February 18 2008, 12:32 pm PT | Posted in: Drugs + Hair Transplantation
i am 25 and i was just starting to loose hair(have a small bald spot in ‘U’ shape at the crown and can be covered easily) . My doc confirmed it as pattern baldness and asked me to use finasteride and minoxidil 5%. i dont want to get bald at any age. So,instead of loosing hair after 10 years or whenever hair loss beats propecia and getting hair transplant,why not let the hair loose now and get a HT,so that i can save the money on drugs for years. My doc said thats stupid.whats your opinion?
I think it is a bad idea to wait for all your hair to fall out and then have hair transplant. First, it may not all fall out. Second, you will become balder when you are younger and the medication may delay this for years. You have a limited amount of permanent hair that can be used for hair transplantation. The cost of the drug is much, much less than a hair transplant.
You don’t have to take my word for it — if anyone wants to give their 2 cents, please leave a comment below to let this writer know what you would do in his shoes.
I read your question and being a male who turned 46 and finally after waiting for 5 years I went through with a hair transplant. Focusing on the front hairline and top part of my scalp (2500) grafts a megasession -I am awaiting the results.I can tell you that Doctor Rassman and your actual doctor you spoke with are correct. You need to preserve what you can now and do not rely solely on transplanted hair because there is only so much you can glean from over time. therefore I use the Rogain foam however, I personally will not take Propecia-that intimidates me based on potential long term effects for a drug you take orally I am not prepared to commit to that.
good luck and do your research-look at you tube videos of the actual surgery and what it entails. Honestly it does not hurt except for the needles for anesthesia.
I will probably need more surgery in the future but according to my surgeon-2500 grafts equate to about 4000 hairs
which he said will make a dramatic difference in my appearance for the better-so again God Bless and good luck to you
Don
Much like you, I am 25… for about 4 months I have been using the Rogaine and Propecia combo with good results. Hair loss has slowed dramatically and I can even see some new growth even in the frontal region! I understand that paying $60-70 bucks a month isn’t cheap (especially being 25) but unfortunately this are our current options
I agree with Dr. Rassman. I started taking Propecia when I saw the first signs of hairloss. That was in 1998 when I was 24. Now I am 33 and I cannot complain about the results. But what would have happened over the years had I not started with Propecia? I am sure things would be much worse!