Can a 20 month old child have Alopecia?
This is unlikely. Most children without much hair are just delayed growing their hair. Assuming the the hair is patchy, one would look to your pediatrician for the diagnosis of ringworm, alopecia areata (rare). Complete absence of hair on the head and eyebrows could reflect other types of alopecias, but I do not want to write a book on the subject without knowing more about what your concerns are.
I’ve been drinking heavily and partying hard for the past few years and have lost a substantial amount of hair. I understand that the weight gain issue is controllable, but is the hair loss something i can prevent? Thanks.
Your hard partying ways are likely not good for your overall health, but your hair loss is probably unrelated. Genetics is the main reason men lose hair, and I assume that you’re in your 20s or 30s if you’re doing heavy drinking and late night partying (just a shot in the dark), which is around the age many men see their hair begin to thin.
If you’ve got male pattern baldness, your doctor should write you a prescription for Propecia (finasteride), but without knowing much more about you (age, for starters), I can’t really give much more advice than that. The hair loss isn’t necessarily preventable, but you can halt the progressive nature and possibly regrow some of what you lost.
I am aware that you are not in the business of insurance premiums, but I am curious to know if you have any insight regarding the possible negative affects (insurance related) of obtaining a Proscar prescription.
Specifically, have you ever heard of someone being negatively labeled by an insurance company after receiving a prescription for Proscar (in terms of increased premiums with current or future insurance providers)?
Thanks for your time.
For a young man, the answer is no. If you are over 50 years old, this medication is often associated with benign prostate hypertrophy (BPH), so maybe an insurance company can draw the wrong conclusions if your use is for hair only.
Hi, I’m 15 years old and for a long time now I have noticed a bald spot in my crown and from what people have told me it is getting worse. At the moment I have quite long hair but for some reason the crown is balding. This is making me very self conscious and I’m only 15! .. What should I do??
You should get help from a dermatologist in your area. I’m not sure what you’re seeing (is it actual hair loss or just the way your hair parts at the crown?), but a doctor should be able to tell you once and for all. Your options are limited at 15 years old, as you’re likely still growing. Minoxidil (Rogaine/Regaine) may work for you if you are losing hair, but most teens your age wouldn’t be too keen on applying medication twice daily to their scalp. Again, seek out a doctor for an in-person exam.
Hello. I am thirteen and I was in class one day and a friend say i had white/gray hair all over in the back and side. I checked at home with two mirrors to see and I saw ALOT. Is it just the glare of the sun/light or is something wrong with me and i first thought if it was my showerr hair product. Whats a good recommendation(Dying it, Different hair product?)
You could dye it, but at 13 years old you should get a parent involved in the process. You’ll want to do a spot test for dye to make sure you don’t have any allergies (it should explain this on the packaging). White/grey hair isn’t terribly common in someone your age, but it doesn’t necessarily mean there’s anything wrong with you. It’s likely just genetics.
Hi Dr. Rassman, thanks again for your work here. I was wondering if you have ever encountered a young patient say, 21 years old, that did not respond to propecia. I have been on propecia for 8 months now and my thinning is becoming more evident. From my impression, you’ve held that propecia is most effective for the early stages I’m experiencing. Should I expect to see any difference between 8 months and a year (the full potential marker)?
I’m just really concerned propecia hasn’t slowed the process for me. Thanks for the help
I’ve been mentioning it a lot lately, but there is a genetic test that will determine just how good Propecia will be for you (see here). You can find a doctor in your area that carries the HairDX tests here.
I believe Propecia always works, but it could be a matter of degree. It should slow down the balding process, but the balding process could be aggressive. Generally you see the results in 1-2 years, but some indication of the benefits should be evident at this time. I would recommend getting baseline measurements for miniaturization and then get the genetic test. This combination of things should give you more insights with a good doctor at your side.
I’d like to know if finasteride is safe for an 18 year old boy. Can it interfere with a possible genitalia growth spurt that I’ve been told can occur even after complete bone growth up to age 20 or 21? My son appears to have male pattern baldness, so his Dermatologist has put him on the drug, but his Endocrinologist advises against it. My son doesn’t want to lose his hair so he’s taking Propecia, but doesn’t know about the other possible problem. It’s not something I want him worrying about unless the drug can really interfere with genitalia growth, in which case he should know so he can decide for himself whether or not to take the drug. Please advise.
Propecia (finasteride 1mg) is safe for 18 year olds and this medication is not known to retard genitalia development in young men. The 5-year effectiveness and safety study submitted to the FDA included men aged 18 to 41 years old. He is correct that to hold on to his hair, this is the best approach.
Hello,
I am 20 years old and my hairline seems to be receding. There is miniaturization in a clear line, and then thick normal hair also in a clear line. I am wondering If this is a sign of my hairline settling into a mature widows peak sort of line(I went to talk with a specialist at at a clinic in New York and they said I wasn’t even the first part of the Norwood in the receding section, though I notice a lot receding at the temples.Could this be the end if the miniatrization is that clear or would taking finasteride(probably finpecia since I am currently unemployed) be a smart option. I am opting for a teenage hairline permanantly seeing as I plan on doing sort of gender bending performance art and want a hairline that can he feminine as well.
I am willig to do anything to get ride of the receding hairline, I never want a mature hairline. This might sound naive or childish, but I do not feel comfortable looking manly at all, and never will, so I am DESPERATE. I know my options, would I have luck with finasteride?
At 20 years old, you might be a good responder to finasteride… but as for expecting it to regrow a maturing hairline and go back to your 10 year old line, it won’t do that. What you’re asking for is likely going to require surgery (as drugs will not reverse frontal balding), and at 20 years old it doesn’t sound like you made up your mind wanting your 10 year old hairline back. Hair transplants can be done to give you that, but do you really know where you mind is when you are 30 or 40. You get the picture? I never say never, but you need to bond with a good doctor, not one that just wants to take your money in these difficult financial times and become realistic with regard to what may happen to you over time.
