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June 5th, 2007

Q: I have been using Propecia since it was released to the public in 1998 and have found it to work very well. Recently, its effectiveness has stopped and my hairs are miniaturizing again. I am going to increase the dosage to 1/2 a pill Proscar every day. How long will the increased dosage take to stop the miniaturizing process? — T.U., Chappaqua, N.Y.

A: It seems to take the same time to work as when you initially started Propecia.

When patients increase their dose, I rarely see re-growth, but rather the expectation is that further hair loss will be decreased. When it does work to actually re-grow hair, we sometimes see an initial period of shedding, similar to when finasteride was first started.

June 2nd, 2007

Densitometry - Hair Transplant Forum International - March/April 1997The lead article in the March/April 1997 issue of Hair Transplant Forum International focuses on the latest tools available for assessing whether or not a person experiencing hair loss is a good candidate for hair transplant surgery.

Dr. Bernstein uses the techniques of densitometry and video-microscopy to analyze the scalp under high-powered magnification. This gives the doctors vital information for making decisions about whether patients are candidates for hair transplant surgery.

June 1st, 2007

Q: If someone were to get a hair transplant now, and then in the future when hair cloning becomes a possibility, would the hair transplant grafts be affected by hairs from the hair cloning procedure?

A: Cloned hair should not be affected by hair that is transplanted the traditional way and visa versa. If you have a hair transplant now, the hair restoration surgeon can add more hair in the future when cloning becomes available.

May 31st, 2007

Q: I recently had a follicular unit extraction procedure of 320 grafts to fix an old strip scar. The donor area where the FUE’s were taken looks very diffuse – worse than the original scar ever was, it looks horrible. My doctor said this was just shock loss. Have you seen that happen where the donor area gets all diffuse from shock? If not, have you seen it where the FUE’s are taken in an illogical pattern resulting in new scarring that is noticeable? — E.O., Providence, R.I.

A: You can have shedding in the donor area from an FUE procedure, although it is not common. In FUE, the hair must be taken from the permanent zone and if there is too much wastage in the extraction process, too large an area may be needed to obtain the hair. This can leave a thin look even without shock loss (shedding).

May 30th, 2007

Q: I had my first hair transplant of 1100 grafts five months ago. The hair has been growing in well and I am very satisfied with the progress, but the new growth appears to occur in different cycles. Some of the hair never fell out and started growing within weeks. At around three months, a lot more started to grow, and now there seems to be even more growth of new hair coming in its finer stages. Is it normal for transplanted hair to begin growing at different times? Why does some hair come in looking thick and other hair start off finer and then gradually thicken up? — E.R., Bushwick, N.Y.

A: You are describing accurately how hair grows after a hair transplant. After the hair restoration procedure, the transplanted stubble is shed and the hair goes into a dormant phase. Several months later, growth begins as fine, vellus hair that thickens over time. The hair usually does not have its original thickness right away.

Typically, growth occurs in waves so that initially some areas will have more hair than others. Over the course of a year the cycles will even out and the hair will thicken to its final diameter.

May 16th, 2007

Q: If I stop the treatment will any benefit that I had be lost?

A: As with other medical therapies for hair loss, once the treatment is completely stopped, any benefit should subside.

It is anticipated, therefore, that periodic treatments will be needed after than the initial treatment course.

May 14th, 2007

Q: How long will Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) treatments for hair loss last?

A: The studies submitted to the FDA looked at the effects of low level lasers over a 6-month period. There is no published data for use beyond this time period.

Therefore, the long-term effectiveness of these lasers in treating hair loss is not currently known.

May 9th, 2007

Q: I have had thinning eyebrows since my early twenties (I am now 32) and they have gotten to the point that I can’t make them look good with mascara anymore. I am considering an eyebrow hair transplant, how is it different from other hair transplants? — C.C., Williamsburg, N.Y.

A: Eyebrow hair restoration procedures are similar to hair transplants to the scalp in that the hair, once transplanted, is permanent. They differ both in the techniques used to perform them and in the results.

May 8th, 2007

Q: I have read that in the evaluation of a patient for hair restoration surgery some doctors use a densitometer to measure miniaturization – the decrease in size of hair diameters. I read that miniaturization is a sign of genetic hair loss, but when there is miniaturization of greater than 20% in the donor area, a person may not be a good candidate for hair transplants. Is this correct and does 20% miniaturization mean that 20% of the population of terminal hairs have become fine vellus-like hairs or that there is a 20% decrease in the actual diameter of each of the terminal hairs? — B.A., New Albany, Ohio

A: Miniaturization is the decrease in hair shaft length and diameter that results from the action of DHT on healthy, full thickness terminal hairs. The hairs eventually become so small that they resemble the fine, vellus hair normally present in small numbers on the scalp and body. Miniaturized hairs have little cosmetic value. Eventually miniaturized hairs will totally disappear. Twenty percent miniaturization refers to the observation, under densitometry, that 20% of the hairs in an area show some degree of decreased diameter.



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