April 30 2009, 3:36 pm PT | Posted in: Hair Loss Causes
Hey Doc,
Firstly, what an amazing job you guys do with this whole set up: Dr Rassman your blog has provided so much insight for those of us scared about hair loss.I’m a 22 year old male student. To combat my hair loss problem, last year I used Minox 5% (Rogaine) for about 1month, but due to the subsequent irritation it caused, I ceased use.
The area that I applied this to is now dead, straw like hair, and so much thinner than other parts of my hair. I have read about minoxidil dependant hair, do you think this could be the case for such a short application period? A trichologist I consulted over here, dismissed that as being unlikely, as 1month was too short a time frame. He emphasised to me that stopping minox would return hair to the ‘base level’.
The thing is, my hair loss has accelerated greatly in the past 10months: I touch my hair and it falls out. My scalp is clearly visible on top. What cuts me up inside, is that I think I brought this upon myself by trying minoxidil.
Do you think propecia would be of any use in this situation, if stopping minoxidil has damaged my hair? - I understand that the mechanisms are different. I am merely speculating as to why I’m losing hair so much, so quickly, but I am keen to give finasteride a go. Any feedback would be greatly welcomed.
Kind Regards
You are describing what might be genetic hair loss as well as some side effects from the minoxidil on your hair texture. I doubt your current hair loss has anything to do with minoxidil use and any new hair that grows out from the scalp should be as it was before the minoxidil use. Here’s your scenario as I see it — You started using minoxidil because you were losing hair… minoxidil caused irritation and hair texture issues, so you stopped using it… then your hair loss continued, because hair loss is progressive. I don’t think it’s clear that minoxidil accelerated the loss, though.
At 22 years old with early balding, Propecia is a good idea to help slow the loss down (if it is genetic hair loss), but you will likely not see results unless you take it daily for at least 9 to 12 months. It’s a prescription drug, so talk to your doctor if you’re interested in that. You should also have a good doctor examine your hair and perform a miniaturization mapping so that you can see the progressive nature of your loss over time.
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Keep using Minoxidil and only assess your results after 8 months of continued use given that you are applying it as directed and twice a day with sufficient time for your scalp’s skin to absorb the medication. It’ll look like crap the first few months as the miniaturized hairs fall out and thicker hairs cycle in but by the end of it you’ll thank yourself for sticking it through.
Hi.. I would like to add on this. Firstly I will raise the issue of my cousin. In 2003/04 my cousin noticed hairfall but wasn’t that bad and then the doctor suggested him minoxidil and he lost all his hair and he is not completely bald. I myself noticed hairfall in 2006/07 and I used minoxidil for a year. I applied minoxidil on the top and front (sides), but I noticed more hairfall in these areas. The parts where I applied minoxidil started to show and hair became much thinner and I started losing more hair. I stopped using minoxidil in late 2007 and since then my hair dosn’t fall that much. I am pretty sure that minoxidil caused in the acceleration of my hair loss. Now i wonder how i can regain the lost hair. It is so unusual, as minoxidil is proven to be the only drug for the treatment of hairloss but then me and my cousin lost hair due to using it. What is the problem?
thr is a typo in above post:
read….”and he is not completely bald.” as ” and he is now completely bald.”
As Prescription of Dr. for Hair fall in Vertex portion Am using MX-5 Minoxidil topical solution (daily 2ml..{1- 0 -1}) & Tab : Fincover and Folliderm daily one tablet each {1- 0 - 0}, since from past one month., But from last 4 days am observing lot of hair fall…in Vertex and front portion of the head please guide me… am bit scared….please revert.
There are lot of Positive infomration regarding Minoxidl that it enhances hait growth.
On top of it there are also information that this also enahnaces hair loss. We are confused. Is ther any case study of persons having got thier hair back with this. Require advise on this.