Can Propecia Stunt Growth?

/by William Rassman, M.D./1 /,

Can Propecia taken by mid-teen guys stunt height growth?

There are some teenagers who take Propecia (finasteride) under the care of their doctors, but it is generally not prescribed to teenagers. The effects of finasteride on developing teens is not clear and should probably not be used in those who are still in growth mode (usually under 17-18 years old). It is theoretically possible that it may stunt growth during the puberty years, as it interferes with testosterone conversion into dihydrotestosterone (DHT). DHT is one of the many hormones that is involved with secondary sex characteristics such as beard, chest, and pubic hair.

Tags: propecia, finasteride, hairloss, hair loss, teen, growth, height

I’m Very Sensitive to Products with Alcohol, Like Rogaine Foam

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Dr Rassman, is it possible for a person who is very sensitive to products containing alcohol even have problems with the Rogaine Foam. I stopped the foam because it was drying out my hair alot and I noticed my hair thinning more and falling out more. Even if I go a few days without using it my hair looks better. I never had itching or redness from it but my hair texture changed to a more haylike feeling. I used good conditioners too but my hair still was still too dry and the hair diameter was thinner. I have my hair professionally colored and it even strips the color of my hair near the roots. So basically is it possible for someone to have a negative result due to even a small amount of alcohol in the product. I also notice my face retains more fluid and my skin gets more acne when I use the foam or any type of minoxidil. Would that also be considered a negative reaction to minoxidil?

Rogaine Foam has alcohol in it, so if you do have a sensitivity it could be an issue. While the 2% minoxidil is alcohol based, the 5% minoxidil liquid is propylene glycol based (though check the ingredients on the packaging since it may still have some alchohol). You may consider trying the 5% as an alternative to the Foam. Alcohol does dry the hair out. If you’re retaining fluid in your face, that is a known negative side effect. I’d meet with a dermatologist about the acne.

Tags: rogaine, foam, minoxidil, fluid, acne, hairloss, hair loss, alcohol

Hair Loss at a Young Age Lead to Problems with Alcohol Abuse

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Hello,
I’m a 46 yr old male. My brother was killed in a horrific car accident when I was 9 yrs old. Shortly after my hair began to fall out in dime size patches. By the time I was 10 my hair was completely gone. Docs said it was alopecia and they began a regiment of cortisone shots in my scalp. It was pure hell growing up with no hair as kids are so cruel. I wore a wig through the 10th grade and finally got rid of it by 11th.

I write this because I know giving kids a false sense of the hair growing back will ultimately do more harm than good. To fit in I hung out with the drinking crowd and I’ve been paying for that ever since. I slowly became a high functioning Alcoholic. Being in the USAF working flightlines where drinking after work was the norm and promoted did not help.

I’ve come to realize that drinking was just a symptom of my deep routed problems which began when I was 9. Fear and the fear of rejection were my underlying problems. I feel you have to be straight with kids and get them into counseling at a young age. This will do wonders for self confidence and spirit. If someone had got me some help with dealing with emotions at that tender age it would have saved me a lot of time and bruised knuckles.

I counseled a kid when I was stationed in the UK and his mother was almost in tears when I told her that I knew what her young son was going through! I don’t know why I felt compelled to write this but maybe it will help someone out there

Take Care

Thank you for sharing this with us.

Tags: hairloss, hair loss, alcohol, drinking, story, accident

Stopping Propecia for Weeks Before a Sports Competition

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

I am currently on propecia. I am also considering entering some sporting competitions that require a drug test. Finesteride is banned from competition because it can be used as a “masking agent” for performance enhancing steroids.

If I stop taking propecia for 3-4 weeks, will I notice hair loss? Will this hair grow back?

Stopping Propecia (finasteride) for 3-4 weeks may produce some early hair loss. I can’t say whether it’ll grow back, if you see any loss at all. I think that the drug may be detectable in your system for some time with the urine testing, just like steroids.

Tags: propecia, finasteride, steroids, sports, competition, anti-doping, hairloss, hair loss

A Week After Highlighting, I Have a Bald Spot!

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

(female) I had my hair highlighted approx 1 week ago, i thought everything was fine, but i now have a very sore bald patch at the top of my head,do you think this was caused by the hairdresser at all,i have had my hair done in this way many times ,but have never had anything like this happen before!

Thanks

PS, im really scared that all my hair is gona fall out!!!

Ouch! Chemical burns from dyes start off just like you’re describing. You may want to see a dermatologist to find out if the burn did indeed go deep enough into the skin to cause the problem.

