Treating Baldness

Posted Monday, September 10, 2007 to PROCEDURES > Hair

Posted by The Original Anti-Aging & Cosmetic Surgery Magazine

Hair transplant surgeon Dr Russell Knudsen explains the benefits of combined medical and surgical treatment for hair loss.

The most common cause of hair loss in men is male pattern baldness (MPB). In females it is androgenetic alopecia, which is essentially the same condition.

In past years many "clinics" advertising treatments for hair loss relied upon gullible and desperate clients to purchase "treatments" of dubious scientific worth. The medical profession had no reliable treatments and these clinics flourished.

Two recent treatments for hair loss have shown some promise: finasteride (Propecia) and minoxidii (Regaine). Both these prescription medicines can be used in males, though only Regaine is recommended in females. Both act primarily by retarding or blocking the further progression of thinning or baldness. Neither is particularly successful in reversing hair loss in the frontal scalp area, but both have some effect in some patients on the crown, with some increased hair growth possible.

Any patient with hair loss should seek the opinion of a doctor regarding his or her hair loss, to see if either of these medicines is appropriate. If a significant amount of extra hair in the frontal area is desired, then surgical correction using hair transplantation will probably be required. The combined use of medicines and surgery presents more options to the patient than ever before, with the likelihood of better outcomes. The use of medicines and surgery is complementary, as the medicines prevent further hair loss (which surgery does not) while surgery provides an increase in frontal scalp hair (which usually will not occur via medicines).

Propecia is successful in over 80% of patients in preventing further hair loss. It re-grows significant hair in the crown area in 36% of patients. Many patients can now delay a decision regarding surgery in the thinning crown until first assessing the effects of Propecia. The ability to stabilise frontal balding with Propecia adds a degree of safety to a decision to begin grafting the hairline, particularly in the younger patient. If medication is continued, then less surgery will be eventually required. Normal design rules still apply though, as the surgeon cannot assume the patient will always continue to take the medication. This means that balding may resume at a later date.

The successful combined use of medicine and surgery means a new era in managing hair loss has arrived. With better surgical results through modern micrografting and less baldness progression because of effective medicines, there has never been a better time for the balding/thinning patient to consider his or her treatment options. It can truly be said that baldness is now optional, not compulsory.

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