Category: Hair Loss Causes

Hi. I’m a 24-year-old white male who has been having hair loss issues for about a year now. Based on family history, I know it’s probably AGA, but since I don’t seem to be following the classic NW pattern, and because the thinning became apparent suddenly, accompanied by severe shedding and following a stressful period, I’ve often wondered if I could be experiencing telogen effluvium. A hair pull test I performed on myself in May 2008 seemed to support this notion.

The shedding has long since stopped, but my hair has not returned to its normal density. My question is, how often is telogen effluvium concentrated in one area of the scalp? Almost every description I’ve read says it’s diffuse, but I’ve seen pictures of post-op patients suffering from it who have lost an appalling amount of hair on top but relatively little on the back and sides.

Generally speaking, telogen effluvium (TE) is spread throughout the scalp. This is the time to see a doctor and be examined for:

1. A miniaturization mapping of the scalp hairs
2. A genetic test for the balding gene, if appropriate
3. An experienced doctor who knows what to do

This is not the place to write a textbook for a complex problem like you are describing.

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Doc please comment on this as it has worked for me but can’t imagine how on earth it works scientifically?

A local chinese herbalist informed me that in they country men who suffer from hair loss is attributed to a high sex drive and in order to lessen the testosterone levels they would often have sex twice a day for a month and then stop for a month and then start again. I mean I thought Ive tried everything else so my wife was willing to accommodate so we did. After a month I noticed that a real reduction in hair loss. It continued to fall out but no where near what it did before. 6 months on and things are alot better then I expected.

What do you think doc can testosterone levels be reduced and lessen hair loss? it works for me

I do not believe what your Chinese herbalist told you. There may be much more to your experience than the testosterone issue which does not go up when you have sex. I would not give up sex just for hair if what he said was true. Maybe he has a sexual problem (a man with erectile dysfunction, for example) and he came up with his solution by avoiding sex. Sex and hair loss are unrelated, so what you’re telling me about the reduction of hair loss you saw sounds either coincidental or you’re mistaken.

If you have a problem with hair loss, get a diagnosis by getting your hair mapped out for miniaturization and since you indicated that you are in the United Kingdom, I’d suggest seeing Dr. Bessam Farjo (offices in Manchester and London) who might prescribe medications to stop your hair loss.

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Hey

I have a question and would be glad to get a response.

Can the kind of water I use cause baldness? I hear that Chlorine water and the , metals inside the water we shower in can cause baldness.

If so, can applying small amounts of water everyday increase baldness?

The answer is simply: NO. Water is good for you, but you can be poisoned with salt water or chlorine water, not the metals in the shower water in the United States.

I was in a fight in high school, and my hair was pulled out in the back of my head. As a result my hair has never grown back correctly. My hair isn’t bald but short in this one spot. My mother told me about hair growth treatments in the salon what do you suggest.

I would need to see it. Hair transplantation works well for missing or short hairs and could be a solution for you. Generally, hair that is pulled out once will return almost 100% of the time, but if you were treated with strong chemicals to try to bring it back, the chemicals may have burned/damaged the hair follicles enough to make them weak.

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Hi Dr Rassman.

I’m a 29 year old male. I had a full, thick, wavy head of hair until about a year ago. Then the top and sides of my head have thinned rapidly since. I didn’t have any recession of the hairline, although now my temples have receded a quite a bit and also quite rapidly, but I’d say nothing beyond a “mature hairline” (though for me, the difference is obvious compared to what I started with). But overall, the hair on the top of my head and also the sides is very thin. I’d say the only place which hasn’t changed much is the back. There’s no history of MPB in my family.

I’ve trying finasteride for the past month but having problems with nipple sensitivity and worried about gyno. I know you’re going to tell me to get myself mapped for miniaturization, but I don’t know where I can get that done around here. I think I may have some kind of diffuse pattern alopecia, I’m just horrified that I made it through almost my entire 20s thinking I’d keep a full head of thick hair, and in a year (8 months, really) it’s so thin and wispy. Seems like it has happened overnight… I thought MPB takes years and is a slow process. I just wish it could have waited until my 30s instead.

There might be no immediate history of MPB in your family, but it can skip generations. Thinning hair on the top of your head could be MPB, but the hair on the sides should not be thinning like you briefly described. MPB doesn’t need to take years, as the speed of hair loss progression is different for each person.

What if I didn’t tell you to go get yourself mapped for miniaturization, but provided you with a tutorial to do it yourself (if you have the right equipment)? See part 1 here. You can then take the results of the mapping and upload them to BaldingForum, where I can provide a consultation opinion. You should (with your mapping in hand) seek out a good hair doctor or come visit us here in sunny Los Angeles.