Tags: chemical burn, dye, hair dye, bleach, hairloss, hair loss, bald spot

Lateral Slit Technique vs Choi Implanter

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Dr Rassman can you tell me which of the following methods of follicle transplantation are better in terms of least trauma, fastest healing time and greatest density achievable:

1. Lateral slit technique
2. Choi implanter or similar needle type device

Also what density (per cm2) would be necessary as a minimum to stop scalp showing through on abald person. Many thanks and keep up the good work

You are asking for me to compare a tool to a technique — something that is difficult to do. The key to fast healing following a hair transplant is in the size of the recipient wound not the instrument used and the direction the hair is placed in. The smaller the wounds, the better they generally are. Both lateral and vertical slits (techniques) or the Choi Implanter can produce very small wounds, but the success in growth depends upon the graft trimming and dissection from the donor strip. Many people cut the grafts too short for the Choi Implanter, because the very small size of the tool may not take a chubby graft… but these skinned down hairs may not grow as well.

With regard to your question about density not being see-through — well, that depends on many factors, including the character of your hair, the thickness of the hair shaft, and the color contrast of your hair and skin color. I’ve said before that a blond can lose 85% of his hair and not look thin (having low densities), while someone with black, straight, fine hair and white skin may look see-through at 50% of the original density (not unusual for this person to be Asian).

Tags: lateral slit, choi implanter, hairtransplant, hair transplant, hairloss, hair loss

Scalp DHT vs Serum DHT

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

What is the difference between scalp DHT and serum DHT? Avodart reduces scalp DHT by 55% and serum DHT by 92% what does that mean? How does that impact the hair?

AvodartYes, it is true that Avodart (dutasteride) inhibits 92% serum DHT and 55% scalp DHT — and Propecia (finasteride) inhibits 70% serum DHT and 38% scalp DHT (see study). I hear the terminology of scalp DHT and serum DHT every once in a while, but I really don’t know how significant they are. You would think that lowering scalp DHT is better than lowering serum DHT, but one flows to the other starting off in the serum.

So while Avodart has been proven to be more effective than Propecia in inhibiting serum DHT and scalp DHT, Avodart actually has more short and long term side effects than Propecia. For example, there is a worry about sterility (not common but present) with Avodart, something that should worry the young man.

Tags: dutasteride, avodart, propecia, finasteride, dht, dihydrotestosterone, serum, scalp

I’m Taking Dutasteride and Finasteride Daily and Now I’m Extremely Aggressive

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

i’m using both dutasteride0.5/day and finasteride1mg/day for last 2.5 months. but they makes me very very very aggresive man. stopping the medicine will keep this aggression?

If you believe that your demeanor has changed since you started to take these medication in combination, you might consider stopping one of them. These are both prescription items so you should ask the doctor who prescribed them to you. I have not heard this complaint before from my own patients, but I am aware that testosterone levels do rise on these medications and this could be responsible for aggressive behavior.

Tags: dutasteride, avodart, propecia, finasteride, aggressive, attitude, hairloss, hair loss

Wife Feels Pulling Sensation on Her Hair Each Morning

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Hi, My wife and I recently moved her from Thailand, my wife is Thai. Since we have been here she complains that her scalp hurts every morning when she gets up – she describes it “as if somebody is pulling my hair”. The pain eases in intensity during the day to say 30%, but arrives at full intensity the next morning. Thai women seem to shred hair anyway, but this seems to be greater now though the loss of hair is not visually apparent.

Any ideas

She might be stressed from moving to a new country. Stress does strange things. Remember that the average person loses about 100 hairs per day so the hair you see in the shower or on the brush may be her normal daily loss. She will grow back about the same number each day and once it breaks through the skin it will grow at about 1/2 inch per month until it gets to her normal length. I don’t know what the pulling sensation might be otherwise.

Tags: hair pulling, scalp, pain, hurt, pulling

Testosterone Boosters and Propecia

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

i have recently started taking propecia. I was wondering if i can continue using testosterone boosting supplement for working out?

I don’t know your individual history, so you’re best off asking your prescribing doctor. Anabolic steroids are illegal to use without a physician monitoring your use. If it is a natural supplement claiming that it boosts testosterone, it is OK from a legal perspective, however you may be more at risk for androgenic hair loss. It is your body and you need to make a judgment call.