I’m 60. My brother has been bald for years, but I had kept most of my hair until the last 18 months during the stress of a business failure. Now it is very thin on top with a bald spot on the back. I began using 5% minoxidil about 45 days ago. Is there anything else I can do to at least stabilize the situation? Thanks.
It is rare to see balding start at your age, but we are programmed to have a certain number of hair cycles in hairs in different parts of the head. Maybe you have reached the age limit and number of cycles of some of your hair. It is not unusual for it to appear in patterns. Taking Propecia (finasteride) would probably slow it down and could reverse the thinning areas, considering that the entire process is recent, which is when the drug works best.
I finally amounted the courage to go to the my GP(General Practitioner) and seek help for my hair loss, only for him to tell me I haven’t got hair loss when I quite clearly have, receding hairline and all. He wouldn’t listen, he said it was just me but I know I mean I really know I do. What should I do now, I’m only 17 but I want a Propecia prescription.
At 17 years old, you may not be a candidate for Propecia just yet (it’s not out of the question, though). I’d find another doctor that will listen to your concerns, as educating the one you have sounds hopeless.
Hey Doctor, I just had a miniaturization study done the other day by Dr. Bernstein in New York (who I found out about thanks to this site) and he said I had about 50% miniaturization on the front of my head while the crown/back was all normal and prescribed me 5mg Propecia to cut it into 1/4s. I didn’t take the chance to ask him any questions about it, which I regret. So I was hoping I could ask you:
- Being 20 years old, would you consider 50% miniaturization a significant amount of hair thinning?
- Being that right now I just have hair thinning and there’s really no signs of balding to the untrained eye, am I at a better advantage to responding to Propecia?
- Also, could the propecia actually reverse the miniaturization, at least to a certain degree, or is it much more likely that it’ll just halt it/slow it down?
50% miniaturization is a predictor or hair loss or balding in the area where the miniaturization is found (in your case, in the frontal area). Sooner or later, the balding will be evident to the naked eye, but with finasteride, it may slow it down or reverse it. You should repeat the miniaturization study in a year and see what has happened ,and then you will have a better idea of the hair loss progression and the speed of the process.
Hey Doctor Rassman, I have a question regarding early MPB. I’m 19 years old and my hair recently started thinning at the hairline and my temples have very slightly receded. It’s not at a stage where the untrained eye would notice, and my friends who I’ve pointed it out to think I’m crazy, to give you a picture of how early it is right now. But my dermatologist diagnosed it as early stage MPB right away when I asked her about it and she prescribed me propecia. So my question is:
Does thinning/receding at such an early age usually indicate a more serious case of balding? Does it generally mean more aggressive balding as well as a eventual higher NW# pattern? I know it can all be so very random sometimes, but I’m just wondering what the average case comparable to mine usually ends up at, if there is such a thing.
Starting age of your hair loss doesn’t indicate degree of future balding. You could start early and get to your pattern quickly… then stop losing hair. It’s different for each person, obviously.
Hello Dr.
I have a problem regarding my brother starting to lose his hair.He is losing his hair at a very young age (he is 17.5) I want to get him on propecia since he is nearly 18 but i am worried that even 18 years old is a little young to use propecia,do you think this is true? The reason i think it may be too young is that boys don’t stop growing until they are around 20 to 22 sometimes, and i am worried that DHT is needed for boys to develop into men.Do you think 18 years old is to young to use propecia and could it stunt his growth? I am really worried for him,please respond.
You are your brother’s brother, not his doctor, so you can not be objective about the process of hair loss and its diagnosis and treatment. Assuming that he meets with a good doctor, gets examined for miniaturization, and gets a diagnosis of male pattern baldness (MPB), taking Propecia at 17.5 years old should not be a problem. The clinical trials and data are from men as young as 18 years old, and as you stated he’s nearly 18, he should be done growing anyway.
Maybe there is something else wrong? Perhaps he is not genetically balding, but just developing a mature hairline In any case, do what is right and in his best interests. Seeing a doctor should be step 1, as the medication is by doctor’s prescription.
(female) Hi, I started noticing my hair thinning for the past 2 years but it has been really getting thin the last couple of months. I’ve had blood tests and all have come back normal. Now I have noticed that my 8 year old daughter is thinning. Could there we something in our home causing it? Mold or other toxin? Or something we are eating? I am very concerned. I would really love to hear your opinion.
First, your daughter needs to be checked out by a good doctor familiar with hair disorders and/or dermatology. I would not jump to toxins as my first diagnosis, but this needs to be evaluated by a competent doctor in-person, and not over the Internet. It could be a variety of possibilities, from nutrition problems to disease, but an examination must take place.
hi doctor,
every hair transplant surgon (including yourself) always says a person has to be a good candidate for hair transplant to be feasible and succesfull. what exactly do you mean and how do you define a good candidate?
A good candidate understands the process of balding and the limitations of a hair transplant surgery (where the transplant process works and does not work). The presence of realistic expectations reflects the supply/demand issues of the donor supply and this requires some prediction of your long term balding patterns. The concept of a Master Plan is critical in knowing that you can meet your goals. The rest is determined by the relationship between and good doctor and a patient willing to accept what transplants can and can not do.
All too often, patients who are 21 years old (too young) do not want to bald and they are not willing to really understand what they have to do (from taking medications to following the miniaturization mapping). It’s also worth noting that there are some things that might immediately disqualify you from a surgery: some forms of OCD like trichotillomania (until you have it under control), some forms of alopecia (we don’t want to transplant diseased hair that will just fall out again), etc.