Category: Hair Loss Causes

Posted on

Hair Transplant Patients That Keep Their Hair Cut Short? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hey! I realize that the whole idea of a hair transplant is to make less hair look like more as there is only a limited donor supply. This seems to work great for those who grow their hair out but I have never seen a transplant patient keep their hair short. I know there are scars that need covering, but just out of curiosity, do you have any examples of shorter hair post transplant? I just can’t imagine it working with less than 50% density.

Block Quote

I generally do not recommend keeping the hair short (crew cut length) after a hair transplant because the hair transplant does not create enough density. For a hair transplant, we generally target about 15 to 25% of the original density. If the transplants is limited to a specific small area, that number will be increased to possibly 35% of the original density. A second or third procedure can bring the density up to ~50% (maybe), but although that density often looks good with longer hair, it does not look very full when cut short. Some of our patients have tried to cut their hair short, and all of them eventually let the hair grow out unless they had Scalp Micropigmentation to diminish the contrast between the dark hair and fair skin. We target fullness, not density. Fullness is a reflection of the (a) thickness of each hair shaft and (b) density. The thicker the hair (e.g Coarse hair) the less density is needed. Fine hair produces a real fullness issue in some patients. If the hair is fine and dark against a light skin, even a 50% density may not look full enough with longer hair. In conclusion, we generally recommend that our patient exploit length to maximize fullness and minimize the number of procedures that are needed to obtain the results that they desire. One must understand the limitation of a hair transplant surgery which is where you are basically rearranging your hair from one location (back of the head) to another location (front of the head). If you move too much, the original area will be bald.

Posted on

Hair Loss InformationHow Do You Know if Your Hair Transplant Doctor Has a Good Track Record or Review? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

How Do You Know if Your Hair Transplant Doctor Has a Good Track Record or Review?

Block Quote

That is the big question and you should know how to manage the hair transplant doctor selection process.

These are the things you should do before selecting a hair transplant doctor. There is uncertainty in the field as some doctors do not get the results that they should and you don’t want to be on the receiving side of that statement so research the doctors and the medical group you should be interviewing.

Our medical group (the New Hair Institute) has pioneered most of the new technologies of the past 20 years. These technologies included (a) The use of small grafts in large quantities instead of the large grafts which gave the appearance of ‘dolls’ hair in 1992, (b) follicular unit transplant first introduced in 1995 which used the natural growing units of 1-4 hairs each found in the human scalp (follicular units), published 1995, (c) Follicular Unit Extraction pioneered between 1996-201 and first published by use in a peer reviewed medical journal in 2001, (d) Scalp Micropigmentation introduced by us in 2010 and published in various medical journals and text books since. What we do to help you, the buyer, is we hold Open House Events every month where patients can come and (a) meet with the doctor, (b) meet with other patients who had their work completed, (c) see a procedure as it is being done. We believe that seeing is believing and that a good buyer will know if they are being ‘led down the garden path’ to disaster or if it what we represent is real. Our patients have been coming to these open house events for over 20 years and what you will see here is what you will be getting with the results that are shown.

There are ‘for profit’ networks or forums that promote doctors under the “guide” that their list of doctors are the good doctors inferring that if the doctor is not on their list, they may be ‘bad’ doctors. Unfortunately, these “networks” or “organizations” or “forums” or “coalitions” have their own issues and flaws. For starters, these organizations are there to make money! To put it bluntly, the doctors have to pay for being on these lists and the fees amount to thousands of dollars per year. It’s actually a clever way for these forums (networks) to make millions of dollars as they endorse a doctor and post the doctor in the recommended list of doctors. The doctors’ results are never evaluated, but feedback from dissatisfied patients get posted to alert prospective patients that there may be problems with those doctors posted by unhappy patients. They create an image of being an “independent” source for endorsements. It is a Faustian bargain for the doctors.

I generally advise prospective patients to go to the internet and look up the doctor on the official licensing agency. In California is is the California Medical Board. If the doctor has been charged for any reason and found guilty of any infraction, they will be listed on this website.

The buyer has the burden to check out the doctors in their area by asking a lot of questions, researching the internet, Yelp and other such sites, the Chamber of Commerce in the area and go to the Board of Medicine which controls the license for doctor (for California it is the California Medical Board). These boards will make public, complaints about the doctor and disciplinary actions taken against the doctor, a worthy effort in your due diligence process.

The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) is a non-profit medical association of over 750 physicians specializing in hair loss with defined skills in the hair transplant and hair restoration field. To be a member you need a medical degree and the annual dues. You do NOT need special training in hair transplant surgery. The ISHRS is the most well known and respected organization for physicians with the most members and its focus is on medical education and we participate every year in their educational programs. There is no discipline or authority to oversee the practices of its members. To the consumer (patient) the doctor’s membership to the ISHRS just means the doctor is paying his dues annually and keeping abreast with the science of hair loss and therapies to treat hair loss. At the annual and regional meetings, the ISHRS enables doctors to keep up to date with the rest of the specialists in the field. Despite the lack of accreditation or oversight, the ISHRS is considered “the” main organization for hair transplant surgery.

