surecan

Thank you, everyone, for the responses! I was wondering if the same rule (no surgery for at least 6 months after stopping Accutane) applies if a patient had been on a low or ultra-low dose of the medication such as 1.5-5mg/day for a few months. (I think the common normal dose is around 60mg/day, depending on body weight)

Thanks for the response. Have you so far been able to keep your recipient area pimples under control? The infection didn't seem to have spread for you?

I'm about 2 months Post-Op, and I have pimples/cysts in my recipient area that I've been treating with warm compresses and also an anti-bacertia/anti-inflammatory corticosteroid topical cream. Some of the large pimples have lessened in size, but several pimples (some that seem puss-pilled) remain. I wonder if I could have folliculitis, and I worry that the pimples could affect my growth. I have consulted with my doc, who prescribed for me ciprofloxacin, which I am reluctant to take to treat the pimples/cysts because I have read about some scary side effects that can result from taking ciprofloxacin (which apparently is also used for people with anthrax contamination). I plan to discuss these concerns with my doctor when I speak with him in the near future. I was wondering what antibiotic medication others have been prescribed for similar conditions. Anything that hair doctors here have prescribed for similar conditions? I plan to ask my doctor about one of these other medications that he might think could be appropriate for me and also which he might agree to let me use as an alternative to ciprofloxacin. Thank you very much in advance for information.

What do you mean by the Nixon look? Are you referring to your hair? Or your skin??

I actually did use this forum's search function for posts on this subject, bit didn't find much. Am I missing something? I had tried posting this message earlier, but later couldn't find it... so I assumed I hadn't posted it correctly. Sorry if it's a duplicate message. Anyway, I don't always trust reports from the pharmaceutical companies to be entirely reliable. Just because something hasn't been reported yet as a common side effect doesn't mean it isn't real. And just because a drug doesn't give one person certain side effects doesn't mean it won't give another person those side effects. Drugs like Propecia affect our hormones, which in turn can affect different people in different ways. For example, many doctors like to say that the sexual side effects of Propecia will always go away once you stop the drug, but I've read a lot of personal accounts which have claimed otherwise. That's why online forums can be so valuable... though it's up to us to be able to figure out what to believe, which claims are backed up with evidence, etc. Update: Here's one relevant thread which had discussed the topic. Is it okay to link to outside forums? See here: http://www.propeciahelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=406

Awhile back I remember a few posts by some people who believed that Proecia/Finasteride may have contributed to a loss of fat in their cheeks and around their eyes. I've been on the drug for a few years, and I've noticed the same thing in my face. I have no way of knowing whether this is just natural facial changes, or whether it is related to some possible side effect of Propecia. Anyone else here ever hear about such a thing, or think that they might have experienced it themselves? Know of any relevant thread discussions/links or studies that talk about this?

Awhile back I remember a few posts by some people who believed that Proecia/Finasteride may have contributed to a loss of fat in their cheeks and around their eyes. I've been on the drug for a few years, and I've noticed the same thing in my face. I have no way of knowing whether this is just natural facial changes, or whether it is related to some possible side effect of Propecia. Anyone else here ever hear about such a thing, or think that they might have experienced it themselves? Know of any relevant thread discussions/links or studies that talk about this?

Does anyone here have experience with the drug Accutane (isotretinoin), which is used to treat acne? Is it safe to have a strip hair transplant while on the drug? Could the drug affect scar healing or in any way adversely affect the transplanted hair's growth? Is it safe to start a course of accutane treatment a few months AFTER a hair transplant procedure? I have read that hair loss is an potential Accutane side effect for some people, and that the drug thins the epidermis... it also limits the function and size of sebaceous glands, which helps to clear acne. It's powerful stuff... leaves the skin dry, chaps the lips... but it's supposed to be effective for cystic acne.

Does anyone here have experience with the drug Accutane (isotretinoin), which is used to treat acne? Is it safe to have a strip hair transplant while on the drug? Could the drug affect scar healing or in any way adversely affect the transplanted hair's growth? Is it safe to start a course of accutane treatment a few months AFTER a hair transplant procedure? I have read that hair loss is an potential Accutane side effect for some people, and that the drug thins the epidermis... it also limits the function and size of sebaceous glands, which helps to clear acne. It's powerful stuff... leaves the skin dry, chaps the lips... but it's supposed to be effective for cystic acne.

I'm about 2 months out from my HT procedure, and, per my doctor's intructions, I have been applying liquid minoxidil twice a day since 3 days after the procedure. I hadn't used minoxidil before the procedure. I've read that minoxidil dependence can occur over time, and that hair shedding (I assume native hair in the MPB region, not transplanted hair) is possible if we stop the medication after a period of use. -Has anyone here noticed shedding after stopping minox/rogaine use? -How long do we have to stay on minox. after a HT procedure? My doctor says to stay on it for a few years (or longer, if possible), but I really don't want to commit to using another drug long term, especially if the longer I use it the more likely it is that my hair will become dependent on it AND if the drug really isn't required for my transplanted hair's growth. Here's a post from another blog that briefly discussed the minoxidil dependence issue: http://www.baldingblog.com/2006/11/16/switched-from-min...and-now-im-shedding/

Hi there! About a year and a half ago you posted about an issue you had with a large pimple in your recipient area that you had popped. You had stated that, 3 months out, you still hadn't seen any growth in the area where you had popped the large pimple. I am in a similar situation (about 2 months Post-Op now), and I recently popped a large cyst-type pimple at my hairline. Now I'm worried that I may have damaged the transplanted follicles in some way. Did you end up seeing growth in the area where you had popped that large pimple? I hope your result turned out well! Thank you so much for sharing your experience!!! UPDATE: I see that this is an old thread, and I meant for the post above to be a private message to the user. Sorry about that!

Update: Some of the pimples have come to a head, and I've popped them -- made them go away fast. Now I'm concerned that popping may damage the follicles. Has anyone here experienced reduced growth or no growth in certain areas that they think may have been the result of popping pimples? What is the advice of clinics like Hasson and Wong, Shapiro, Cole, etc. Thank you!

Thank you for the great response! It's so frustrating how some treatments may or may not have the potential to cause other problems... we take work out supplements then worry about hair... take medicine for our hair and might be concerned about the effects it has on our skin... take acne medication (like accutane) and there's the possible hair loss side effect to worry about there. There's no way out.

Thank you for the response!

Hi all! It has been 1 1/2 months since my HT procedure, and I have about 4 relatively hard lumps/cysts (a couple the size of a thumbnail) in my recipient area. The lumps are mostly invisible to the eye, but they can be felt (and they are sore when touched). These are not tiny whiteheads nor pimples that can be popped. I am concerned that the cysts could affect my transplanted hair's growth. I will be in contact with my HT doctor about this. I am very interested in hearing whether anyone else here has had (or has heard about others having) similar cysts, and whether certain kinds of acne treatments would be safe for me to use now. I am currently being treated by a dermatologist for acne, and my dermatologist has suggested that I consider the following kinds of treatments for the cysts in my transplanted/recipient area: - Diluted kenalog+saline injections to reduce the inflammation - Clindamycin phosphate topical - Benzoyl peroxide 4% solution topical gel (though she warned that the benzoyl peroxide solution, while potentially effective, might be mildly irritating to my still-pink recipient area) Also, what about Salex Shampoo (active ingredient 6% salicylic acid)? Should any of these treatments be safe to use in my recipient area 1.5 months after surgery? Can anyone think of any reasons why one or more of these treatments might pose a risk to the transplanted area? Thank you in advance for any info. This forum is a tremendous resource!!