opinions

[j1j9j85]

ok well whilst in bangkok after my ht for 4months my hair was coming in nice after my 3500 ht with dr h!!!!

 

then i returned home for the xmas period and now my hair looks thinner than ever!!!!????

 

i beleive that the following factords are to blame!!

 

seasonal differences between hot bangkok n ice cold uk

lack of sleep due to partying over xmas

ive stopped using minox oral and resumed the lotion

ive stopped the dutas in my regiment and am now on finest

and i have been styling my hair with products for the first time after

hair spray and toppik use?

and my scar is looking bad on the sides over the ears!?

 

and to say the least my hair is looking very thin!!???? now even more so than before the xmas period!!??

 

i just think what your take on this is!!??

 

should i resume the oral minox and the dutas or will finest an minox lotion do?

does toppik damage hair quality?

could shock loss still be a factor now at 6 months post op on scar on sides????

 

 

im getting pictures taken tomoz to high light the areas!!??

[mattj]

Presumably you had hair transplanted to a region that had native hair. It's possible that the switch from Dut to Fin has caused you to loose native hair. Of the list of possible causes this stands out as the most likely candidate for your increased thinning.

 

What was the reason for switching from Dut to Fin? If you can tolerate the Dut and have no trouble affording or obtaining it then you should probably continue with it. Users of Dutasteride do report that if they switch to Finasteride then that drug just simply doesn't have what it takes to allow them to hold onto hair that was being maintained on the more potent DHT blocker.

[j1j9j85]

hey matt thanks for your in put its very much appreciated..............

 

i was using dutas one day then finest the next and switched to just finest about 3 weeks ago!?

 

would the stoppage of dutas be to blame so quickly?

 

i think its a combo of things,

 

more styling,less dutas less oral minox,seasonal shed due to weather been home 3 months now, lack of sleep partying to much booze etc etc and i coloured my hair for xmass!!!! im bummed abit as it was looking good

 

do you think starting the dutas again would help do the trick !!!??

 

cheers man for the help and time taken to evaluate the reasons etc if you hav any mor questions just ask

 

would the hair lost from the stoppage dutas come back again!? ive only been off dutas 3 weeeks ish

 

cheers

[RCWest]

Three weeks is not long enough to make a difference. Three months maybe, but not 3 weeks.

 

And usually by month 6 shock loss is growing back. Do you have scar stretch maybe?

[YouOnlyLiveOnce]

I think your mind can play tricks on you similar to taking pics. There are variables that can make your hair look worse or better. Switching your regimen can deff cause shedding. As far as Toppik goes, I've read that as long as you wash it out you should be fine.

 

Honestly, I'd just wait it out and see where things go. I know this is alot easier said than done, but its still super early @ only 4 months. Growth at this point typically isnt too significant to begin with.

[j1j9j85]

im at 6 months now but it did seem alot fuller before the xmas period and the growth at 4 months was very noticable now how ever things are looking worse not better an im trying to pin point why!!!?? scar stretching is a strong possibility an one that i have emailed dr hasson about infact im having to send him some pics now this weeks so i will upload what i can to the forum for you guys too!!!

 

due to the scar stretch and the possibility of a revision im allready planning my next ht to resolve things!!! im prob going to go back to dr H next year or at least nxt jan for a revision and some extra grafts was hoping for another 3000!!!

 

then that would be my last strip session and i would utilise fue to fill in the trip scar and any thin patches!!!??

 

but some thing i have done in the last month has resulted in a shed!!??

 

climate change

styling products

styling my hair

booze

smoking

hair coloured

stopage of duta an oral minox for finest and lotion minox?

 

 

 

im starting back on the dutas and ordering some oral minox now to see if that makes a difference!!??

 

any input guys would be great pics comeing soon taking them tommorrow to send to dr hasson!!

 

at 6 months post op how much growth can i reasonably expect to see in the next 6 months!!?? coz i need alot more thickening

[mattj]

Could the change in hair colour be giving the appearance of thinner hair by altering the contrast between it and the colour of your scalp?

 

Are you light or dark skinned?

What colour was your hair and what colour is it now?

 

Maybe you can definitely see or feel that there is less hair, but I'm just throwing out ideas.

 

Perhaps the switch to Fin has kicked off a shed. As you probably know, shedding can occur a few months after starting a hairloss treatment such as a DHT blocker or Minoxidil. I have also heard of sheds occuring when switching between different DHT blockers, but in most cases the person is going from Fin up to Dut, rather than the other way around. The alteration of hormones due to the change in drugs could conceivably cause a shed. Being only three weeks after the change could make that unlikely, but these things can vary from person to person.

 

I said the above to be thorough. Now I know more of the timeline with the drug changes I think the most likely culprit is the seasonal shedding theory. I have read that oral Minoxidil can increase seasonal shedding, (Did you experience noticeable seasonal sheds in the past?) and the move from a warm climate to an especially cold British winter could be all you needed to shed a lot of hair. What I mentioned above about hair/scalp colour could also be a factor if the changes you made altered contrast.

Edited January 7, 2011 by mattj

[j1j9j85]

thanks matt for your logical explanation and answers cheers

 

it makes perfect sense what you say i totaly agree that the stoppage of the oral minox combined with the seasonal shed due to the severe climate changes has resulted in a brutal shed also the darker hair with the sun tan i had fading has resulted in more noticable thin patches this combined with the dutas being stopped in place for fin would create a hormonal change which in turn could also magnify the already brutal shedding!!!!!!!!!

 

what do you think the correct way to proceed to ensure maximum regrowth would be???

 

start the dutas again and oral minox ??? is this hair likely to return?

 

cheers for your time:D

[RCWest]

I agree with restarting the oral minoxidil. I use it and it's made a big difference in areas where nothing else helped, and I'm only going on 6 months.

[mattj]

People don't often switch from Dutasteride to Finasteride, but I have heard reports that the less potent drug is not enough to do the job of maintaining hair for some users who have been on Dut. Everyone is different though.

 

If you are going to see a progression of your hairloss due to the drug switch then the impact might not be seen for a while. It could creep up on you. You might see the earliest effects as part of the seasonal shed. Or you could be completely fine. There is honestly no knowing. I would suggest that re-starting Dut is probably a wise move though.

 

I'm interested to know why you decided to to switch.

[RCWest]

I'm interested to know why you decided to to switch.

 

My only guess is cost? Finasteride 5 mg. is 4 months worth for $9 at Walmart. Dutasteride without insurance is usually over $100/month. I get it for $27 copay.

[j1j9j85]

i was taking dut every other day with finest everyday inbetween just thought finest would be sufficant with out the dut but im wrong!!!??? trying to get some oral minox is hard as my gp wont give it me and my bank wont let me transfer money abroad to dr path to get it sent over!!??? any suggestions guys to get cash to dr pat? with out bank charges

[YouOnlyLiveOnce]

The reality is, you can speculate all day and theres no sure way to figure out what caused any noticeable difference. If you think some of the changes had an effect, switch back, otherwise try and forget about it and let the transplant take its course.

 

Around Christmas I stopped using Proscar brand Finasteride. Sometime after my transplant I noticed a slight pain in my right knee. I do physical labor for a living and was laid off 3 weeks after the transplant so it didn't make sense the pain came during the lay off period. I tried to think back on anything that could have caused it but couldn't put my nose on it. I ruled out everything before considering the FIN. I stopped using it and voila the pain went away. I recently switched to another brand after about 2 weeks and didn't notice any shedding during that period.

[RCWest]

j1j9j85, how much does Dr. Path charge for oral minox? How much do you get at a time? I'm just curious as to how Thai prices compare to local pharmacies.