The ISHRS has no disciplinary powers as it depends upon its members to promote medical education. It has the most membership of hair transplant surgeons in practice. It’s an outlet for sharing and presenting new information and research among surgeons with its yearly meetings..

There is a group called the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS). There were 154 members as of 2010. To become certified by this society, there is a $400 application fee and $1900 testing fee. The doctors in this group must present two reference letters, have 100 cases logged and pass the written examination. The ABMS does not recognize ABHRS.

Posted on

Hair Transplant Technicians and Technology Are Now Offered to Untrained Doctors – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

When a doctor exploits his medical license by offering hair transplants without training or experience, his activities reflect a flagrant disregard to the welfare of the patient. I am fully aware that bands of technicians are offering inexperienced doctors the opportunity to enter the business of hair transplantation with a focus on new sources of revenue for their practice. This is becoming more and more common. Although these technicians bring the technical skills to do the transplant, they do not bring along with it the competence that is learned by proper training and experience in the field. I warn all prospective patients to be very careful of any doctor offering this service if they had not done at least a hundred of such cases and have been trained in the field. Always check out the doctor’s experience in the field.

William Rassman, M.D.

Posted on

Using Different Minoxidil Strengths – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I am a 23 Female, I have been losing hair for 2 years now. My dermatologist prescribed minoxidil 2%, but after 4 months i didn’t see any results. Is it safe to use both 2% and 5% (2% in the morning and 5% at night) to make it more effective?

Thanks

Block Quote

In general we advise our female patients to use minoxidil 5% twice a day, although the official recommended dose is 2%. We take the blood pressure of the patient prior to prescribing this medication. Although this medication can be purchased directly from any pharmacy or grocery store, there are side effects that you must read about prior to starting the medication.

Posted on

Not Hair Loss News – Aspirin Slows Down Aging – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

“It is well known that a person’s lifestyle affects the risk of cancer. Swiss scientists have now shown that this is at least partially the result of effects of lifestyle factors on the genome. While aging is slowed down with regular aspirin use, smoking increases it. The study was published in the “Journal of the National Cancer Institute”. ”

The Journal further reported “that regular aspirin use and smoking led to changes of gene markers – however, with opposite effects: while smoking accelerated the effects, aspirin slowed them down. Genes that are associated with the development of cancer are particularly affected by this, said lead author Faiza Noreen. “

Block Quote

If there is a wonder drug, it seems to be aspirin. I have taken it for years. There seems to be beneficial effects on aging (see above), heart and vascular disease and cancer prevention. What else could you ask for?

Posted on

Hair Loss InformationBeware of Hair Growth Formulas and Inappropriate Claims for Minoxidil Regrowth – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

According to the indictment below, a named doctor has been using the Internet to sell non-approved doses of Minoxidil with claims that are not proper. Read the document below for details

SALT LAKE CITY ‹ Four men, including two Utah’s, face federal charges for allegedly selling hair replacement drugs over the Internet without U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. Dr. Richard Lee, 72, and James Dorius, 69, both of Whittier, Calif., owned Regrowth, LLC, a business that made and sold hair treatment drugs online. Alexander Ahn, 32, and Min Kim, 32, both of Provo, ran a Utah company called Minoxidil Solutions that sold the drugs after Regrowth had agreed with the FDA to pull them from the market, according to the indictment.

The indictment alleges that the FDA discovered that Regrowth was selling drugs Lee made using his own formulas and recipes dating back to 1996. Some of the products contained active pharmaceutical ingredients. The company was not registered with the FDA and did not seek or obtain approval to sell its hair growth drugs, according to the indictment. As apart of an agreement with the FDA in February 2011, Lee stopped selling the products and sent customers an ³urgent drug recall² notice informing them of potential health hazards. Two months later, Lee and Dorius delivered Regrowth¹s remaining drug
>ingredients and manufacturing equipment to Kim and Ahn in Utah. According to the indictment, Kim agreed to pay Lee and Dorius half of what Minoxidil Solutions earned on the sale of hair growth drugs made using Lee¹s ingredients and formulas. “These kinds of cases are important because in many instances individuals are advised by FDA that they cannot lawfully manufacture and sell unapproved and misbranded drugs, yet even after warning, they continue to manufacture and sell these prohibited drugs,” said Patrick J. Holland, special agent in charge of the FDA criminal investigations office in Kansas City. Lee, Dorius, Ahn and Kim are charged with conspiracy to introduce misbranded drugs into interstate commerce, which carries a penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. All four men are scheduled for an initial appearance in U.S. District Court on Oct. 23.

