Balding Blog – Page 1760

August 14, 2006

Propecia Beyond 5 Years – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hey Dr. Rassman…I’ve been reading your blog almost daily and have seen alot of questions about the long term effectiveness of Propecia (especially after the two year mark). I wanted to ask you a question that will help me feel better since I am just past that 2 yr mark. I am 26 yrs old and have been using propecia since 24. When I started using propecia I had hair loss that was not detectable to others..my only goal here was to maintain my hair.. When you talk about propecia losing effectiveness , are you talking about losing ground with the new hair propecia is responsible for growing.. or falling behind your starting point.

Of course, I’m just asking your opinion from your experience of seeing many patients over many years.. Do most people stay at or above their starting point after 5 yrs or more? thank you

Finasteride at the 1mg dose will not guarantee that you will stop your hair loss. Some people stop it and some people reverse it. Some people just see it slow down. I think that it works in all men, just maybe not as effective in some as in others. Over time the hair loss tends to progress, so if the drug worked for you initially and works less well now, that is the time to see a doctor to get a Master Plan in your hand for your hair loss and its future. It may be time to consider doing more about it if it bothers you much.

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August 14, 2006

Hair and Weather Temperature – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello Doctor.

Do you think that taking propecia prior to exercise could increase your testosterone levels better than in the morning?

I usually go to ski in summer in a indoor installations at 0 degrees C and notice a small improvement in my hair texture comparing to the external temperature at 40 degrees C here in Spain. Is that possible or do cold and hot temperatures have no effect in hair?

Thank you very much

I generally tell my patients that it is best to take finasteride in the morning when normal testosterone levels are highest. It makes the most sense to me. I would also doubt that exercising and the drug have any cyclical impact on testosterone.
We can logically believe that if hair is a good insulator, it should get thicker when the seasons change, much as animals do with thicker coats of fur in winter. But humans have asychronous hair cycling, which means that we do not shed (thin) at a particular time of the year and grow hair stronger at other times.

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August 14, 2006

GNC’s Mega Men Vitamins and Propecia – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello. I am a 23 year old African-American male. I was planning to start taking GNC’s Mega Men Vitamins but then I learned of its inclusion of DHEA. I was also about to start taking Propecia as it was recently prescribed for me. Will this negatively affect the effects of Propecia? Or is Propecia powerful enough to where me taking GNC’s Mega Men won’t matter? Thanks.

Some things that you are referencing cause hair loss. Propecia may protect against the effects of building DHT levels caused by the anabolic-like steroid metabolites you are also planning to take. There is some balance here, but no assurance that what you want to happen will actually happen (i.e. cancelling out the bad effects with blocking agents like Propecia). Like a seasaw, it is a balancing act.

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August 11, 2006

Hair Loss InformationTrichophytic Closure Questions – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

When the strip harvest method is used, a linear scar is produced, but what if the doctor uses a trichophytic closure, would the scar be “virtually undetectable”? Would I be able to buzz-cut my hair without the scar being noticeable?

And also, does the number of hairs that grow through the scar vary by the person? And for my last question, if I felt the back of my head for the scar, would I feel it even if I couldn’t see it? (Would there be a bump where the incision was made)?

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Good judgments in determining the size of the donor area is the best determinant of the size of a donor scar. When the incision is too tight due to the piece of excised scalp being too large, then the enemy is tension. The use of special closure techniques minimize the scars and the tension, but a bad judgment at the time of surgery can not be offset with a repair process.

The readers interested in the subject of scars, may conclude that special techniques can make the scar disappear. Many surgeons would like you to think that their wonderful skills guarantee that the scars on their patients are either non-existent or non-detectable. I believe that the only surgeons who have never seen scars from strip harvesting are those surgeons who have never done the surgery. If any surgeons give you this line, then that surgeon is not honest, for scars (much of the time) have little to do with the surgeon and much to do with the patient’s healing capabilities, when proper techniques are used.

The use of trichophytic incisions do not offset bad judgments or poor surgery, but when used, they can close the gap in a 2-3 mm scar that usually accompanies a donor wound. The scar will still be present even if it is covered by hair, and yes, you may be able to feel it.

August 11, 2006

Skin Changed Color After Moustache Transplant – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

i had 900 grafts trasplant on moustache and goatee area !!! after 2 weeks when i shaved my skin turned pink and orange and darker on the side !!!! is it a common thing ? how long it will last before it fades away and i also have a lot of pimple on my chin!! the fact that i shaved afeter to weeks is gonna affect the grafts…….thanx doctor

You should address these issues with the doctor who did your surgery. A good patient/doctor relationship is critical in achieving a desired goal. I would be concerned about things like pimples, because early folliculitis can behave that way. Two weeks after a hair transplant your skin may still be healing and it is sometimes normal to have some discoloration (especially after shaving, which causes irritation even more). The degree of discoloration should be something judged by your doctor so that you know if it is beyond what he expected.

