Category: Other

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Hair Loss in UK – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Everything in the following article is not completely accurate, but worth reading if just to get another cultural variation to discussing hair loss. In reference to comments in this piece about Elton John’s hair transplants, I believe that he does wear a hair system (wig) and did not have a successful outcome for hair transplants as he received them in the early days when the technology was deforming. They call him a toupee wearer, but also say that his transplant was effective. I guess it could be weaved into his hair system to keep it on his head, thereby being effective in that way. Aesthetically though, it can’t be good.

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Laser Brush vs Other Laser Treatment – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Is the laser hair brush as effective as the laser treatment (sitting under the laser light) which is available?

Unfortunately, there is no information on either the value of the big sit-down laser units, the different type of sit down units or the laser brush/comb, let alone a comparison between the them. Sorry, but I can not help you here but hope that some objective studies will be presented to help us all out.

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Hair Loss InformationDonor Hair Supply and Cell Therapy – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Id like to get a transplant by your clinic soon, but do not have enough donor to produce the illusion of full coverage… Can you tell me if cell therapy will be available within a few years so i dont have to worry about donor depletion? i understand it will be in phase 2 trials at the middle or end of this year through ADERANS…. I want to get a transplant now, but will only do it if it this new donor supply or cell therapy will be out… can you give me some info?

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Cell therapy is not going to be on the market for a few years at the least and there is still no guarantee that it will work yet. Hair transplantation for some very bald people is still the best way to go. Sooner or later, alternatives to transplants will be available. Depleting the donor supply is a real concern for some people and that is why you need a good doctor who can design a customized master plan for you to be assured that your ‘worst case’ scenario is covered.

Why do you feel that you do not have enough donor hair? Consider sending me pictures of yourself to evaluate you more fully.

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Cough, Cough — The Cure for Baldness? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

A reader sent the link to this article from The Independent regarding Intercytex:

It should be interesting reading — though I must warn you that the UK-based website charges you to read the full text (it costs £1, which is around $1.85 US).

The article talks about the nonsense that is being propagated over the internet to drive the price of someone’s stock higher and higher. Although this company’s effort in hair cell research is credible, the P/R that they are doing does not do much for what I think of them. The Euro/Dollar indicates that this hype has driven the stock to almost $100 million in value. Maybe I should try that too, not a bad return for selling hype!

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I Need My Hair To Be Colored… – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I dyed my hair blackey blue about a month ago and it is in quite a dry condition. However the colour is fading there are now brown patches(my natural colour) becuase each time I straigthen my hair (which has been reduced to about twice a week)strips the colour slightly. This upsets me as my hair looks a mess and I do not know what to do. I have a school prom in three weeks time and would love my hair to look nice for it. However I do not really want to dye my hair again as the damage done to it will be awful and I do not know whether it is worth taking the risk again as the starightners will probably just strip the colour. Please help! Also my hair is starting to snap and becoming thin! Please, please get back to me!I will be grateful forever! xx

Sounds like you need the help of a good hair stylist, not a doctor. Have fun at prom.

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Shakespeare’s Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

How did 16th Century playwright William Shakespeare lose his hair? I’m sure you find yourself pondering that question every waking day of your life. Well, perhaps not. At any rate, I stumbled upon this year and a half old article that has an interesting take on why Shakespeare possibly lost his hair. The title of the article gives away the punchline, but enjoy…

Ouch.

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Comments from Transplant Patients – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

People are so worried about detection of their hair transplants. A patient who sent me this comment is a few months out of surgery. No one detected he ever had a transplant, and after his last transplant, he gave me the following update:

“Like last time, no one noticed as far as I can tell — although my sister-in-law (who’s sly-as-a-fox) caught me off guard last week when she said that my hair looked fuller. I responded that I hadn’t had a hair cut in awhile (true), and that I was taking Propecia. (I am taking Propecia as you directed, and will continue doing so).”

Another patient who was bald just 9 months earlier, came to dinner at his daughter’s home with a reasonably full head of white hair. His daughter commented that he looked foolish with that wig on, so she insisted that he take it off. He told her it was not a wig and allowed her to pull on his hair. Surprised, she asked where it all came from and he commented that he started taking Rogaine 8 months before. She was a nurse and replied: “I never knew Rogaine grew hair like that.”

