People undergoing certain medication have reported or been observed to suffer thinning hair. Clinical studies point to some medical products that have unwanted side effects that include hair loss. Women are particularly susceptible as most hair loss caused by medication occurring in the female gender is prompted by external factors such as stressful conditions that require hormone upsetting drugs.
Known Medications
Among the known medications documented to cause hair loss are steroids and birth control pills that disturb the body’s balancing act producing hormones. Anti-depressants also account as the most common medication that result in thinning hair as a side effect. Just about any medication that directly impact on hormonal activity is sure to cause one.
In particular, medications containing Lithium and Depakote or Valproate have been frequently documented to cause hair to enter into the telogen or resting phase and after 3-4 months cause them to stay on your brush or comb instead of on you’re your scalp. Medications prescribed for bipolar disorders such as Prozac, Tegretol and all trycyclic antidepressants are also notorious for causing hair to fall out.
What to Do?
Experts agree that the best way to arrest falling hair is to stop or reduce the intake of drug that is causing your hair to thin out. But you need to consult with your doctor about your situation and to take alternative medication or reduce the prescribed dosage. Just don’t expect instant hair regrowth. Be aware that hair loss caused by medication may take at least 6 month to see any improvement or restoration of your hair growth.
Excess Doses
Some drugs have active ingredients that are known to cause hair loss. Some suffer when taking the medication in moderation or clinically prescribed. But in general, any form of excess doses on most medications, even vitamin and mineral supplements can cause hair thinning. Drug or substance abuse like taking in more antidepressants than prescribed can be ruinous to your scalp health. As they say, too much of anything can be dangerous.
Hair loss is natural. However, hair loss becomes an alarming condition when a person loses more than the usual amount of hair that he sheds. If you are looking for more information about , visit us at now!
As patient awareness of new hair transplant techniques grows, the repair of improperly planned or poorly executed procedures becomes an increasingly important part of surgical hair restoration. The repairs are performed by excision with re-implantation and/or by camouflage. Follicular Unit Transplants are used for the restorative aspects of the procedure. Using punch or linear excision techniques allows the surgeon to relocate poorly planted grafts to areas that are more appropriate. The key elements of camouflage include creating a deep zone of follicular units, angling grafts in their natural direction, and using forward and side weighting of grafts to increase the appearance of fullness. In special situations, removal of grafts without re-implantation can be accomplished using lasers or electrolysis.
Visible scarring can be a major detriment to a poorly executed hair transplant procedure. Removing unacceptable linear scars by re-excision should be considered when scarring is well localized and the cosmetic benefit from its removal will be more than offset by the decreased density of the surrounding hair. Because of the importance of the surrounding area for camouflage, success in decreasing the size of an existing scar depends as much upon the choice of the scar as upon the actual surgical technique used to repair it.
A number of surgical techniques have the tendency to produce poor donor scars. An understanding of how these techniques may contribute to poor wound healing provides insight into how the repair may best be accomplished. The more common problems are:
* Deep donor incisions * Wide donor strips * Suturing with large bites * Poor wound edge approximation * Non-contour incisions * Donor incisions placed too low * Donor incisions placed too high
Deep Donor Incisions -
The fascia acts as a structural support for the healing wound. When this support has been violated, the risk of having a widened scar is greatly increased. The use of copious amounts of tumescent anesthesia infiltrated directly into the subcutaneous fat will elevate the dermis and increase the distance from the base of the follicles to the fascia. This is probably the single best way to keep the wound superficial.
With the single-strip harvesting method used in Follicular Unit Transplantation, if the outer edges of the donor strip are cut too superficially, they can be easily deepened with a single blade as the strip is being lifted from the scalp. When using a multi-bladed knife, the standard tool in mini-micrografting, multiple superficially cut strips are almost impossible to deepen in-vivo, and once removed from the scalp further dissection is extremely problematic. Because of this, the surgeon has the tendency to cut more deeply with a multi-bladed knife and this increases the risk of cutting through fascia.
