New Hairloss Sufferer

[MrBrian]

Hey There People,

 

My name is Brian and im 25 male from scotland and in the past 3years i have started lossing my hair across the top and in the past year started shaving my head bald as a result thinking i could deal with it, but its very difficult as its constantly on my mind.

 

I have not tried any treatment but have been considering minoxdil 2% or 5% there is so much and im confused about where to start. I have tried talking to friends about this but they cannot possibly understand how this makes me feel.

 

Any Help would be greatful?

Brian.

[Maxxy]

Welcome, MrBrian!

 

First of all you have came to the right place. The guys on here, doctors included, are very experienced and I'm sure you will get all the help you need.

 

The first thing you need to do is speak to a doctor/dermatologist (preferably the latter as most GP are clueless regarding hair loss) just to make suffer you are suffering from MPB and that there isn't some other underlining cause for your hair loss.

 

As its likely you are suffering MPB there are really only 3 proving forms of treatment:

 

Minoxidil (Rogaine) which is a tropical stimulant. Don't buy this from a UK pharmacy, their prices are extortionate; I use Ebay but there are plenty of sites offering good prices. Personally, I'd go straight for the 5% and give the 2% a miss. I'd also recommend the foam version.

 

Finasteride (Proscar/Propecia) which is a DHT inhibitor taken in tablet form and is currently our best defence. As above, I would avoid the UK pharmacies as its grossly overpriced. Most users including myself buy Proscar (which contains 5mg of Finasteride) and split the pill into 4s or 5s, Propecia is the same medication but only in 1mg doses, splitting Proscar greatly reduces the costs.

 

Ketoconazole (Nizoral, Nizzorelle, Revita) - these are shampoos. Ketoconazole is thought to be a weak DHT inhibitor. You can get Nizoral and Nizzorelle in the UK from most chemists. Nizoral contains 2% ketoconazole and Nizzorelle - 1%. Id stick with the 1% as it's less harsh and studies have shown it to be almost as effective as the 2% version. Revita can be purchased online and contains 1% ketoconazole.

 

All the above should be used for at least 1 year before gauging your response.

 

I'd also recommend visiting a hair transplant clinic just to get there opinion and to monitor your loss. In the UK, I'd personally only visit the Farjo clinic in Manchester.

 

Hope this helps and feel free to ask any questions.

[Dr. Timothy Carman]

MrBrian-

I think it would be a good idea for you to give finasteride (1mg/day) a try as well.

There is a great deal of posts on this site regarding it's positive results- As well, it protects

against some forms of prostate cancer. Both meds (finasteride and minoxidil/rogaine) need a full year of use in order to give them a fair trial to see if they will work for you, but the overall percentages are way in your favor that they will!!!