Posted on

Hair Loss InformationNot Hair Loss News – I Don’t Feel Well So Please Prescribe Me an Antibiotic – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Ever since I became a doctor, friends and family have asked me to prescribe antibiotics for them as a favor when they don’t feel quite right and think that they are coming down with something. They don’t want to go to a doctor’s office when they have the flu-like or upper respiratory complaints such as a cough, a runny nose, sinus pain, and many other such miladies. When I have refused to prescribe the requested antibiotic, my routine, they make me feel as if I have betrayed them, after all, it is so simple for me to do it.

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that each year in the United States, at least 2 million people become infected with bacteria resistant to antibiotics, and at least 23,000 people die as a direct result of antibiotic-resistant infections.

Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, CDC Director, points out, “It’s clear that we’re approaching a cliff with antibiotic resistance. But it’s not too late. Clinicians and healthcare systems need to improve prescribing practices. And patients need to recognize that there are both risks and benefits to antibiotics — more medicine isn’t best; the right medicine at the right time is best.”

The above quote was taken from Medscape General Surgery website July 7, 2014 and after reading it, I felt better about turning down my friends and family when they don’t feel well and ask me to prescribe an antibiotic for them. There clearly is some misconception in our society that antibiotics cures the common cold, flu, coughs and sinusitis. FYI, none of my family or friends died or became hospitalized as a result of my turning them down for their requests.

Posted on

SMP Scalp MicroPigmentation for Blondes? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Scalp Micro-Pigmentation for Blondes

Hi Doc. I’m a blonde guy wondering about your Micro-Pigmentation. You can use this image of me if you want (it is my photo and it is of my head):
reader_blond

That photo was taken 9 months after a hair transplant. Obviously its still quite sparse in there. If the 5000 odd transplants don’t take would I be a candidate for Scalp Micro-Pigmentation?

If the grafts do take would, is dermtech or toppik better for a blonde male.

One more question. I have to ask. Like I said its been 9 months since my transplant and I’m not getting much growth. Is it common that people don’t get much growth until around the 9 – 12 month mark.

And are there cases where for some reason, (i.e physical chemistry), that maybe transplants and some people just won’t work? Because to be honest I feel jinxed right now…

Block Quote

Most blond people have a dark root color when the hair exits the scalp and then it is exposed to light, it turns blond. If the hair is shaved, it would show to be a dark grayish/ brown. To test this in response to this question, I cut some hair from my platinum blond wife and I saw that the hair exiting the skin was grey/brown. When it got to a length of 2mm, it turns her platinum blond.

Dermatch or Toppik in blond colors have not been well received by the patients who have used these products. With regard to your report of what sounds like a failed transplant, you need to get a second opinion. In general it takes about 6 to 12 months to see results after a hair transplant surgery.

Posted on

Hair Loss InformationDHT Types, Finasteride (Propecia, Proscar) and Dutasteride (Avodart) and male pattern balding – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Good day to you sir. I read in a previous post dated over a year ago that type II DHT is linked to hair loss, but type I DHT has not been linked/proven to cause hair loss. Is there any news/updates on the two types of DHT with the relation to hair loss? Thank you for your time!

Block Quote

Nothing has changed in recent times.
For clarification, Propecia is a brand name of a generic drug named finasteride in 1mg strength. Proscar is also a brand name of a generic drug named finasteride but in 5mg strength. Avodart is a brand name of a generic drug named dutasteride in 0.5mg strength.

Propecia is the only FDA approved oral medication for the treatment of Androgenic Alopecia (AGA) which is a genetic cause of Male Pattern Balding (MPB)
Avodart and Proscar is FDA approved for prostate condition known as benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Propecia and Proscar works by blocking an enzyme called 5?-reductase type II which ultimately reduce the DHT level.
Avodart works by blocking the same enzyme 5 alpha-reductase type II but it also blocks 5 alpha-reductase type I which ultimately reduce the DHT level.

You would think that if DHT is responsible for men’s genetic hair loss, that if you block DHT entirely and most efficiently (with Avordart) you would stop the hair loss. This is not the case! It has been found that blocking only the 5 alpha-reductase type II is what you need to treat male pattern hair loss. Blocking that extra type I enzyme with Avodart does not necessarily equate to better result in terms of treating hair loss.

But people don’t really pay attention to science and research. People generally look for the most extreme treatment and non-scientifically based Internet anecdotal reports. So people are using Avodart thinking it has DHT blockade than Propecia (finasteride). For this reason, many who have tried Propecia (finasteride), with no significant or dwindling results switching to Avodart thinking it will work “better”. They don’t realize or factor in their genetic predisposition. They also do not realize the possible long term and increased sexual side effects with Avodart.

In the end Avodart is still used by many for treating hair loss in men. But its true efficacy and advantage over Propecia is not completely clear.