We’re always updating our Scalp MicroPigmentation (SMP) site with new patient before and after photos, but I thought I’d take the opportunity to post a patient here so BaldingBlog readers can see an example of the visual impact that occurs.
This is a female patient with thinning hair. You can see the immediate results after just one SMP treatment. Further SMP will be done for increased darkness and density.
Before SMP on left / After SMP on right. Click the photos to enlarge:
Snippet from the article:
A teenage alopecia sufferer from Northamptonshire will complete a trek of The Great Wall of China to raise awareness about the condition.
Alice Frost, aged 16, of Denton, has been suffering from the condition, which causes severe hair loss, for about three years. She will take on the nine-day expedition with her 18-year-old sister, Sally, in September, and the pair hope to raise £7,200 for the trek and for the Alopecia UK charity.
Alice first lost a large amount of her hair while on a school trip to China and she said the expedition would take her back to a fitting place.
Read the rest — Teenage alopecia sufferer in China trek
The article wasn’t clear on what kind of alopecia she has, but it appears to be totalis or possibly universalis. I congratulate young Ms. Frost on her courage and her desire to raise awareness.
I have just seen a dermatologist for the beginnings of female pattern hair loss. She has prescribed using 2% Minoxidil for 3 months to stimulate the hair regrowth I have noticed, but everything I have read about Minoxidil seems to say the stimulated growth will just stop as soon as I stop the product. The doctor said that wasn’t true. I don’t know what to do.
Your dermatologist is incorrect. Minoxidil should be used for life, or you will lose whatever benefits (regrowth) the medication provided. For best results, you should use it twice daily.
You can read more about minoxidil for women at the Rogaine site.
I have been taking gabapentin for years and just started to notice increased hair loss, more than would come out naturally. I’ve had chemo and all my hair came out, but that was about 6 years ago and my hair came back, but not all the way. A lot of women told me that when their hair came back it was their natural color, most women color their hair so didn’t even know what their natural color was, plus their hair came back thicker and glossier. They were all delighted.
Mine didn’t come back like that. I was taking gabapentin then and ever since. My hair came back weak, very fine, some gray in natural ‘mouse brown’, limp, awful looking and very easily broken. It was workable but I didn’t really notice it being really thin. Just in the past year and a half it has really been disappearing. I’m now wearing the wigs I used when my hair all came out with chemo.
I’ve had both knees replaced, one last July,2011 and the other last January, 2012. I thought it might have been caused by the anesthesia or the high doses of demeral? or the oxycodone I was taking for back pain. Also, beside the demerol? in the hospital the first time and then morphine the second time. But I don’t take any of that stuff since about April, 2012, around eight months ago and my hair seems to be coming out worse now. I’ve checked out all of those drugs and none of them seem to have hair loss as a side effect. Then I accidentally came across this blog and I have been enlightened. I never would have thought of gabapentin, but it sure makes sense. Is there a different medication to take the place of gabapentin? Someone help me out here?
I’m female, 64 years old, some baldness in the male side of the family, none on the female side. I take gabapentin, prilosec, atenalol?, effexor, Flexeril, Claratin, metformin, and Lantus, oxycodone/acetaminafen? when my back goes out. I take a multivitamin, vitamin C, magnesium, and iron beside the other prescription meds. What am I doing wrong? Can I be helped?
I really think you should see your doctor for your issues. Based on your medication list, you have a significant number of medical issues. You cannot just point to one drug as the source of hair loss. I wish it was that simple, but it does not work that way. In most cases the medical condition itself may be the cause (not the medication). Your issue is beyond the scope of a simple blog post. Sorry.
Hi!I thought after 8 years,after being in the army and deploying to Mosul, Iraq. Me and my battle buddy were some of the only women to still be losing our hair. I’m now 32 and that happened when i was 23. My hair has almost completely fallen out. I now have to wear wigs probably for the rest of my life and I’m fighting the VA for some kind of acknowledgement and compensation that this is happening to military women after being in Iraq.
I have seen specialist many thing i was exposed to something but don’t know what so they call it Alopecia. But I know its something more, its time this has finally come out. Theres other women with the same problem. So soon the VA will have to pay us for this. Thanks
Alopecia is just a generic term for hair loss, so that doesn’t exactly pinpoint what is causing the loss.
