I Saw Amazing Finasteride and Minoxidil Regrowth Photos, So Will My Hair Look Like That?
Hi doctor!
I was researching before and after pics for finasteride results when I stumbled on this link from Dr. Bernsteins website.
According to his site these are all patients who took finasteride or minoxidil or both ONLY. No surgical procedures on these patients. And I must say the results are pretty thumping good! I am 22 and recently was prescribed about a month ago for early hairloss. At this point i seem to be heading towards a Norwood 3 with a persistent forelock (as of now) no major recession or erosion of the hairline just many shorter hairs in the front that “appear” The same thickness but just aren’t getting as long as my “long hair”. My coarse dark hair however does look incredibly thin when wet but when dry it’s extremely thick appearing. I get compliments on how much hair I have. So there is no noticeable balding or thinning happening to the outside world yet.
My question is why do you say in many posts that finasteride and minoxidil do not work in the frontal scalp and hairline?
According to these patients almost EVERY person of all age ranges seem to have gotten a good bit of positive results from the medications alone including crown AND frontal regrowth. I only ask because I am hopeful that finasteride will produce similar results for me and if nothing else maintain what I have. I currently have no thinning in crown, that’s actually my thickest area of my hair.
I am 22 and given where I currently stand would you say that finasteride has a good chance of working for me? About what percentage of men see NO RESULTS from finasteride and continue to thin At the same pace? I am worried that I will be one of the patients that see no response from it :(
Thanks for your time and your informative site!
The photos you saw on Dr. Bernstein’s site are amazing, and I have seen results like this for myself on occasion at my office. But regrowth at the front is rare (probably under 5%) compared to the results that are more common in the top/crown.
The photos show what is possible, but you have to remember that everyone will react differently to medication. Dr. Bernstein was not implying guaranteed results, but just showing some examples of positive growth. Medication might regrow your hairline, but you shouldn’t expect it to.
I have no way to know if finasteride will work for you, but you can have a HairDX finasteride response test done if you’re curious. If anything, I would expect to arrest your hair loss to give you more time with hair. If it regrows, that’s the icing on the cake.
propecia doesn’t work for everyone. only a select few. I saw dr bernsteins website as well, and those look promising but only a very select few get responser.
for example in the propecia 5 years study they had 279 men. 134 of the 279 had hair regrowth. 117 of the 279 had no further loss. 28 of the 279 lost hair. so basically lets say instead of 279, lets make it 1 million men taking propecia. if 28 of the 279 lost hair, then if 1 million take it about 99 thousand will still lose hair. so you just have to be a lucky one
Actually what you’re saying is 10% have no response whereas 90% do have a response. In medical terms we call that statistically significant. If you get a 90% success rate in any drug that’s impressive. You would actually be one of the ‘unlucky’few for propecia not to work for you.
As far as I am aware there is no drug with a 100% efficacy rating in studies. In fact most make it past FDA approval with far less efficacy as it’s deemed statistically worthwhile.
Propecia may not work as often or as well for the hairline but it should probably be your first port of call and then you can always consider a transplant with a good surgeon. Even if it does not regrow your hairline corners it may certainly prevent much further erosion giving you years with less loss or even decades.
If you were gambling and the odds of winning were almost 50% you’d be in pretty good odds. If the odds of some success were 90% it’d hardly be worth not trying.
I should add I have been one of those ‘lucky few’ who regrew my hairline entirely with propecia and minoxidil treatment – I do not suggest I consider my results typical but I can say it’s possible. I would have been happy just to degrade loss or maintain my hair as I was planning on having my hairline transplanted and filled in anyway. The fact that I’ve not needed surgery for several years now has been great. It’s worth a shot.
I always maintain a positive attitude. The worst that can happen is my balding picks up again and I get the hairline restored surgically in future. Or perhaps a cure will emerge whilst I still have all my hair.
I think people need to decide on propecia for themselves. If you’re convinced it will cause horrible side effects then don’t do it. But if your hair loss is so depressing it’s worth trying your options. If your hairloss doesn’t concern you then shave it all off and you can quit reading this site and do something else!
Ditto to Paul.
I am actually one of the folks on that on Bernstein’s site!
Rogaine and Propecia have worked very well for me. I regrew hair on the top of my head and also on the hairline. I went from a Norwood 3.5 I’d say…bordering on NW 4, back to a Norwood 2.
I’m now on year 2 of Rogaine and Propecia. Propecia every day, Rogaine 2x a day.
If hairloss is bothering you it is worth a short. BTW: In retrospect I also started losing my hair at about 22, although very slowly. It was not really noticeable until I was about 33. Then it picked up massively.
I am 35 now. If I had not made the choice two years ago, I am pretty certain I would have been rather bald now…an NW 4 or 5.
I also agree with Paul as I do with Mark. I have been on finasteride for a decade with decent to moderate success. I have mostly maintained what I have had with some minor hair loss over the years. But, I bet if I wasn’t on anything I would have lost more hairs as I’ve seen with friends who haven’t taken anything at all and have lost more hair then me and I started losing hair before them. Because I am 30, I’m hoping my loss will stabilize and I can eventually go for a hair transplant in the temple areas and little bit in hairline and behind the hairline. But, reading Mark’s post kind of scared me considering his hair loss picked up at 33 after it had stabilized.
I also tried minox. and had some small light hairs growing in my hairline but it wasn’t significant enough to call it regrowth. I stopped minox few months after because it looked as if I was losing hairs instead of growing thick hairs. I still continued with the finasteride which was the smartest thing I could have done. I wouldn’t consider my hair loss story a great success like some people on Dr.Bernstein’s website but I would consider myself one of the lucky ones. I’m actually amazed to see some of the results on his website because you usually don’t see such good success with products. But then again, they are the exception instead of the norm.