Once the fascia has been cut, the healing will partially obliterate the subcutaneous space. The elimination of this natural surgical plane makes it difficult to judge the depth of subsequent excisions. In the repair, it is therefore important for the surgeon to have greater control over the wound depth. This is best accomplished by using a single-bladed scalpel that allows each wound edge to be treated separately. A single blade is also beneficial when the scarred area is devoid of hair and the angle of the incision does not need to follow the angle of the follicle. In this case, a more perpendicular incision will enable better edge to edge contact and avoid the thin, friable upper edge produced by the fixed angle of some multi-bladed knifes.
When the harvesting is superficial and there is no tension on the wound, a layered closure is rarely needed, as there is no place to position the deeper sutures without impinging on follicles and there is no need to suture the fascia, as it has been left intact. In contrast, with a repair the fascia has often been violated. A meticulous layered closure that includes fascia is important because there is often significant wound tension and the sutured scar tissue regains its wound strength more slowly than normal hair-bearing scalp.
Although one should never undermine in a properly planned harvest in a virgin scalp, in a repair procedure conservative undermining is sometimes required. Undermining should generally be carried out in a superior direction with care to stay deep to the fascia or scar tissue so that follicular damage will be avoided. Undermining in an inferior direction will allow the movement involved in neck flexion to be transmitted to the wound edge, increasing the potential to stretch.
When a layered closure is required, interrupted sutures provide the most secure and controlled approximation of the deeper tissues. Polyglactin 910 (3-0 Coated Vicryl) is a braided absorbable suture that has good tensile strength and handling properties and is an excellent material for deep sutures. Recently, we have been using the synthetic monofilament Poliglecaprone 25 (3-0 Monocryl) for deep closures. This suture has the advantage of causing less inflammation but, being a monofilament, tends to cut through the tissue more easily and is slightly more difficult to tie.
Wide Donor Strips -
In the era of mega-sessions, taking too wide a donor strip has been a common problem in hair transplantation surgeries. A wide strip places unnecessary tension on the donor closure and leads to a widened scar. Hair loss associated with this type of closure does not adequately compensate for advantages of the larger session. When larger sessions are appropriate, and the scalp does not have good mobility, the surgeon should consider a longer incision rather than a wider one. Harvesting a donor strip of appropriate width, so that there is minimal tension on the wound closure, is the single most important thing that a surgeon can do to minimize donor scarring.
Once a wide initial incision had been identified as the cause of a widened scar, it is preferable to wait at least eight months so that the scar has a chance to mature and regain some of its original laxity. On re-excision, it is advisable to make the new strip at least 3-6mm narrower than the previous one. When a tight closure is the cause, one should generally not attempt to remove the entire width of the old scar since this invariably leads to a reoccurrence, or worsening, of the old scar. To facilitate healing, the new excision should extend into one hair-bearing edge. In other situations, when adequate laxity is present, removing the entire scar width may be beneficial. When two hair-bearing areas are approximated, the healing seems to be improved. The issue of whether the additional wound security from suturing into a hair-bearing edge outweighs potential hair loss from the suturing itself should be decided on a case-by-case basis.
In general, the surgeon should not attempt to remove the entire length of the old scar, as a shorter incision will create less tension on the closure. The repair excision may extend further anteriorly than the previous excision, but should not go to the contra lateral side, as the suturing of one side will create tension on the other. If the repair is successful, the remaining scar may be removed in a subsequent session.
A creative way to repair the defects caused by tension closures, called “Deep Plane Fixation” has recently been proposed by Seery. In this technique, he “channels away the tension forces from the superficial, at risk tissues, into deeper tissues where they are harmlessly dissipated.” The procedure is accomplished by first suturing the deep dermis of the superior wound edge to the deep tissues or fascia of the inferior wound edge. The upper dermal/epidermal components of the two wound edges are then sutured together, end-to-end, ideally without tension.
