Men in their late teens are more responsive to hair loss reversal with finasteride than men in their later 20s. That is why I like to start treatment provided that the diagnosis is confirmed. In your situation, there is no doubt that you are balding. This is a 19 year old histor that took two years to get fantastic results
How old are you? Your hair loss appears to be behind a persistent frontal hairline, which is good news; however, you should be examined with a hand microscope to see what the thinning looks like in your head’s top, back, and sides. If there is thinning on the top and crown area, it is likely genetic alopecia. If the sides and back of your head are impacted (very rare), then you might consider the diagnosis of DUPA a problematic diagnosis for a young man. It’s best to see a hair expert who will do this for you, make the appropriate diagnosis, and give you medications that will likely reverse your hair problems.
This drug is helping my head hair but it is causing my body hair has gone wild at the 5.0 mg dose. I am thinking about reducing the dose to 2.5 mgs. Any thoughts?
The higher dose does bring on more hair elsewhere, like facial hair, body hair, and leg and arm hair. More concerning is that the 5 gm dose increases the risk of cardiac side effects. I hope you are being monitored by a doctor and not doing this yourself. I would never write a prescription over 2.5 because of the risk of cardiac complications.
I have read rumors that microneedling is not good if you will have a hair transplant in the future, although I remain convinced that if done with logic and judgment, microneedling is more than safe.
This makes no sense. The hair follicles are 5-8 mm long, measured from the scalp surface. Microneedling only goes down about 1mm. That is not deep enough to significantly impact the hair follicles or dermis in the long term.
I have diffuse thinning and believe that it is DUPA. Is it more difficult to treat?
Make sure that you have DUPA, just don’t assume you have it. The unpatterned thinning extends to the side and back of the head which is usually protected against genetic balding. It is much more resistant to treatment.
To make the diagnosis of DUPA, purchase a hand microscope from AMAZON and look for miniaturized hairs in the back of the head near the base of your skull. This area rarely miniaturizes with genetic balding. I have seen extensive miniaturization in the donor area which is what defines DUPA. Here are a series of posts on DUPA: https://baldingblog.com/?s=dupa as you will see, it comes in various varieties.
I have been taking finasteride for one year and have no sexual or other side effects. My dermatologist told me to go off of it because of potential future side effects. As I am free of side effects now, is it likely that I will get them sooner or later as my dermatologist suggests?
If, after 1-year, you don’t see problems with finasteride, then you are clear to continue it without worry. There are long-term benefits of finasteride, including decreased risk of prostate cancer and some reduction of cholesterol, possibly reducing the risk of heart attacks
This 26-year-old male has reversed his corner recession around what appears to be a persistent forelock with a combination of 1mg Fin oral every day, 5% minoxidil topical once a day, and microneedling 1.5mm once a week for 1 1/2 years. Many doctors would have transplanted this man; however, the issue may be one of continued treatment and how long the treatment will hold up. With the transplant alternative, I can state that once it is done, it is done (without maintenance other than possible finasteride to avoid the further progression of the balding pattern).