August 11, 2006

Rejuvx – Balding Blog

What is your opinion on the product rejuvx for male pattern baldness? Is it any different from Rogaine?

http://www.rejuvx.co.uk

I wonder if some of the companies may be sending me emails just for me to mention their product on this very popular website. I don’t know if that is the case here, but I’m just thinking…….

I have reviewed the material on their website and can’t find anything of real value for the treatment of hair loss. There is nothing mentioned on their site to suggest that this product has anything in it that will regrow hair like Rogaine (minoxidil) could. There are crazy claims of DHT neutralizing, which makes no sense to me. I can’t even tell if it does the job that it claims to do — that is, providing a good shampoo and conditioner.

August 11, 2006

Hair Loss Information » Propecia and NutraSweet Products, Follow-Up – Balding Blog

A couple of days ago I had sent an email indicating that there is a belief that nutrasweet products interfere with the efficacy of propecia. The following site describes one such incidence.

http://205.238.137.71/hairloss-forums/viewthread.cfm?f=1&t=11649#33739

Please give me your opinion on this as I have been using propecia for 8 weeks with no effect.

I looked at the reference you cited. The piece proposes that nutrasweet may interfere with the action of Propecia, but it is conjunctural, not factual. Formaldahyde, if it were a significant metabolite of nutrisweet, would/could cause liver disease, which is not a reported side effect.

August 11, 2006

I Am Fine With a Receding Hairline — I Think – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello. I was wondering if TE can cause any kind of receding of the hairline. Also i did have burning and redness on the scalp and everything happened all at the same time. I must say if it is mpb, i am totally fine with it(One step at a time) although i feel that stress could be a contributor, yet i i heard it also might not be. My hair is thin on top but it is also thin on the sides but not as thin. I was wondering if you could possibly tell me what it is? My hair grew back thin after it was thin before but not as thin, and this all happened after i had perming done to the scalp which caused the redness and irriatation of the hair. I did not have a receding hairline in high school and i am 21 (male) and just now noticing things. Thanks.

Knowledge is power, so smarten up and take charge of what is happening to you. If you are fine with whatever is happening to you, leave it alone and do not obsess with it. If you are not fine with it, then see a good doctor. Sounds like you are not fine with it and may be denying it if it really bothers you.

August 11, 2006

18 Year Old Female’s Bald Spot – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I am an 18 year old female, about to enter her freshman year of college. In my freshman year of high school (2002), one night before bed, I was brushing my hair and I screamed. I ran out to my mom and yelled that I was dying!!! I bent over and showed her the spot on my head the size of a quarter where there was not a single hair. Now, four years later, I do not have that one spot, but when I am in the shower washing my hair, I notice large amounts of hair that fall out into my hands, then, after my shower, I often wonder how much more will come out when I comb my hair with a wide tooth comb, and again, a lot. I do not know the cause of this, and I was wondering if you could please help me in telling me some of the causes of this that are in an 18 years olds life. Thank you.

See a dermatologist and let him/her examine you to answer your questions. It does require a good doctor and the knowledge that he/she has between their ears. Sorry, this isn’t the type of question I could easily answer over the internet without examining you first.

August 10, 2006

Reconstructing Temples in Patients – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Some posters on an Internet board (hairsite.com) say reconstructing temple points is a must for a Norwood 6 guy’s transplant to look natural. Is this true? Do you often reconstruct temple points in your patients who have advanced balding?

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Temple transplants are unusual. I offer them, but suggest to most patients to defer on them until the first session has grown out. Most pass on temple hair transplants, because the existence of good frontal hair usually solves most of their problems.

Temple transplantation shows the quality of a doctor. If the angles are not perfect, if the recipient sites are not small, and if distribution is not well placed, temple hair transplants look terrible.

I wanted to show a transplanted temple prominence, close up. The temple before photo is on the left — the after is on the right. The after photo was taken 9 months post-procedure. if you look very closely, you will see a few hairs in the transplanted area that were present prior to the transplant. Also note that the transplanted hairs have less gray than the hairs on the pre-operative photo. Color differences in transplanted hair reflect the color of the hair taken from the back of the head. This patient liked less gray, which is now his ‘new temple’ look.

Before
After