Suturing with Large Bites -
When suturing with large bites a significant amount of hair-bearing scalp is incorporated within the sutures. Especially with a running stitch, any post-op edema or tension in the donor area will tend to compromise the blood supply of the entrapped tissue and may result in permanent hair loss. In addition, if there is any tension on the wound, the mechanical pressure of the sutures can cause hair loss. In the repair procedure, it is useful to use horizontal mattress sutures to reduce wound tension. Small bites, very close to the wound edge, are recommended for the superficial closure. The cutaneous suture, Poliglecaprone 25 (5-0 Monocryl), is excellent due to its low tissue reactivity and relatively slow loss of tensile strength (2-3 weeks). Metal staples are useful when sutures need to be left in place for extended periods of time. However, staples have the disadvantage of not allowing for perfect wound edge apposition and causing greater post-operative discomfort than sutures. The advantage of staples in being less destructive to hair follicles than a running suture is of less importance when the closure involves mostly scarred scalp.
Poor Wound Edge Approximation -
Perfectly opposing the wound edges of the donor incision is a key factor in preventing the scar from stretching. Since the incision made in harvesting the strip should follow the angle of the hair, one edge will necessarily be acute and the other obtuse. Suturing techniques that do not account for the different angles of the two wound edges will not be able to keep the edges flush and will result in inadequate dermal-dermal contact and a spread wound.
Careful suture placement with small bites is the best means of keeping wound edges apposed, but it is often a time-consuming process. Although faster to place, metal staples do not allow for the same amount of control as sutures and can result in a wider scar, especially if there is any tension on the wound. If the wrong suture material or poor suturing technique can be identified as the cause of the wide scar, this can be remedied by a more meticulous closure using the appropriate sutures.
Non-Contour Incisions -
Incisions that do not follow the natural curved contour of the skull tend to heal with wider scars than those that follow it. When a re-excision is planned, it is important to have the new excision follow the natural curvature of the skull, regardless of the linearity of the original excision and regardless of whether the new excision completely encompasses the old excision. Special care should be taken so that the re-excision stays above the mastoid area. It is sometimes useful to make the excisions narrower in this area. In most cases, the focus should be on reducing the size of the original scar and changing its direction, rather than on eliminating it entirely.
Donor Incisions Placed Too Low -
Of the various factors contributing to a widened donor scar, the most problematic with respect to the repair is a low incision on the posterior scalp. Some surgeons feel that hair lower down on the scalp is a good source of fine hair, however, this hair may not be permanent and harvesting it may result in unacceptable scarring due to the location. In the rare instance that 1-hair follicular units are not delicate enough, (such as in the front edge of the temples, or the leading edge of a female hairline) fine hair may be generated by removing all, or part, of the bulb of terminal hair harvested from the mid-permanent zone.
As discussed in the section “Limitations,” the most desirable position for the donor scar is in the mid-portion of the permanent zone. In most individuals, this lies at the level of the external occipital protuberance, at the midline, and the superior nuchal ridge, as one moves laterally. The trapezius muscle, the most superficial muscle of the nuchal area, originates from the superior nuchal line and the ligamentum nuchae. Incisions that lie below the nuchal line will thus be affected by the muscle movement directly below it and have a greater tendency to stretch. This problem is exacerbated when a deep donor scar obliterates the subcutaneous layer and muscle movement in the neck is more directly transmitted to the overlying skin.
It has been advocated by some that wide donor scars can be treated with re-excision in conjunction with aggressive undermining, and possibly tissue expansion. However, even the conservative re-excision of a widened scar that is located in the inferior portion of the occipital scalp carries a significant risk of healing with an even wider scar. Scars in this area should not be re-excised and, if additional transplants are performed, hair should be harvested from an incision made above it in the mid-permanent zone, leaving a thin zone of hair separating the upper and lower incisions. Instead of attempting to remove a difficult scar, its appearance may be more consistently improved by the addition of small amounts of hair to the area, with far less risk.
Donor Incisions Placed Too High -
When a donor incision has been placed too high, it is best left untreated unless the scar is wide and poor surgical technique has been identified as the cause. Often, the surgeon who used poor judgment in placing the wound too high did an equally poor job in the closure. In this case, there is a reasonable chance the scar may be improved with better techniques. As with other scars, one should generally attempt to lessen or improve the appearance, rather than trying to remove the scar entirely.
