Raloxifen is an estrogen compound that can help feminize women when they lose their ovarian function. It may also help women, who are post-menopausal, grow or stop hair loss. Taking this medication for a male is an extreme thing to do. Not good!
2018-07-03 05:40:212018-07-20 09:38:38Does Raloxifin Help Grow Hair?
Yes, a hairline lowering surgery can cause a scar. In this example, an unusually bad scar resulted. I say unusual, because incisions that are horizontal on the forehead tend to heal well. I suspect that this man had either unusual tension as the advancement was closed by the surgeon (most probable cause) or this particular patient had scarring tendencies. This can be fixed with hair transplants, either FUE or FUT; however considering the degree of scarring, FUE might be a better choice. The surgeon who does this better have a great deal of experience when designing the hairline to repair this problem as a poorly designed hairline will just add to this man’s misery.
I have a hair transplant procedure scheduled with a ABHRS surgeon yet I’m starting to have some concerns due the HLH/HTN websites.
Concern 1) On the HTN/HLH website there are a handful of doctors mentioned often in the forums – shaprio, wong, hasson, fellar and ironically these are the same docs that do most of the advertising – any other doctors basically sounds inferior. I find it hard to believe so many doctors are being excluded and if you mention their name on the forums the immediate majority response is see one the “HLH/HTN” inner-circle of doctors… Are these sites more of a gimmick then a legit source of information and where do you recommend finding a valid source of information regarding a hair transplant surgeon?
Concern 2) How much weight to put on the ABHRS certification. One of the boards member I believe is closely tied to MHR/Bosley – and that company just gets flamed on the HLH/HTN forums?
Thanks In Advance For The Time!
The advertising websites like Hair Transplant Network (HTN) and Hair Loss Help (HLH) provide a forum for their doctors to “pitch” the public with a storyline about themselves. These sites do restrict doctors to those who they believe perform only follicular unit transplantation and those who are willing to pay a fee to get the endorsements of the HTN/HLH websites. Some physicians do not like the politics of these websites, and certainly the HTN/HLH forums can be harsh on doctors (particularly if they are not paying members). Members are not necessarily spared from harsh criticism just because they pay their monthly fee, though. I have seen firsthand that these forums will try to implement controls on its user audience, but if freedom of speech is what is claimed, clamping down on vocal forum users can be difficult. Some forum users have too much time on their hands, are malicious jerks, or just lonely people who use the forums to obtain an audience. Others like the comradery of the group and provide interesting feedback on a variety of disparate subjects, so their input can be illuminating. If I were to have one criticism of those sites, it would be that many forum participants are out of their league with regard to the medical jargon and what it means, or when the issues of complications of surgery come up, there is a naivety in forum participants that everything is black or white. You need to do your own research — view photos, meet patients — and use these forums as a starting point, but don’t just accept 100% of what is written. As for why some doctors seem to be in the inner circle, I think it has to do with participation. The more these doctors participate, the more fans they gather, and the more vocal those fans become about those doctors. As for me, I tend to devote most of my available time to this site.
With regard to the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS) certification, what this shows is whether these doctors passed the oral and written examination, and gained a standard of knowledge. The problem with the ABHRS is that the training of a hair restoration doctor is a willy nilly process that does not prove if the doctor is capable of performing the surgery with knowledge or wisdom under any reasonable situations that reflect the reality of the field.
When I took (and passed) the American Board of Surgery examination, it was two years after a five year intensive period of practical training with mentors (expert surgeons) watching me every step of the way. I was judged competent by these professors because they watched me as I made decisions and they followed the outcomes of my patients by direct observations of my results. The ABHRS can not replicate that type of control, so that means to me that their certification may have limited value to book testing alone. There are no great systems out there for quality certification of skill and knowledge as they integrate with each other in the field of hair restoration surgery. As I have said over and over again here on BaldingBlog — let the buyer beware!
2009-02-13 15:35:202009-02-13 15:58:56Reader Concerns — Advertisers Are Recommended Doctors on Hair Loss Forums
Hey Doctor R,
I was just wondering about growth cycles of hair. In terms of non-scalp hair, or body hair, which tends to have a shorter growth phase – what happens here? Like do the genes which navigate hair growth just shut off after the hair reaches a particular length? Like I began to get curious about this when I trimmed some body hair – but did not shave it completely off. After, it is trimmed the hair begins to grow again and stops at the same length.How does the hair “know” its been cut? Do the genes controlling hair growth become active again when body hair is trimmed or shaved? I know this is kind of a weird question, but I thought you may be able to provide me with some kind of explanation. Thank you!’
Body hair grows to a certain length and also has a different growth / rest cycle than scalp hair. Scalp hair has a longer growth cycle, which is why you can have your scalp hair grow very long. When it is cut short, the impact of gravity is lessened, and its character is more evident. People with crew cuts have a bristly feel of the scalp, but when the hair is very long, its weight impacts they way it looks. The characteristics of the hair is genetic.
Hair is not sentimental, does not feel pain and holds no grudge when it is cut short.
My hair is thin everywhere, front, top, crown, and the sides of the hair. Each doctor I met with gave me a different number for transplants, but isn’t it of a concern with such much thinning all over my head.
