This is a photo of hairs that have shed. The hairs take on a J shape which means that the grafts were kinked when then were placed by the surgical team. There is always a question if these grafts will grow out as normally as those without the kink.
Shedding from Rogaine Foam — I Read It Doesn’t Regrow for Some People!
Dear Dr. Rassman,
I have read on this site before that people who take Rogaine Foam may experience shedding because of it. You’ve stated that this shedding is most likely due to a new hair cycle starting. I’ve read on the internet that some people who take Rogaine Foam and experience this shedding don’t regrow the lost hair. Have you ever seen this with one of your patients?
The reason why I ask is that I’m thinking about taking Rogaine Foam but I’m worried that my hair may shed (a good thing) but the lost hair due to the shedding may not grow back. And thus, I’ll be worse off than I was before I took the Rogaine. I’ve been on Propecia for 1 1/2 years now and I never experienced significant shedding because of it. If I don’t shed from taking Propicia, is this possibly indicative that I won’t experience shedding from taking Rogaine?
Thanks!
It is difficult for me to give you an opinion without seeing you and mapping out your hair for miniaturization so that I can understand what you are going to treat. Meet with your doctor before you start adding Rogaine to your treatment. Be smart and get good advice. The shedding you asked about rarely occurs, but it does reverse over a few months.
Shedding from Propecia — Will That Hair Regrow?
I was wondering…when a person begins taking Finasteride, they go thru an accelerated shedding period that lasts roughly 3-6 months. After this initial period of shedding, just say that the Finasteride works and stabilizes the loss. Does the person end up growing back the hair that was lost during the accelerated shed? What if it doesn’t grow back? Is this the price that you must pay to halt or slow down loss with Finasteride? Do you have to take your amount of hair a step down in order maintain whatever’s left?
What if you fall into that 20-25% category of users who don’t respond to Finasteride in terms of hair stabilization? You could end up just accelerating your loss for those 6 months for no reason at all. Whether you stay on it or off, after this period, you will continue to lose. This is a big risk for people thinking about taking meds.
Shedding after starting Propecia isn’t a common occurrence, but I’ve heard reports that it does happen on rare occasions. It is more common with Rogaine (minoxidil) use, though. If we assume that there was some shedding from Propecia, I do not have much faith that those hairs would grow back.
The “what if” part about “20-25% chances” to your question is moot… because if it happens to you, it is 100%. And I do not believe there is a “big risk”, because you are taking a medication to slow down the hair loss (not accelerate it). Please speak to your doctor and be sure to have your hair loss monitored with miniaturization mappings, so that any loss or gain can be charted.
Shedding From Minoxidil and Propecia
Dr Rassman:
I started using Monixidil 5% two times a day combined with Nizoral shampoo 3xweek about two and a half months ago. I also added Propecia to my thinning hair treatment about a month ago. I started experiencing shedding about a month and a half ago and still I am shedding; my dermatolgist did not see anything wrong with my scalp by the time she Rx propecia. Is shedding normal under treatment for this long? The Monoxidil has irritaded my scalp which also seems to be part of treatment but I decided to take a 10 day brake which ends today (11/18/06) so I started using it again. The irritation has ended…so far and the Nizoral definetly helps.I started the treatment as prevention, I am 43 and thinning but now I am questioning my decision because of the excessive shedding.
May you please offer some advice? When should I expect improvement on the shedding? Are those follicles still intact? My biggest fear is that I have caused more damage than good. Thanks for your help.
Shedding is occasionally reported when starting minoxidil or Propecia (finasteride 1mg). You must wait out the period until the shedding stops (about 3-4 months). This appears to be an acceleration of the hair cycle before the better growth kicks in. Your reaction to minoxidil indicates that you may not be able to take it. Some people get considerable irritation from it.
2006-11-27 08:35:012006-11-25 22:13:17Shedding From Minoxidil and Propecia
Shedding from finasteride, how long does it last?