I honestly do not know how being in combat would contribute to hair loss for this long. If there is extreme stress, one can argue that could be causing the hair loss… but that would apply both to men and women, and it would be reversible (unless it kick-started a genetic process that would’ve occurred anyway).
Many women who are not in the military or in combat have diffuse hair loss, and sometimes it may be due to genetic causes or to stress. In your case, you’ve been experiencing the loss for 9 years, so I’d expect the stress-induced loss would’ve regrown by now. I’m stumped on this one.
I saw some of your pictures of triangular alopecia and it seems to be what I’m experiencing except that it is not congenital and I am a 53 years old. Could it be menopause? Is there is anything I could do about it?
Triangular alopecia is not related to menopause. Triangular alopecia is an entity in and of itself, which both men and women may get and could appear almost any time, but usually is congenital. It can be treated with a hair transplant surgery very successfully.
Triangular alopecia has many appearances, but the common thread is that the hair loss is on the front/side of the scalp. These pictures from Google Image Search give some good examples of the diversity of its presentation.
I have lost my hair at the crown due to tight braiding. Before I try a transplant if it’s even necessary, what products would be best for me as a 43yr old African American Woman? Thanks
In general, traction alopecia is considered permanent hair loss, particularly if it has been present more than a year. Some women try Rogaine with mixed success, and some women go through hair transplant procedures, which work very well. Every case is different.
I am a female in my early twenties and I am considering having a hair transplantation surgery. However, I am not sure which method to choose or if I should even have the surgery done.
When I was young, I had a bad habit of pulling my hair. I also used to tie my hair very tightly, which resulted in receding hairline, very thin or almost bald spots at the front of my head.The increased size of my forehead and the presence of almost bald spots made me insecure and uncomfortable with my looks.
I have a somewhat thick hair even after losing so much hair last year due to stress. I also had very low levels of vitamin D which could have attributed to my recent hair loss. A few months ago, I started taking multi vitamins and high doses of vitamin D. I also started some oil treatments and I noticed some thin hair growing in the front.
Since I was able to detect some natural improvements, I felt like I should continue and see if I can regrow my hair naturally. It would be safer, scar-free, and much cheaper to do it this way. I have seen some encouraging before and after photos on the internet and I know a relative who managed to regrow front hair without surgery.
On the other hand, surgery provides more guaranteed results and allows me to choose the shape of my hairline. I contacted some doctors and I have been told that I should make an appointment before the new year or the prices will rise. I will probably need around 1500 grafts.
In case you think that I should have HT, do you recommend FUT or FUE?
The method of harvesting is not an issue in women who keep reasonably long hair. The cost differential might make a difference if you go the transplant route (FUT/strip will cost less per graft than FUE). Each technique has various pros and cons that we’ve written about before.
People who pull at their hair and see permanent hair loss from it (trichotillomania) must make sure that the problem is stopped before transplanting the area. Most women who pull their hair, will continue to pull their hair, and that causes failure of the transplant process. Are you sure, absolutely sure, that the pulling is over?
Encouraging photos on the internet are one thing, but I really doubt there’s any medication or vitamins that will get hair to regrow at the hairline. If it works for you, that’s a great thing…. but I wouldn’t expect too much.
Hello, I’m a 26 year old female who recently experienced dramatic hairloss. I would say over the last 7 or 8 months I’ve lost nearly half my hair. All my blood tests came back normal including a hormonal panel. My DHEA sulfate was slightly elevated but not much. The loss is all over, diffuse. But more severe in areas like the hairline.
I went to two dermatologists who were fairly insensitive told me it would grow back and that was it. I was on two birth control pills this year which gave me bad side effects so I stopped taking them. My derm told me this is likely the cause.
If this is the case, will it really grow back? I see small sprouts, but not enough to fill in what I lost. Does growth happen gradually ?
Thank you for your help.
The questions you asked are reasonable, but I am not in a position to give you an answer to them. Massive hair loss, as you described, is not common. Telogen effluviums can occur that present this way, but these usually reverse in a year or so.
I don’t know which birth control pills you were taking, but I would go back to your dermatologist and ask if he/she thinks that a biopsy will give more information and is appropriate to get a specific diagnosis.
Snippet from the article:
Kate [Hudson] told Redbook magazine: ‘When I had Ryder, I was 24 and didn’t really experience any changes to my hair or skin.
