Author: Dr. William Rassman

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Using a Slant Board to Increase Blood Circulation in Scalp – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dear Dr.Rassman
Thank you firstly for your assistance and for answering previous question. My question, I have read that using a slant board is good for increasing blood circulation to scalp, 15 mins a day etc. Seems logical,is this okay to do after FUE surgery, I am nearly 2 weeks post-op. Many thanks again.

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BatI had a patient who had gone to Brazil and amongst his many treatments for hair loss, he hung upside down for 20 minutes four times a day. He was told that it would increase his blood flow to his balding scalp. Bats are not bald so maybe that is where the people in Brazil got the idea. He continued to bald even after 6 months of upside-down treatment. Maybe it would work better in the Northern Hemisphere.

If you like the slant board, I do not see a problem using it. Just make sure the tilt does not distort your perspective. And yes, at 2 weeks post-op you are fine to hang upside down.

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L’Oreal Studies 14ft 9in Length of Hair – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

A woman with one of the most extraordinary heads of hair in the world has agreed to donate some of her locks for intensive studies by hair researchers.

Hair typically grows to a maximum length of 5ft. But Dae Yu Quin, 41, a Chinese woman from Shanghai, has hair that trails behind her at 14ft 9in.

The article was published last November, but it just came to my attention and may be of interest to the blog readers…

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Coversyl and Propecia – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have been on propecia for about 8 years, so far so good. Recently I am on “Coversyl 4mg” to control my blood pressure. I understand most of the high blood pressure drug will cause hair loss. If this drug does, can propecia reverse the effect? I am worried cause it takes me 8 years to maintain reasonable “amout” of hair. Hope to hear from u soon. Regards

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Many drugs have the potential side effect of hair loss and antihypertensive drugs are amongst them. If your hair loss is from the side effect of a drug, then it will not respond to Propecia. Speak to your doctor about this drug. Is there a one-to-one relationship? I mean, did the hair loss start exactly at the same time as you started to take the new medication?

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Losing Weight And Losing Hair – Any Way to Prevent This? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

On a recent visit to my hair dresser, I was informed that I was loosing some of my hair and she stated that it could be from the weight loss I have had. I have been on Weight Watchers since Sept 23, 2005. I have lost about 35 lbs and would like to loose about 10 more pounds but not more hair. Is there anything I can take or wash my hair with that will prevent the hair loss? I also take a one a day vit., potassium, B-12, and calcium. I take Estroven at night before I go to bed as well. I am 51 years old, female.

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Congratulations on your weight loss. While a medically starving state and rapid weight loss may be a factor in hair loss, your weight loss was gradual for over a period of one year (which is a healthy way to lose weight). The key is good nutrition and slow, methodical weight loss. You may want a medical evaluation to pursue any medically treatable causes for hair loss and should get your hair mapped out for patterns of miniaturization which are typical of female genetic hair loss.

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Major Hair Loss After Depo Shot – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I recently got my first shot of depo and it has been going good until now. I started losing ALOT of hair. I have naturally thick hair and have never had an issue with it falling out. I fill the drain in the shower then fill a brush after the shower. It started happening about a month ago and i can feel the differance in it already. I have read that it happens with the depo but will it come back and how long will it keep falling out like this?

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If you are talking about depomedrol, it is a steroid and it is a know cause of hair loss. In men with genetic hair loss, it may precipitate permanent acceleration of the hair loss. If you stop the steroids and possibly take Propecia (assuming you are a man), then it might take a few months before you may see new hair growth once the offending agents disappear.

If you are a woman and are talking about Depo-Provera, then birth control pills are known causes for hair loss in women. If you stop the Depo-Provera, chances are that the hair loss will reverse in a number of months. Be sure that your doctor is managing the process and is checking you out for other causes of hair loss. Ask your doctor about alternative birth control to this medication.

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Hair Loss InformationShen Min, Hair Loss, and Foolishness – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

hi ..im 25 yrs old and have started taking an herbal hair growth supplement called Shen Min …100% all natural …ive been on it for about a week and notice my hair is falling out more..especially when i wash it i have more hair end up in my hands..i read in some posts that this is normal…but man i dont wanna lose all my hair if it’s not normal….should i stay on it ??

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First, let me say that losing hair may be normal for you. What you want to do is postpone what is happening to you as long as you can and reverse it if that is possible. Clearly what you are doing is not working, right? With that as a focus, read-on!

I’m speaking here as a physician in the United States, so my comments are based on regulations (or lack thereof) in the USA.

Herbal supplements are not regulated by the US government or health agencies, because they are not medication. And because it is not a medication, it should not make medical claims. When it comes to herbal supplements, it is a “buyer beware” market. Shen Min is making medical claims that have no basis that convinces me that it has any more value for growing hair than rubbing grass on your head.

