxidil because of this side effect.

BUT… there is a new form of minoxidil that just came to market called Rogaine Foam which should not cause the dryness that other topical minoxidil may. I do not have personal experience in using it (I take Propecia), but some readers of this site have written to let me know that they do like the foam better due to ease of application and less of a skin annoyance. Reports by experts indicate that there is better absorption and better blood levels with the foam whihc should translate into better results over time.

November 8, 2006

FUE vs FIT — Which Technique is Recommended? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Overall what would be your recommendations for a procedure that would better serve the interest of the patient the FUE or the FIT?

The difference between FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) and FIT (Follicular Isolation Technique) is essentially in a name. The originators of the technique called FIT, in my opinion, could not get credit for an inventive breakthrough, so they simply changed the name. With that said, the FIT doctors use what they think is a different instrument (a sharp punch with a depth guard), something I used in the early days when I was originally exploring the technique and found no real advantage because any alteration in the angle of a sharp punch will cut through the graft and kill is. I believe that the use of a sharp punch of any type causes too much damage, so I rarely use it except for special cases where my biopsy shows that it has value and will not damage the hair. The best interest in patients is served by the least damage in the extraction process when these procedures are selected. There is enough difference between the tissues of one patient vs another patient that fine tuning the instrument (which instrument will be best for that particular patient) is critical (my opinion).

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November 8, 2006

Hair Loss Potential from Prescription Drugs – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello,
I Have a question regarding prescription based drugs and thier potential to cause accelerated hair loss. For many years I have had a very mild thinning throughout my crown and front (not very noticable). I never really considered going bald, as it is not in my family.

I work out a lot and started using phentermine as an energy booster and to help keep me on a very strick diet. I ended up going a few weeks only eating a small portion of vegetables, rice, and nuts (very little). I was also taking Xanax to help me sleep at night.

During this time I noticed an incredible loss of hair just at the top of my head. Picture a skunk, that is kind of like the very thin line of hair I have right down the top (form front to mid section).

Could this be the drugs? Now that I have stopped, will this possibly grow back?

Thanks

You described some of the causes of hair loss — diet and weight loss, drugs possibly with androgenic bents, drugs known to possibly contribute to hair loss, and stress. You may also have turned on the switch for male pattern hair loss with a thinning pattern on the top of your head. If you triggered the genetic switch, then you should have your scalp hair mapped out for miniaturization. Once your diagnosis of male patterned hair loss is in hand, consider starting on Propecia. If the genetic switch was turned on, you may not get your hair back, but Propecia might help with that agenda. In any event, if you do nothing you will know in less than a year if the hair will grow back by just watching it.

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November 8, 2006

I’m Not a Drug Taker, But I Want to Maintain My Hair – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I am having a 2200 graph transplant next month. What in your opinion is the best way to maintain what I have on my head. I am not a big drug taker and I feel like if I dont take something, I am wasting my time because my hair is going to continue to fall out.

The only way I can recommend to minimizing your progressive hair loss — and yes, it is progressive, because that is the nature of the beast — is to take finasteride 1mg (assuming you are a male). If you do not take this medication, you will most likely continue to bald, because that is what happens to men’s hair if they have genetic hair loss. I do not know if you are wasting your time, but you aversion to taking a pill once a day makes no sense to me. By taking finasteride once daily, you are not becoming a drug pusher, just a smart patient.

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November 8, 2006

Taking Expired Propecia, Transplanting Spikey Hair – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Thanks for your very informative blog.

Two questions: I’m 35 – MPB runs in my family. I’ve avoided using anything and think I’m ready to try propecia. I actually got a prescription for it about two years ago – just didn’t take it. Is there any harm in taking expired propecia?

I few years back I saw a transplant doctor in San Antonio, TX. He said I would not be a great candidate for a transplant because the hair in the back of my head is kinda spikey and the scar would be noticable. How do you deal with folks with spikey hair to minimize that?

Thanks so much!

If the Propecia was in a sealed bottle, it would probably be ok. I won’t recommend taking it, but I do recommend reading this article from Newsweek published a couple weeks back — Do You Take Expired Medications?. Contact your prescribing doctor for the final word on what you should do.

With regard to your question about spiked hair, I’ll assume that the doctor you saw was saying that your hair was very straight and strong in character. That should not be a problem for transplantation. Asians have strong, straight hair and I do such surgeries on this type of hair quite often with no problems.

November 7, 2006

The Used Car Sales Tactics in the Hair Transplant Field – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Dr. Rassman,
I know you can’t mention this company directly in any response on your blog, but I thought you’d find this example of used car hair transplant sales techniques atrocious and a perfect example of what the buyer should beware of. A free digital camera for scheduling a last minute surgery!

I removed the link you included, but I’m sure some people can figure out who you are referring to. I have heard your sentiments from quite a few of my patients. It is a shame that the practice of medicine is being compared to car sales, but many patients like you will see this tactic and will stay away. It’s a very cheesy, splashy thing to offer some kind of freebie like that to entice someone into choosing one clinic over another, or rushing one to make a decision prematurely for a deal that might close at midnight tonight. Your questions and probes should be about the quality of the procedure, not the giveaway or inducements to get you to ‘book’ a surgery. But that’s just my opinion — obviously what works for them is not what I would agree with doing. It is unfortunate, but I have seen many patients taken in by these practices. As I’ve said time and time again, this is a buyer beware business and I am disappointed and saddened to see that even my profession is not beyond used car sales tactics.

(My apologies to the readers out there in the pre-owned auto sales field.)

[tags]hairtransplant, hair transplant, tactic,

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