Tags: propecia, testosterone, booster, hairloss, hair loss

Female Hair Loss Concentrated on Front and Top

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

(female)
My hair loss is concentrated on the top and front of my head, and is happening slowly. Does that mean it must be androgenetic alopecia (as opposed to telogen effluvium)? Also, I noticed the loss about 10 months after moving (from the US) to Korea. Life in Korea isn’t stressful – is it possible that something else about the change or Korea could cause hair loss? For example, the water?

You may have a variant of female hair loss that impacts just the frontal area, not the back of the head. This genetic condition can be triggered by stress. Get your hair mapped out for miniaturization and then the diagnosis should be evident. Telogen effluvium does not behave this way.

Tags: hairloss, hair loss, telogen effluvium, effluvium, stress

Should I Try Avodart?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

Hi. I took propecia at the 1.25mg dose for 2 years and noticed no cessation of hair loss. I’ve been off it for 2 months and am thinking of trying advodart. If I do try advodart, will it or any DHT inhibitor help the follicles that have already shrunk or are in the resting phase or should I use a combination of rogaine to help swell the follicle base and something like advodart to help reduce serum levels?

You sound like you’re trying to be your own doctor and have drawn conclusions that may not be correct. You should approach this process like a clinical scientist and get your hair mapped out for miniaturization and then have a doctor work with you on drugs or anything you need, producing a treatment plan that makes sense and is not random (a little bit of this, a little bit of that). Had you approached it that way two years ago, you would have a better hand on what is happening to you.

I can’t say whether Avodart (dutasteride) is right for you. For starters, I know nothing of your medical history. Even so, I don’t generally recommend dutasteride to my own patients since it is not FDA approved to treat hair loss — so advising someone on the Internet that isn’t even my patient about whether that prescription drug is suitable for them is definitely out of the realm of what I can offer. Since you’re on Propecia already, I’d discuss this with the doctor that prescribed that medication to you. With all that being said, you can give Rogaine (minoxidil) a try, as it is available over-the-counter.

Tags: avodart, dutasteride, finasteride, propecia, hairloss, hair loss, minoxidil, rogaine

Wrinkles, IQ, and Finasteride

/by William Rassman, M.D./2 /

Hello Dr. Rassman

I’m a 19 year old male showing early signs of Male Patterned Baldness(Small bald patch on crown area). My doctor prescribed be Finax (Finasteride 1 mg) and he is also insisting on getting one blood test done (DHT,DHEA etc.).Can you tell me what is the significance of this blood test?Also, I’m an engineering student and my IQ is 141, recently I got to know that finasteride lowers your IQ.Is it true?

Do you get wrinkles from finasteride? I looked at few before after pictures of people on propecia, and I could see that they got wrinkles on forehead within 8-9 months! Please confirm it. And if I start taking finasteride now, for how long I can keep my hair?

Thanks

There is no connection between IQ and finasteride. Some people believe that bald men are smarter than non-bald men, and that the balding is reflective of an overworked brain that overheats. I’m kidding!

I am not aware of any evidence that shows finasteride causes wrinkles or any aging process. The best test you can have is a miniaturization study before you start the finasteride so that you can establish a metric of the hair shaft thickness in different areas of your scalp and the degree of miniaturization. Finasteride should reverse much of this in a man at 19 years of age. There is no need to test for DHT or DHEA. I can’t tell you how long it’ll have visible benefits, as I’ve seen patients that have been taking the drug for a decade with great results, and have received emails from people saying their hair loss resumed after 5 or 6 years. Each person is different.

Tags: finasteride, proscar, propecia, hairloss, hair loss, intelligence, iq, wrinkles, aging

If Medication Causes Hair Loss, Why Won’t Stopping the Medication Regrow the Hair?

/by William Rassman, M.D./0 /

In a previous post a man had asked if off Nexium, will the hair grow back that was lost as a side effect and this site’s response was that it probably wouldn’t. My question is why? If a medication contributes to it and you get off that med and allow enough time for the body to fully release it from the bloodstream and wherever else, shouldn’t the side effects reverse? For instance when patients are on chemo and lose their hair. It grows back afteward.

I just wanted some clarification on this issue since I’ve been dealing with hair loss from Nexium after months of usuage and am now off it for about 2 weeks now (which I know is too soon anyways to see progress).

Thanks

We really do not understand the mechanisms that cause hair loss with drugs and some diseases. It is like pulling the trigger of a gun — once the bullet leaves the barrel, the bullet will do its damage. This is like a switch that is flipped and we know little as to why it does not reverse when the insulting drug is removed.

Actually, in some lucky people hair does regrow, so cross your fingers that you are one of the lucky ones.

Tags: medication, drugs, hairloss, hair loss, nexium