Why Can’t We Transplant Hair from the Dead? They Don’t Need It!

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

I have very little hair. I have very little hair anywhere on my entire body (except my eyebrows and chin hair). What little hair I actually do have is very thin and very fine. For my entire life, I have never had much hair. I am a female and tired of not having enough hair.

I cannot believe you cannot easily take some hair off a dead person (their not going to need it anyway) and use it for hair plugs. The body will actually reject hair plugs from another (dead) person? I thought hair transplants were superficial and not “deep” implants? I could not take the hair from my back or side of my head (or anywhere else other than eyebrows & chin) I simply do not have enough hair anywhere. I’m not losing hair, I simply never had enough.

Is it possible to get donated hair plugs from a son? My middle son has tons of beautiful thick hair (like my husband) and has offered to donate some? I’m tired of wearing wigs. DNA wise, I took after my father, hardly any hair. Got a very raw deal for a woman not having enough hair in this society sucks.

I’m tired of not having enough hair to be considered “average” looking. I’m tired of wigs. I’m really tired of hearing other women say “oh I have too much hair, it’s such a pain”. At which point I am tempted to rip some of their “too much hair’ right out of their head.

Nature plays dirty tricks on us (genetically). But if you use the hair of a dead person or even your son, it will be rejected just like any organ transplant (kidney, heart). The medications to stop rejection are dangerous, and as hair transplantation is not a life-saving procedure, the risks wouldn’t be worth it. I discussed this before here.

Tags: genetics, gene, hair transplant, organ, donor, hairloss, hair loss

Mixing Latisse Into Rogaine?

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

Dr Rassman
I have a script for Latisse and i added it to a bottle of Rogaine and started useing it,do you think it will help supercharge the rogaine and grow more hair.Can you please tell me what your thoughts are on it. Thanks

Although Latisse (bimatoprost) has been shown to grow eyelashes, the formulation is not known to be effective for scalp hair. If you do decide to try it, I’d be curious as to what you find, but I can not recommend this approach to you.

Tags: rogaine, minoxidil, bimatoprost, latisse, eyelashes, hairloss, hair loss

I Started Seeing Growth 24 Days After My Hair Transplant

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

I recently had a hair transplant. I started shedding my newly transplanted hair on day 9 and lost most all of it shortly after. I started noticing new growth around day 24. Is my growth ahead of the average patient? Will my hair growth be suffice before the 8th month? ( I’m also very young and very healthy.)

About 5% of patients get growth within the first month, but most do not. Consider yourself lucky if it continues.

Tags: hair transplant, hair growth, hair restoration

I Upped My Finasteride Dosage and I’ve Seen Big Changes!

/by William Rassman, M.D./3 /,

Hi doctor, i presently use dermatch to cover my hair line area, and i recently feel that the hair has been shedding . Is it because of the applicator pulling the hair or is it because the scalp pores get clogged? If it is does the hair come back.

Second question if i may, ive upped my dosage of proscar to 2.50 mg a day and ive seen big changes, 1 mg did the job before but stopped its effects. I think each person is different and larger dosages lower more dht levels. Any comments regarding this?

ProscarI don’t believe that DermMatch will cause hair loss with the applicator provided that you wet it when using it. Scalp pores aren’t the cause of your hair loss.

I have recently been advising some patients to increase their finasteride dose to 2.5mg (half of a Proscar pill) provided that there are no significant side effects. I make this recommendation when the drug is losing its visible effectiveness and some of the patients have reported a benefit, although it is early in my experience. You’ve already upped your dosage, but for everyone else reading this — I’m not suggesting everyone should be taking a higher dose, as it should be up to your prescribing physician. I’ve made the 2.5mg recommendation to a select number of my patients (and I have a medical history on them when doing so).

Tags: finasteride, propecia, hairloss, hair loss, proscar, dermmatch

Does Rogaine Work Better for Coarser, Darker Hair?

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

Hi Doctor Rassman,

I’m 28 and have had very fine/curly blond hair my whole life. I’ve never had to do a terrific amount of shaving and have very little body hair. My maternal grandfather was bald from a fairly young age. My younger brother (3 yrs younger) has darker, thicker hair and had to shave whilst in high school – he (now 25) has lost a lot of hair.

My hair began to thin out a lot starting about 3 yrs ago – I started finasteride about 9 months ago – it seems to have stabilized my loss and slightly thickened up the hairs I had.

That said, I’ve been studying pretty intensely lately, and have noticed the top/back of my head seems thinner. I was thinking of rogaine but am rather hesitant.