No matter how many times I write about the many unproven products out there for hair loss, there seems to be a neverending barrage of people looking for magical cures for things that have no magic to it and is only a shortcut for disasterous hair loss. What surprises me is that men will do anything possible to avoid really solving their hair loss problem. Every day that a balding man loses in addressing his hair loss properly, is a step he’s taking to becoming balder and balder and balder and balder… until there is permanent balding. I sometimes grow frustrated with saying the same thing over and over again, but I will persist because it is important to educate people. Get a proper diagnosis by getting your hair mapped out for miniaturization , and then if there is genetic balding, finasteride is the only FDA approved oral solution for stopping or reversing it. As a hair transplant surgeon, I make my living putting hair back in the bald man, but if you think this through, why would I tell you the way to avoid my transplant option? The answer is clear to me — it is best for the patient. I even mapped out the hair on one of my sons and put him on Propecia because I knew, I absolutely knew, he had genetic balding. Much of the hair that he was losing reversed and unlike the person who asked the question about Shen Min and got sold a bill of goods, my son got what he wanted — his hair back.

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Low Hormone Levels and Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Thanks for all the insights. I began worrying about how loss at 21. 6 years later, it’s no longer a fear. It’s a certainty. In the past years I’ve spent researching hair loss, I’ve found your site provides the most honest and reliable advice and information anywhere. It might not always be comforting, but at least I know it’s backed by experienced professionals.

A while back ago I saw a physician after hearing hormone levels may affect hair loss. I learned my testosterone levels and HGH levels were extremely low. This doesn’t suprise me, because I can probably still pass for a 16 year old.

But if this were the case, DHT shouldn’t be the cause of my thinnning hair, right? I’ve read HGH therapy can grow thicker hair, but I’ve also read the opposite.

Also, my hair isn’t thinning in the same pattern as most of the pictures I’ve seen online. It’s thinning equally from front to back. Is this normal, and do you think hormonal therapy might be a viable option to regrow hair in a case like mine?

– Thanks again

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HGH (Human Growth Hormone) therapy is a known cause of hair loss. I think that you are looking for therapies, solutions, and causes in the wrong places. I do not have the luxury to examine your hair loss pattern, but you may not have a typical male pattern hair loss. If you are concerned about hair loss and a definitive diagnosis, you need to see a good doctor who can view you scalp hair under a hair densitometer and map your scalp for miniaturization patterns. It is impossible to give you a medical opinion on the cause of your hair loss without a proper examination.

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Shaving Donor Area for FUE – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi, I am scheduled for a minor FUE procedure to fill in a scar on my scalp, (non-transplant). My hair is very long, and I found out that the back of my head would have to be shaved. My question is, how much of the back of my head will be shaven if the procedure only requires 100 grafts? Would I be able to hide this shaven area will the rest of my hair while it’s still short like that? And also, about how long would my hair take to grow to a normal lenghth again? How many inches does hair grow in a year? And for my final question, to bypass this whole shaving back of head thing, would it be possible to retrieve these hair from another part of my body since there is such a little amount to be extracted?
Thank-you so much

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These questions should have been addressed between you and your doctor. If not, you should call him or her and ask these questions. I think that the actual answer can be seen by looking at the creative way we extracted grafts with FUE. Generally, for a 100 graft FUE procedure, your hair would not require extensive shaving and what shaving was done should not be detectable (the photos below show how well the FUE shaved sites are covered when the hair is left long).

Normally your hair grows at 1/2 inch a month (so 6 inches a year) on average.

There are doctors who do body hair transplants on the scalp. However, these are not proven or widely accepted techniques. More importantly, body hair has a short growth phase and long sleep phase which makes it a poor transplant source.

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How Will a Patient Know if They Lose a Graft? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi Dr. Rassman,

How does a transplant patient know if they have lost/dislodged a graft? Will a lost or dislodged graft always be associated with bleeding and/or pain, or is it possible to lose grafts and be completely unaware. I think for many of your readers who have recently had transplants, it would be helpful/reduce the stress in the interim between grafts falling out and regrowing months later to know what may indicate a lost grafts versus the expected shedding that is supposed to happen. Thanks, as always, for your time and help.

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After the first day (the first few hours by the time you get home) your newly transplanted grafts will have set in and they should not dislodge. If you see something that looks like the pictures on this page, then it is a graft. It would be highly unlikely for these to come out after 3 days post surgery, unless you pick them out. To be a graft, all of the elements of the anatomy should be there.

Some people mistake the hair follicles that come out at about day 7-12 with hair and some surface skin (even with a bulb) as grafts. In a published paper we wrote, the grafts are clearly locked in place at the worst case 10 days after the transplant, or as soon as 3 days after the surgery, provided that all scabing is gone.