My advice would be would be to get on something and stick with it. Then go for a transplant if they resources are there to get one. Assess everything first because you don’t have to get a surgery and then you start losing hair behind whatever has been transplanted. Unfortunately that is what happens because some doctors are too eager to transplant in young patients and don’t tell them the risks.
Hello Alex. I would just like to say one thing about my hair loss.
Hmm, I wouldn’t say it every really “stabilized.” I would say…heck….in retrospect….that my hair loss goes back right to puberty. I believe I went right into a mature hairline at about age 16. And then it pretty much stabilized at that level until about the age of 25.
At about the age of 25, I remember shedding a lot all the time, in the shower and what not. But I have slightly above average hair density so the shedding (the hair loss, in retrospect) really had no cosmetic effect until I was about 33. Remember, one can lost 50% of his hair density without it have any visual impact. It is only after you lose 50%+ of your hair that it actually starts looking like you are thinning.
I think at the age of 33, two things happened. One, the cumulative effect of my slow hair loss, going back to puberty, really, was starting to show, as I was starting to dip under the minimal 50% density before hair loss starts showing to the naked eye.
And two…I really believe my hair loss accelerated. I was losing it everywhere…on my pillow, in the shower…and to an extent I had never seen before.
Hair loss is a progressive disease/disorder, but in some such as myself it also can accelerate, rather rapidly, at certain points in time, even though it was relatively steady and stable beforehand.
Rogaine/Propecia has really been a lifesaver thus far. My hair has returned to the condition it was when I was 16 and this whole process started.
Best of luck to you Alex and all others dealing with this condition!
Mark,
Thanks for the response. I’m not sure but can you remind me how long you have been on propecia/rogaine for? Thanks
Hi Alex. I have been on Rogaine/Propecia now for two years. It has worked very well for me.
I think compliance is very important for success of treatment, especially with regards to the Rogaine. You must use the stuff twice a day, every day, regardless of how much a pain in the arse it is. Don’t skip.
I use the Rogaine liquid solution, as that it what was tested in the FDA studies and proven effective. Because of the dropper, it also actually gets on your scalp, unlike the foam which winds up mostly getting soaked up by your hair.
On fin 1.25mg for 4 years and I’m turning 26 next month. I have early frontal hairloss (thinning corners and center of hairline and a little in the middle) Nothing got thicker or more hair but everything stayed exactly the same. I use a little toppik and all good.
Hello mark I hope all is well. I had added generic liquid minoxidil to my regimen many years ago. I didn’t see the positive results that I was hoping for. I felt I started to lose hair instead of growing it. I didn’t mind putting it on twice a day, sometimes I had to carry the bottle around with me in a plastic bag and apply it in the afternoons because I was away from home. I would do the first dosage early in the morning and then let it dry so I could style my hair and then the 2nd dosage in the afternoon. I felt I was constantly having to wash my hair (which is actually bad for you) because if I didn’t I would have these white crusts forming on my scalp and they became visible to people. I think that is the reason why I was losing hair because I was allowing my scalp to “breathe” and therefore lost hair. Then again it could have been the old hairs dying out and new ones coming in. Either way, I stopped taking it. I might start again, who knows. So far finasteride has helped me a lot. I did think about taking avodart if finasteride starts to wear out. Only thing stopping me is the the potential shed that might occur if I switch. At this point I can’t afford a heavy shed because then I will really start to look bald. I did shed heavily on finasteride when I initially took it but it but it didn’t matter because I had enough hair to cover up. Over time I have lost hair so having another shed would be deadly.
I meant to say “I think that is the reason why I was losing hair because I was not allowing my scalp to breathe”
Interestingly I had the opposite reaction – I couldn’t use the liquid rogaine as it tended to run everywhere especially down my face and I ended up with fine hairs growing in some places they shouldn’t! But then i was only worried about the front hairline corners really. found the drying effect left me with horrible hair that looked thin and so gave it up. When I tried the foam I found it far easier to apply exactly where it was needed and it doesn’t leave my hair messy. It doesn’t grow much I think – the major regrowth in the hairline was from propecia, but the minoxidil definitely gave some light regrowth and thickening which helps while propecia rebuilds the thinning areas.
I think it depends on your hair type, thickness, style etc. My hair is very thick in most places it was simply the corners moving back further than a mature hairline that I caught and reversed. I have always had a strong forelock.
I’d recommend everyone try both together though, and give the foam and liquid varieties a try for a few months – in the end whatever allows you tp be consistent is the best method. Like anything – something you stick with will almost always be more successful regardless of other factors.
I don’t think the hair ‘breathing’ is actually a factor. Hair grows or thins out regardless of how well it cam breathe. There is no benefit from blood supply or air getting to hair – this only applies to a transplant healing up. Hair like skin grows whether it’s covered up or not. The hair from minoxidil tends to be unnoticeable for months and then it suddenly thickens up ( at least for me and my friends who use it – I think this is why so many people give up on it).
I guess we’re all saying it’s worth a shot! Start early and be consistent. You might still need a transplant in future but you can definitely delay or avoid that if you approach medication early enough and stick at it day in and day out for a couple of years.
For sure consistency is the key. I like the fact that I can take finasteride in the morning and be done with it. I don’t like how its a life long commitment and it does hurt the wallet at times. Same thing with minoxidil, its a life long commitment, and for some people it is worth it.
Have either of you (Paul or Mark) tried avodart or considered taking it if finasteride wears off?