Do you typically see the patients get a shed on rogaine if they already had one on propecia about six months earlier?

Also: There are internet rumor that rogaine works better for coarser darker hair, and I’ve also read comments from people who had their hair shed with rogaine but not grow back – My hair has always been very fragile blond and fine, does this make it more vulnerable to a rogaine shed and the possibility of not growing back?

Thank you in advance for answering!

I don’t know of any correlation between Propecia and Rogaine shedding, but stress (like intense studying may bring) could bring on more hair loss. You can stick with just Propecia or give Rogaine a try, as it does tend to work best in the crown area that you’re describing. The shedding is pretty rare, though (see here).

I do believe that minoxidil works better on coarse hair from a visual point of view, but not from a pharmacological point of view. I say this because a 20% increase in thickness in a coarse hair may be equal to the total amount of bulk of doubling the thickness of fine hair, making it easier to see. Remember the pi R squared math formula means that small increases in the diameter of a circle will increase the area of that circle (or in this case, hair). Go to math.com or mathwarehouse.com to review the math formulas from a hands-on point of view.

Tags: propecia, rogaine, minoxidil, shedding, math, hairloss, hair loss

I Stopped Finasteride After a Year, Now I Want to Try Homeopathy

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

I have hair loss probelm and genetic history of baldness, i started hair loss at about early 20 at vertex, but it became severe at age of 25-26 when i was in struggling period of life full of tensions and strees. at 28 age i started minixidill and finasteride, it worked well particularly finasteride, but after regrow of complete hair i stopped using it. and in few months my problem again became severe, then i again resume finasteride but it don’t works now even after 1 year. now i started homepathy and stopped finasteride. what r my chances to regrow the hairs

You took finasteride for a year, but I’m not sure what you were looking for as far as results. Why would you stop it if you initially saw regrowth? Then after you restarted it, the finasteride might not have regrown hairs that were lost, but it likely maintained your hair as is. In other words, it was doing its job. Now that you stopped taking it after a year, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that you’re seeing even more hair loss, as your loss is playing catch-up right now (it’ll get to the point of your balding pattern that you would’ve seen had you never taken the medication).

I don’t believe that homeopathy works at all for treating hair loss, but you’re open to try whatever you want.

Tags: finasteride, homeopathy, propecia, hairloss, hair loss

Spironolactone Caused Melasma So I Stopped — When Will My Hair Fall Out?

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

(female)
I am withdrawing from spironolactone after developing melasma. I have been on it 18 months. How soon should I expect more hair to start falling out again?
Thank you.

Complications of spironolactone treatment includes melasma (skin pigmentation on the face — see here).

Unfortunately, I can not help answer your question because I know absolutely nothing about what is wrong with you, why you were treated with the medication (was it just for hair loss?), age, etc. I’d talk to your prescribing doctor, who has the benefit of knowing your medical history.

Tags: spironolactone, melasma, hairloss, hair loss

Can I Take a Half Dose of Propecia if I See Side Effects?

/by William Rassman, M.D./4 /

Hi, Doctor Rassman,
Im a 27 year old male,my hair has been thinning since I was 23.I still got hair on top and at the front but is thinning on the crown. After tried herbal remedies like Provillus (waste of time and money, honestly) and tried different topical lotions like Revivogen( the same as Provillus,waste of time and money.) Please guys don’t even think about this kind of products,they don’t work!!!

I just decided to try Propecia after a year of research,Im still bit scared about the side effects but I think I’m going to give it a go and see if it works for me. My question is: is possible to take a dose of 0.5 daily in case I get any of the side effects? Is this safe an effective?

Thanks

You should take 1mg of Propecia (per your doctor’s prescription) and if you develop side effects, you can cut the dose… but going the other way makes no sense. 99% of people do not get sexual side effects addressing sexual performance. Why would you assume you are in the 1% group of the population?

Tags: propecia, finasteride, side effect, hairloss, hair loss

Hair Length and Hair Loss

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

Is there any truth that the length of your hair has anything to do with hair loss. I know alot of guy’s who started losing there hair and got buzz cuts because there barbers told them it would make there hair stronger and less likely to fall out. I would like to grow my hair long but this is a concern. I’ve had two small procedures with Dr. Berstein in N.Y.

Cutting your hair short or growing your hair long will not impact your hair loss. What you were told was an old wives’ tale that has been around probably for hundreds of years, but it is not true. The hair transplants you had should last your lifetime no matter what length you have.

Tags: hair transplant, long hair, hair loss, hairloss

Have All the Hair Loss Questions Been Answered?