Normally how long does it take for the anti-androgens to push all the telogen hairs out and replace them with anagen hairs with a bigger diameter, thicker, denser, which is what the increased shedding phase boils down to being afraid. My mother’s a dermatologist and told me to wait for 6 weeks for it to stop and if it takes longer than that and the shedding doesn’t stop then it’s abnormal and I should try another drug
Ignore the shedding with finasteride because it eventually goes away and the benefits then come on. Sometimes the shedding is not shedding but a rapid genetic hair loss being expressed and in that situation drugs like finasteride work to slow or stop the loss
2021-06-14 02:41:092021-06-14 04:52:55Shedding from finasteride, how long does it last?
Shedding from Avodart
I have been reading a lot about people having massive sheds while taking Avodart, is there any scientific explanation (or guess) you have for this or do you think it is people being paranoid or experiencing natural hair loss.
I am a 23 year old male who is considering switching to avodart from propecia which seems to be losing its effectiveness but am nervous about the shed. Still not bald but am worried about maintaining what i have. Any response would be greatly appreciated
Hair shedding is not one of the known side effects of Avodart (dutasteride). We know that Avodart can help to prevent hair loss, however this medication is not FDA approved for hair loss prevention. We know that most of the side effects of Avodart are significantly higher than Propecia (finasteride). The other problem with Avodart is that since there has been not much research on its use for hair loss, we don’t know its proper dose for this purpose. We can not recommend using Avodart for hair loss until evidences from sophisticated research prove its safety and effectiveness.
I suspect that any shedding one observes with Avodart (similar to those people on Propecia who report shedding) will be caused by some acceleration of hair cycling and should not last more than a few months. At age 23, I would stick with Propecia and see if this medication works. No sense going to Avodart without a good trial of Propecia for a year or so.
2007-01-10 13:34:382007-01-10 14:26:55Shedding from Avodart
Shedding While on Finasteride (From Reddit)
Shedding on Finasteride has been reported by many patients on the various blogs, including baldingblog.com. When it happens, it usually stops in 1-3 months, and then the benefits are seen to begin slowly over the next year or so.
Constant anecdotal mentions of Fin causing shedding, yet it’s not listed in any of the official literature’s side effects? from tressless
2018-05-15 10:31:432018-05-16 13:23:23Shedding While on Finasteride (From Reddit)
Shedding Different Hair Lengths, Scalp Pimples
I have about 2 1/2 inches of hair, im a 21 male and when i shed, i see short hairs and long hairs, is this normal? and also get about 5 to 10 new pimples every other week or so on my scalp, they are tiny and usually filled with white pus. i wash my hair everyday before i goto work, in the mornings and sometimes at night. could the pimples be causing the different length of hair to be shedding, and do pimples cause damage or hair loss? thanks to whomever read this, would really be appreciated
If you are experiencing folliculitis (pimples filled with pus) then it could be causing your hair shedding. You need to be examined by a good dermatologist and I am certain that once that doctor examines you, he/she will know what is wrong and how to treat it. I can not do this over the internet.
Shedding After Increasing Propecia Dose?
Hi,
Can someone have shedding after increasing the dose of propecia? I’m 22 years old started losing hair 2.5 years ago, a year ago I started taking proscar pills cut in quarters, hair loss continued but it may have slowed down a little bit, about 3 months ago I started taking proscar pills cut in half, and since then my hair loss increased a lot and I lost hair much faster than before, so could it be shedding from increasing propecia dose?thank you
When finasteride is taken and is effective, it can accelerate the hair cycle and can give you temporary hair loss. We have seen this rarely in people who start the drug and it often disappears in 2-3 months. I would guess (although I have not seen it) that the same phenomenon can be observed if the increased dose was working on you. It should abate in 2-3 months.
2009-09-18 10:36:292009-09-15 09:10:43Shedding After Increasing Propecia Dose?
Shedding a Lot of Hair, Not Showing Signs of Balding
My mother and I both shed much more hair than the 200 hair maximum for normal hairloss. The odd thing is that my mother and I both show no signs of balding. What’s going on here?
You would need to be evaluated and examined. If you are really losing 200+ hairs per day, something other than genetic patterned balding is present.