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Hare Club for Men – Gummy Candy – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Try Hare Club for Men, where you can get a nice hare to show off to you friends. The Hare Club for Men package includes 10 Gummi Bunnies and a fun collectible sticker in the fancy box shown below. About 300 calories for the whole box and zero grams of fat, it works for the diet conscious person. Our society exploits the balding process as illustrated here in this cartoon. Some of my readers are too intense so this entry will better prepare you for the more serious entries below.

Oh yes, this candy is legit and although I can’t find any mention of it online, I do know from the box that it is a seasonal Easter candy made by a company called Galerie out of Kentucky. I thought people would get a kick out of it… Ha!

Click the photo to enlarge.

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Weight Loss, Microsoft Diet, and Slimy Hair – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr. Rassman,
Recently I noticed that my hair has a slimy feel to it when it gets wet, and then it will dry as if it has gel in it, very hard. I have always lost hair in the shower, but it seems that this is increasing with the slimy hair problem. Another symptom that I’ve had is extreme scalp itch, but no more than normal dandruff visible to be the cause of it. I have recently spent a great deal of time in the swimming pool, but no one I’ve been with is experiencing similiar problems. Also, I’m taking Adapex for weight loss and wonder if this might have some correlation with my symptoms. I’ve tried researching my slimy hair and came up with a process used on wigs called decutilization, where layers of the hairs cuticle is removed for some reason. However, I can’t find anything to do with my own hair having this problem or how to fix it. A friend suggested that my hair had lost it’s acidity, but home remedies and ion hair strippers have not helped. Please help me figure this out. I want to solve the problem so my normally soft healthy hair will return. Thanks so much.

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MicrosoftThe need to have luxurious hair is a quest that many people have and that is why the TV ads fill the airwaves with shampoos and conditioners, potions and lotions that are focused on people who do not like the texture of their hair or the dryness of it (or in your case the slimy nature of it). Hair does change texture with time and stress. It also changes if we expose it to the sun (drying it), chlorine from a swimming pool or other things. As we get older, hair clearly changes its character and its thickness and these two are absolutely related. I looked up Adipex and found references to a drug called Phentermine which is sold without a prescription. In the look-up, I also saw a link to this drug and hair loss with the Microsoft Diet on Google, and I got excited that Microsoft has found some magical cure to weight loss which I could tell my readership. Now is that getting us somewhere or isn’t it? I wonder if we can download a cure for hair loss from Microsoft if we buy into their diet (see Microsoft Diet working for many in Seattle. I hate to point out my sarcasm, but that was a joke.

There is no doubt that weight loss can cause hair loss if the weight loss is aggressive and if there is any vitamin or nutritional deficiencies associated with the weight loss process.

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Unsatisfied With Hair Transplant, Should I Use Laser Therapy? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hello Dr. Rassman,
I Recently had a Hair transplant that was performed back in July of 05. I started taking Propecia a month before surgery. I must say I am extremely dissapointed in the results of both. I feel as if the head trauma that was endured during the surgery made me lose more hair. When I inquired with the doctor he said the hairs that fell out will regrow. My hair gets thinner by the day and I dont see Propecia working from keeping the hairs I already have. My question is, there is a laser therapy used for a skin disease that also helps alopecia patients regrow full heads of hair. Is this a something I should test out? It is not covered by insurance because it would be considered cosmetic. And in the mean time, I have heard of taking daily doses of copper peptides and emu oil help the follicle and assist in regrowth of dormat hairs. Is this another route I should take? Thank you so much for your time doctor.

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First I would want to know if your expectations were set correctly. You say you are disappointed, so I ask why?

There is a suggestion in your question that your hair is continuing to appear thinner. Did you experience shock hair loss (rare with a person on Propecia, but more common in young men under 30). I do not know your age and I have no idea where was your starting point and where you are now. I would suggest that you go back to your doctor. Your doctor is vested in making you happy and making sure that what he represented to you was what you got. Your best starting point is a face to face meeting with the doctor who did your surgery. I personally love talking to my patients and although few are dissatisfied, I always feel ownership. I make unusual efforts to be sure that expectations are properly fixed to what the end product will be like and that is the main value of open house events for people like you, to avoid being disappointed, because what you see is what you are going to get. I do not think that playing around with things like lasers or other regrowth formulations have value for you now, that is, until you know what happened and why the surgery failed to meet your needs.