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

There are so many questions and answers here as well as that forum. I think you’ve covered most if not all questions that need to be asked. If people would take the time to look through them, I’m sure their questions would be answered. There comes a point where all the information becomes too overwhelming, and becomes information overload. Maybe it’s time to relax a bit, ay?

ElfWhat is this “relax” you speak of? Actually, I stopped writing the blog around 3 years ago when I hired woodland elves to respond to your questions (they needed something to do after a long day of baking cookies in a tree). It seems to be working out well, even though they do have a tough time spelling “finasteride” correctly.

But seriously, it does sometimes seem like I answer a lot of the same questions from time to time, but maybe just worded in a different way… and although I’d prefer not to get repeats, I don’t necessarily mind as long as it’ll help someone out. I can’t get to every question and I know many people think their question is deserving (and it probably is), but I just kinda pick some emails that look neat and roll with it. Plus, from time to time I really get some fantastic questions that keep me on my toes. Look, for example, at the previous post which is probably real to some of those who believe in Balayam Yoga. Who am I to say that it does or does not work? As a reader, you are entitled to learn about different approaches to the balding problem and weigh the evidence of others for yourself.

Content is king, and after 7000+ posts here, I do feel that this site is one of the best sources for hair loss info on the web. I’m really proud of that.

Tags: hairloss, hair loss

Balayam Yoga Will Cure Hair Loss? It’s Magic!

/by William Rassman, M.D./155 /

I have come to know that someone called SK has discovered a Yoga exercise called balayam is effective in curing baldness and hairloss. If you want to know more about balayam please log on to balayam.com

MAGIC!Controlling stress can help with balding that was caused by stress, but I would sincerely doubt any yoga technique is a “magical yet simple way to cure baldness” as that site states. Who doesn’t love a good magic trick? Sorry, but no yoga move will reverse genetic hair loss.

I just watched the video of this “magical” method and smiled when I saw that the baldness cure that everyone has been missing over the years was apparently the act of rubbing your fingers in a certain way. Well, at least the Balayam site isn’t charging people money for this stuff. See the video yourself at YouTube. And by the way… I’m only indulging this to leave you all with a smile for the weekend.

Tags: yoga, stress, balayam, hairloss, hair loss, magic

Propecia Maintenance Phase?

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

I have been using Propecia for about 8 years. Though no measureable regrowth, I feel it slowed or haulted the hair fallout and have been able to keep what I have. I do not believe I have sufferred from any of the “male concerning” side effects. My question is, is there a thing such as a maintenance phase? Meaning, instead of taking the 1mg tablet daily, can I take one every other day and still be alright?

Thanks

The need to take the same dose over and over again for life should continue. If you drop the dose, you run the risk of losing hair. If you do go for every other day, that’s your call to make… but I wouldn’t recommend it. Unlike your case, some patients have reported that after 5 years or so some hair loss picks up again, and in those patients I have been recommending an increase in the dose to 2.5mg each day, provided that there are no side effects. Discuss any prescription medication changes with your prescribing doctor.

Tags: propecia, finasteride, hairloss, hair loss

I’m Applying Rogaine Behind My Hairline To Retain My Hair

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

Hi I have been using rogaine on the front of my scalp behind my hair line and I’m just wondering if this will hold my hair loss. I know chances are it wont grow it back but I just want to know if I’m wasting my time applying it here. Thanx

There are no guarantees with drugs like minoxidil (Rogaine), but it tends to work by increasing the length of the anagen (growth phase) of the hair cycle. It can both grow new hair and retain the existing hair where it is longer than normal so instead of a 3 year growth (anagen) cycle, maybe it would extend to 4 years or so. It might work where you’re applying it, but without a microscopic miniaturization mapping over time, I couldn’t tell you if you’re wasting time.

Tags: rogaine, minoxidil, hairline, hair loss, hairloss

Bald Dollars

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

Can you imagine Lincoln, Washington, and Jefferson… bald? A reader sent me this link to some clever Photoshop work and I thought it was appropriate to share here —

Bald money
See the rest at Bald US Currency.

 

Tags: currency, president, hairloss, hair loss, bald, photoshop

Propecia and Liver Damage?

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

LiverCan propecia can liver damage for one who is taking it for a long time. We all know, propecia is heavily metabolized in the liver, so if taking it for years and years can it cause some damage to the liver?

There is no causal connection between liver disease and Propecia, however, if you have liver disease, the dose for Propecia will have to be monitored and may have to be reduced.

Tags: propecia, finasteride, liver, hairloss, hair loss