Category: Uncategorized

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I Scratched Away Some Grafts During My Hair Transplant Procedure

I just did a small fue procedure into my scar, I asked to be sedated but during the procedure I scratched away some of my grafts unconsciously. The operating team choose to put some of the grafts back in the scar, can you please tell me something about the grafts survival chances?

For starters, I do not know what, where, and how your surgery was performed. Generally, an FUE procedure may have lower yield and is HIGHLY variable with different medical groups and doctors; the procedure is almost never the same from one doctor to another. Moreover, hair transplantation to a scar may not have a high growth yield when compared to hair transplanted to normal skin.

Graft survival depends on how long it was out of your body with the real issue of graft drying. Grafts that are left in the open hair for 20 seconds will generally die and that is why we are compulsive in keeping the grafts moist as we move them. As you can start to see there are numerous variables at work here and it is not a question I can answer, but most of the time if the grafts come out, they dry and die. Your surgeon is the best person to address your concern (as it always should be).


2008-12-04 08:29:17I Scratched Away Some Grafts During My Hair Transplant Procedure

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I Stopped Taking Propecia, So How Much Catch-Up Hair Loss Should I Expect?

Hello Dr. Rassman!

First of all, thank you for this spectacular blog, it’s amazing.

I’m a 21 year old who has been on propecia for about a year. I’m unlucky in the sense that I started thinning all over except for the sides and back since I was 17. I however decided 2 weeks ago I didn’t want to take propecia anymore because damn it, I don’t care what society thinks. I’ll be bald, proud, and won’t let something like hair stand in my way. I’m a man. I’m not supposed to be pretty, but manly.

My question is, how much catch up hair loss is there likely to be? I don’t feel like propecia did much for me. It seems like my hair’s a bit thicker… but not really, so… Is there any possibility I’m one of those people propecia did nothing more than a placebo to?

Thank you for your time and all the best!

It’s possible that Propecia kept your hair loss from being worse than it is, but it’s also possible that you are a non-responder to the medication. I really have no way to know, as I don’t have any hair bulk analysis to compare before starting the medication and today. You can look into having a HairDX test done to predict your response to finasteride.

If you do see catch-up hair loss after stopping Propecia, I suppose that means the medication was working for you. Your hair loss will eventually catch up to the point you’d be at had you never started the medication. So if the Propecia worked to some degree, any benefits will eventually be gone.

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I Think I Had Shock Loss Even Though I’ve Been Taking Finasteride

Hello Dr,

Thanks for providing all the information you are providing to hair loss sufferers. I have a question. I had a Transplant a 7 weeks ago(Strip method) on my crown area. I was on (and still on) Finasteride prior to my Transplant. Lately I lost my native hair and I am seeing that I have less hair on my top now compared to hair that I had before the transplant. I learnt that this is because of the shock loss. But I was on finasteride before the HT. So, do you think this is temporary and can expect m native hair back. If so how much time does it take?

I try to educate my patients and readers everyday… and this must be one of the top ten things I want the public to understand.

Taking Propecia (finasteride) does not protect you 100% from experiencing shock loss — it only lowers the risk. If you have shock loss, there’s not much you can do (actually, nothing you can do)… and if it is in miniaturized hairs, it may very well be permanent! Statistics do not matter to those who have shock loss even while on Propecia. This is one of the risks of a hair transplant and you must always balance the benefits of surgery with the risks of surgery.


2009-05-01 09:12:12I Think I Had Shock Loss Even Though I’ve Been Taking Finasteride

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I Thought You Can See Hair Transplants!

If I have a restoration of the crown, will the swirl look right or will it look noticeably like a transplant?

If the surgeon is experienced and properly recreates the whorl in your crown, it will not stand out as anything more than your naturally growing hair.

Just the other day, I went to my new eye doctor. We talked for a bit and when she asked me what I did for a living, I told her I performed hair transplant surgeries. She was suspicious, so I pointed to my crown and told her that those were hair transplants (see here). She said, “That’s hard to believe! I always thought that you can see them.” I couldn’t help but smile.

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I Want DNCB Treatment for My Alopecia

Hi Dr Rassman, you mentioned a man with a miracle cure of alopecia areata through dr. richard strick & you also mentioned that DNCB which was the treatment, is very dangerous. can you comment on that, i have alopecia areata and would like to know what i may be getting into?

You’re referring to the previous posting I made titled Alopecia Areata in a Patient with a Miracle Cure. I am not an expert on this treatment, but I suggest that if you wish to learn more, you should look to:


2007-02-01 13:42:37I Want DNCB Treatment for My Alopecia

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I Want To Harvest Facial Hair for Transplanting Into My Scalp

i am a 25 year old male with some male pattern baldness. I still have quite a bit of hair, but just want to have a full head of hair. I am interested in harvesting from the donor area near the back and sices of my head, but also was interested in hair from my beard (my chin). do facial hair transplants have just as low hair regrowth as body hair. also how many hairs can be transplanted from your chin with just one prcedure.

It would be malpractice for a surgeon to do beard to scalp hair transplants in a 25 year old. If you are committed, please do the standard thing and do not invent your own surgery. The price you will pay will have nothing to do with money.