‘But with my second child, I got acne, all my hair fell out after he was born, and I definitely had to work out to drop the weight. No pregnancy is easy to bounce back from.’
Read the rest — Kate Hudson reveals she suffered hair loss and severe spot breakouts while pregnant with baby
Hair loss in women following childbirth is usually temporary and can be common with the hormonal changes and stress.
I have been using Rogaine for women for about 3 months and haven’t seen any results. I would like to quit using it a start on another regimen. How long do I need to wait after stopping Rogaine and starting another regimen?
After 3 months, a dependency probably did not develop, so you can quit anytime. I wouldn’t expect any results to be seen in only 3 months. It’s recommended to use the product twice a day for at least 4 months before any benefits might be seen.
I don’t know what else you’re going to try, but Rogaine (minoxidil) is the only FDA approved medication for treating female hair loss.
I am a female that was just diagnosed with PCOS. I would like to know if there is anything I can do to prevent hair loss in the future with my condition? Thank you
I also have a question about bleaching/dyeing. I have dyed my hair a total of 20 times (at 27 years old). I have a sensitive scalp and stopped dyeing my hair because I don’t want anything on my scalp. However, last time I got my hair highlighted, they put a color solution on my scalp. My scalp is extremely sensitive and became red and itchy after 2 minutes of this solution and I made them wash it out. Could that have caused permanent follicle damage, especially in light of my condition?
Thank you
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) often produces more androgens and can cause hair loss as a result of these hormones. For a young women, Propecia (finasteride) in contra-indicated because if pregnancy should occur while on this drug, the hormone impact on the fetus will impact the sexual development of the fetus. With this in mind, doctors may make an exception in the use of this drug in a young woman; however, such a patient must not get pregnant. For this reason, I would not prescribe finasteride in a young women.
Dying of the hair should be done by professionals who know how to test for allergies. There is a high degree of allergies with the dyes used, so what you may be experiencing are such allergies.
With regard to damage to the hair follicles, I would have to know much more than what you told here and examine you as well. Get an appointment with your doctor and ask him/her about hair damage.
(female)
Hi, I have been using a product spelt Estradex drops 2% but have read somewhere it has been banned? My hair has started growing using this product, I have been informed I have female pattern baldness by a trichologist. Would you use this product? and is it safe. Thankyou.
I’m not familiar with Estradex, and I have no idea if it was banned (by whom?). I did look it up, and although I could find very little about this lotion, it appears to be something sold by a UK trichology clinic. I don’t know about its safety profile, but I do know it’s not something I’d likely recommend to my own patients. If you were using it with good results, you can talk to your doctor about continuing it.
The only product I recommend for treating female hair loss is minoxidil, as it is the only FDA approved female hair loss medication. You can get boutique formulations of minoxidil with various ingredients, but the active ingredient is still minoxidil.
Hello Docs,
I’m a female, 18, and a few years back I’ve been parting my hair at my right. Recently, I’ve been combing my hair back with no parting and I realized I have a bald spot in the front of my head. Is there anyway my hair can grow back in that area? I would love any information you can give.
The photo you sent was blurry and honestly, without examining you, I can not tell what the spot is about. It could reflect a disease called alopecia areata, or it could just be the way your hairline is, or perhaps you had an injury earlier in your life (or a variety of other possibilities). There is no substitute for a good examination, and that should be your next step if you’re concerned.
Snippet from the article:
Off-label use of oral finasteride at 5 mg/day proved safe and effective for the treatment of female pattern hair loss in 43 premenopausal women in an 18-month study.Treatment effectiveness was assessed in two ways: patient satisfaction scores and two blinded investigators’ evaluation of photographs. As a precondition for study participation, patients needed to have normal serum androgen levels, no clinical signs of hyperandrogenism, and no wish to become pregnant ever again. They also had to go on drospirenone/ethinyl estradiol for oral contraception.
At the 6-month mark, 25 patients (58%) characterized their improvement as “huge” and 14 (33%) as moderate; 4 reported no improvement. These results were stable across time, with the women reporting the same results at 12 and 18 months of follow-up.
Read the rest — High-Dose Finasteride Halts Hair Loss in Women
The study appears to be unpublished and includes only a few dozen patients, but I found it of interest to our readers and worth posting. As the article points out, “an 18-month study is not sufficient to draw solid conclusions about the possible long-term risks of extended therapy“.