Category: Other

Are you familiar with Follica and their technology to generate completely new hair follicles on the scalp? This company seems to be headed by a who’s who in the field of hair loss….Dr. Vera Price, Dr. Rox Anderson, and Dr. Cotsarelis from Penn State University where this technology was first discovered. I see where they recently acquired 5.5M US from investors to conduct a clinical proof of concept study on 50 or so volunteers. Since everything they use to accomplish this is already FDA approved and/or already being done (microderm abrasion + application of special proteins), it seems like this could really be the “holy grail” to end baldness much sooner than expected (at least sooner than NEOSH101 or Intercytex).

Have you been following this exciting development at all or do you have any thoughts on this technology?

The work sounds exciting and I look forward to reading more about their research in medical journals. I have not been following it though, because the information on it is cursory and does not give me the insights I need. You are right, the people associated with it indicate a general excitement that has been generated. There is a quick write up on Follica here.

For those wanting to read the news about their recent $5.5 million round of funding, you can check it out here.

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):

It seems very unlikely that 90% of the actors in hollywood would have full heads of hair. For some it seems that their hairlines are still similiar to teenagers and the others have a thickness to their hair that is almost unreal. I just can’t believe that so many of these celebrities could be so lucky. My question is what percentage of these celebrities would you estimate have ever used propecia, and/or have had a hair transplant?

I don’t know how frequent balding is in Hollywood actors. We know that people with hair generally get jobs easier and that may apply to actors, as well. Also, not everything you see is what it really is. That’s the magic of Hollywood. Actors have images that they have to maintain, and when they start balding many actors will use a topical camouflage such as Toppik or even a hair system (like the type John Travolta has been seen with) to keep the particular look they are known for.

On the flip side, there are what seems to be a growing number of major actors letting their natural balding looks prevail; action stars such as Bruce Willis and Jason Statham (see photo), for example. Of course, the list goes on and on.

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Why is Dr. Bernstein bald? He is practically a Norwood Class 6/7. Does he suffer from DUPA or is he just adamant about not getting transplanted?

Some say bald is beautiful! Dr. Bernstein is comfortable with his looks and understands the burden of balding. When he was younger, had the transplant solution been as good as it is today, he might have gone for it. Hair transplantation is a personal decision and not for everyone.

From the November 1936 issue of Popular Science Magazine comes this gem, thanks to the great Modern Mechanix site. It should go without saying, but the article is over 70 years old now, and if the technology was successful as it claimed, it would probably be the recommended treatment today. My favorite part of this has got to be the caption under the full image, which says “A patient receiving the vacuum treatment for baldness while he reads and smokes in comfort“.

Here’s an excerpt from the article:

USE VACUUM TO AID HAIR GROWTH

CAN SCIENCE restore hair to the bald? Startling results in the affirmative are reported in 500 cases treated with a new machine, developed by Dr. Andre A. Cueto, of Cincinnati, Ohio. Fourteen to twenty half-hour treatments are said in many cases, to produce the appearance of “fuzz,” and from this point on the patient is declared to progress toward a normal growth of hair.

Read the full text at Modern Mechanix

I have a really dry patch on skin on my head and now it is really red. It is about the size of a penny. What could this be????

It could be one of a dozen potential things, such as ringworm, psoriasis, dermatitis, infection, etc….

I hope you get the picture. Without at least a photo, I couldn’t begin to even guess. The internet is fun, educational and a great communicating tool, but it is not a place to get your medical care. You should see a dermatologist for your skin issue.