2006-12-14 08:24:45I Want To Harvest Facial Hair for Transplanting Into My Scalp

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I Want to Use Cream to Remove My Scalp Hair, But Not Permanently

Hello Dr. Rassman,

I’m a young man experiencing MPB, and I’ve decided I want to embrace it. I’d rather not shave my head since I find razors irritate my skin. My question is this: Do you know of any hair removal creams that are safe for use on the scalp? I’ve read varying reports that indicate Nair can damage the scalp. Furthermore, if I later choose to have a transplant or other hair restoration procedure done, would the earlier use of hair removal cream alter my hair’s regrowth in any way once I cease using the product?

Thanks for your informative site and the time you devote to answering all our questions!

There seems to be many warnings on using depilatories such as Nair. The warnings suggest chemical burns and damage may result from their use on the scalp. It appears that your options are limited to shaving. Try different razors or shaving creams to see if that helps reduce irritation.

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I was Norwood Class I and Took Propecia for 8 Years. Can I Stop Taking it To Have A Baby?

Hi Dr – Firstly just wanted to say thank you for the wonderful work you are doing on this site!

I took Propecia 1mg for 8 years, but a couple of years ago I noticed I was losing ground (NW1 – NW3). I increased my Propecia dosage to 2mg and have been taking this for the past 2 years and experienced no side effects.

I am 34 years old now and thinking of starting a family. My question is: Is it safe to be on 2mg Propecia a day and trying for a baby? If I completely stopped Propecia now, how long will it take for the drug to be completely out of my system? I really worry that, so much Finasteride will pose a risk to my unborn child? I will be discussing this with my doctor, but you are a specialist in this field and would really appreciate some advice.

First and foremost, please follow up with your doctor and address your question to him/her.

I have some issues with your history and you need to follow your doctors recommendation. If you are a Norwood 1 or even 3, I question if you should have been on Propecia. Propecia does not work to prevent a mature hairline from forming. Propecia is meant for the frontal area, the top and the crown areas. It is sometimes taken in hopes that it will help with the frontal corners but that decision is up to you and your doctor. At least you didn’t have any side effects and you seem to have done well. Another issue is that higher dose of Propecia doesn’t really work any better than the 1mg dose.

Finally, Propecia does not affect conceiving or having a baby. There is no evidence of this. For those who are still worried about it, Propecia has a half life of about 4 hours in the blood stream. This means almost all the medication will be out of your blood stream in 1 day. With respect to tissue fixation and possible traces left in your body it can take between 1 to 2 weeks. Considering the thousands of men who may have fathered children while on the drug, to my knowledge there has been no medical issues or legal issues.

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If a Natural Hair Loss Cure Existed, Would You Even Tell Us?

If you knew that natural cures to hairloss existed, you wouldn’t be holding back on us just to get a few more bucks, would you?

Also, it’s been one year exactly since I stopped my 58 days on Propecia, and I still have these mental side effects of stumbling over words/lack of fluidity when speaking/lack of wit and smoothness. The only other thing in the world this could be would be the high soy diet I put myself on for hairloss measures a few weeks after I started Propecia, and right before I felt my first side effects. I’ve seen a thyroid doctor (who said everything at Whole Foods was a fraud), a neurologist, and a psychiatrist (the latter just for kicks really), and apparently I’m the foremost expert in soy isoflavones and their effect on the thyroid. Just because someone has a medical degree doesn’t mean they’re knowledgeable in every arena. I still never had any sexual or physical side effects, and my wit is still present when I type or write, so something is only affecting my speech, which lends me to believe it really has to do with the physical properties of the thyroid and perhaps the larynx. Any thoughts?

Would I hold back the cure for balding if I had it? The answer to that is… absolutely NO. I obviously spend all of this time answering questions on this site just so I can squeeze money out of you, telling you there’s no cure when secretly I’ve been hiding it in my wall safe. Did you catch the sarcasm there? If you truly think a natural cure for hair loss is out there, by all means keep rubbing onions on your head and coffee in your eyes… or whatever the “cure of the day” might be.

I can not tie the speech/voice problems you have with the drug Propecia. What you said about soy is interesting and noted. There have been some patient reports that finasteride may have caused some impact on brain function but, I suspect, that would be extremely rare and not proven in the medical literature.


2009-07-28 19:20:59If a Natural Hair Loss Cure Existed, Would You Even Tell Us?

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If I Have Increased Libido from Propecia, Does That Mean I’ll Lose Hair?

Drs

I have recently started a course of Propecia. Based on what I’ve read, I understand that the drug can, in rare cases, cause sexual side-effects, namely decreased libido, reduced ejaculate and even erectile dysfunction. I’ve found that it has had the reverse effects on me, that is, it has heightened my libido and increased my ejaculate, as well as the frequency with which I get erections.

Does that mean that the drug will, in my case, also have a reverse pathology on my hair loss (that is, make me lose more hair instead of arresting the hair loss process)?

Congrats! You are one of the few people with a good side effect appreciated by some men (but not all women married to those men). The results on saving your hair have no correlation with the sexual side effects of finasteride one way or the other.