Yes, what you are descriging is diffuse hair loss. This is common as a genetic trait in some women and they may see it in their mothers, sistgers, aunts. When this is the case, this is not a transplant situation, Diffuse unpatterned hair loss, typical for many women with genetic hair loss, should never be transplanted. I suspect that the doctors are looking at you as a source of paying off their mortgage. We would perform Scalp Micropigmentation on your scalp, which is a cosmetic unique stippled tattoo and will change the color of the scalp and make the thinning almost disappear. This is not hair, but a highly specialized tattoo, see here for many good examples: https://scalpmicropigmentation.com/smp-for-women/
2017-12-04 06:45:202017-11-19 15:45:50I have received many quotes for hair transplant number from different doctors.
Hello
I’m fully aware of your position on Dutasteride as an unapproved hairloss treatment, however, I wanted to ask if you knew anything regarding Dutasteride increasing a recession of the hairline. I was prescribed Avodart off-label for a DHT-inhibitor for my hairloss (which is only at the hairline/temples) and have since seen no results other than a progression in my receding hairline.
I’ve read many hairloss forums/blogs where those taking Dutasteride have reported and increase in loss at the hairline. I’m aware that a 0.5 mg dose of Avodart decreses scalp DHT 16% more than a 1mg dose of Finasteride (54% versus 38%, respectively), yet increases scalp testosterone 104% while Finasteride only increases testosterone 24%.
Could Avodart’s dramatic increase in scalp testosterone be harming hairlines? Is there any reason why many people’s claims could hold true – that Dutasteride is bad for hairlines? Or, should one continue with Avodart for several months to hold out for the possibility of regrowing what is “shed” or lost from taking it?
Thank you for your food for thought. While it is interesting that you noted this, without data from the pending FDA study, there is no way to have real answers to your questions. You should take any claims made on the internet with a grain of salt, particularly when the information comes from various forums (where it unfortunately seems that many members like to play doctor).
2008-03-20 11:34:202008-03-18 08:48:43Does Dutasteride Increase Hair Loss at the Hairline?
I have been touching and scratching my recipient area for the past month since the transplant was done. Should I worry about these red dots?
Dear Sir,
This is with reference to comment titled “Periodic Shedding from Finasteride?” in which you had mentioned that Finateride do NOT help to control genetic hair loss. I was impression that Finasteride helps to control the genetic hair loss by handling the DHT accumulation. If Finasteride do not help to control the genetic fall off, what exactly this drug is intended for? Request your advise to understand this better.
This is part of what I said in that post that you’re referring to:
“It is important to realize the the genetic hair loss has its own course, independent of the effects of the drug. What you think is shedding from finasteride, is probably more genetic hair loss. Hair loss goes in waves and cycles of loss (shedding) most likely due to your genetics, not the finasteride. You should discuss this with your prescribing doctor.”
To clarify, finasteride is not a magic pill that stops genetic hair loss. It decreases DHT production at the hair level to combat the DHT that facilities genetic hair loss. As a result, most men on the drug will have some hair growth or slowing of the hair loss. The main point here is that the genetic predisposition will continue and finasteride will carry you only so far.
Hi Dr and thanks for your time.
I am a 34 year old male and have been thinning for roughly 12-14 years. I feel I used to shed ridiculously bad- I would tug at the hair kind of obsessively and lose around, I dont know, 100-200 per day. This went on for 10+ years but I have since slowed the loss to tolerable levels, say 5-25 hairs per day with improved diet (which I swear had a lot to do with it) and minoxidil 5% 1X per day. My main thin spot is on the vertex, or top of the head, not bald, but somewhat thin, where I really want regrowth. For the past 6-8mos I have been applying minoxodil 2X per day, and recently I decided to take propecia at .5 mg every other day.
I know people say it is hard to regrow hair lost years ago, but I have read of people who do it using finasteride and minoxidil. Have you witnessed this and if so what is the oldest hair lost you have seen men regrow? I have heard of people in their 40s doing this from 5-10 yr old hair loss… I am aware that all meds work better on people who have lost hair recently, and are younger. Also, if the placebo effect worked in some finasteride trials, (even if slightly) what is the power of positive thought here? Thank you very much.
I believe in positive thinking, but I can not say that I have seen it grow hair lost years ago. I think that everything you did has worked for you a little here and a little there — and by that, I mean the medication you’re using and when you stopped the pulling on your hair.
As for the oldest regrowth from finasteride that I’ve seen, well, I have a 79 year old friend who went on Proscar for his prostate and had the great unexpected cosmetic benefit of hair growth when taking a medication for his health. Generally speaking, this is a rarity.
My genetics are solid (everyone has full heads of hair except my paternal grandfather and maternal great grandfather) but, like everyone else, I can’t be sure that I’ll never develop MPB. I’m currently 21. I identify heavily with my hair. Can I rest assured that if I catch MPB in the bud early, I can expect myself to keep my hair as if I never had MPB in the first place if I keep taking it?
Finasteride works well in men under 25. The younger you are, the better it works, especially if caught early. 21 is an age where I would expect good results.
2019-12-19 04:00:212019-09-12 12:55:00Does Finasteride Work Well If My Balding Is Caught Early?