The temptation to add hair into a high scar should be resisted, as progressive balding would isolate the hair-bearing scar and present new cosmetic problems, demanding additional hair. An exception to this is placing hair into the lower portion of a vertical scalp reduction scar that dipped way down into the permanent donor fringe.
Implantation of Hair -
When a localized area of a donor scar is cosmetically bothersome, its excision is impractical, and there is easily accessible donor hair in other areas, it may be beneficial to place hair directly into the widened donor scar. Two and three-hair follicular units are the most useful for this purpose and should be inserted at very acute angles. Only a small amount of hair is generally needed to soften the appearance of a scar. Dedicating too much hair for the purpose is unnecessary and wasteful. It appears that grafts do not grow well when the scar is hypertrophic, and it is best to manage these scars with intra-lesional corticosteroids, 5-fluouracil or silicone gel sheeting, before attempting to add hair.
Conclusion -
The “science” in hair restoration surgery involves the ability to mimic nature as closely as possible, by carefully matching the newly transplanted hair to the patient’s original hair in its distribution and growth pattern. Once these principles have been violated, a standardized approach will no longer suffice in restoring the person’s normal appearance. Presented with dramatic cosmetic defects, a severely limited donor supply, and an exasperated patient, the surgeon attempting a repair faces a set of challenges quite different from those encountered when operating on a virgin scalp.
In corrective surgery, the judicious use of every graft is critical and setting surgical priorities is as important as the technique itself. In repair work, the routine, symmetrical placement of grafts will often not be sufficient to accomplish the patient’s goals. The surgeon must find ways to transform harsh walls of hair into soft hairlines and make small quantities of hair camouflage larger areas. The surgeon must be able to tap every bit of harvestable hair from the donor area and even reuse hair from previously transplanted grafts. To achieve the best results, the creative use of every follicular resource is required. This is the “art of repair.”
Dr. Bernstein is Clinical Professor of Dermatology and is recognized worldwide for pioneering Follicular Unit Hair Transplantation. Dr. Bernstein’s hair restoration center in Manhattan performs and other hair restoration procedures. To read more publications on hair loss, visit
New approaches to hair loss are available. Natural hair loss is an unfortunate part of many people’s lives and there are increasing research in creating a hair loss cure. Hair loss (alopecia) is often caused by circulating hormones in the body that can cause reduced blood flow, nutrient absorption, and thinning hair follicles.
There will be a time when we look in the mirror and the character looking back is displaying symptoms of losing that dazzling full layer upon layer of hair that developed into a considerable ingredient of our identity. The initial response will be astonishment perhaps followed by some exploration of possible ways to isolate the potential reasons for the hair loss.
The majority of experts in the discipline of balding suggest that a blood test or scalp biopsy should be done to determine if underlying circumstances such as elevated blood pressure, diabetes, lupus or any other medical conditions are the cause.
The scalp biopsy will make known the dimension of the hair follicles when viewed beneath a microscope. Dwindling hair follicles are a significant clue in reducing the possible reasons for hair loss. The leading possible cause being androgenetic alopecia.
Androgenetic alopecia, popularly referred to as male and female pattern balding, is the hair loss source for an astounding nine out of ten situations. Its final consequence is to put an end to hair follicles making new growth unfeasible without some kind of interference.
In men the model of balding is very identifiable with hair loss frequently starting at the forehead or on upper part of the head in the direction of the back. A slight case of male pattern balding in males is established by a minor bald spot that appears on the crown with a retreating hair line. Radical cases are acknowledged by all of the hair on the upper part of the head being lost with a little hair being retained on the sides and back of the head.
For women, it is a completely different scenario due to dihydrotestosterone concentrations in the hair cell and ranges in scalp enzyme and hormone patterning. For the majority of women, hair loss starts on the uppermost part of the head and is typically a thinning of the hair as opposed to a total loss of hair. The hairline is usually not affected.
Undoubtedly the reasons for hair loss are wide ranging. However, the preponderance of continuing and progressing cases is diagnosed to be male or female pattern baldness. There are presently a small amount of hair re-growth products available which have been confirmed successful in both blocking destructive hormones and bringing the vital dead hair follicles back to life. To learn more about website is a patent-pending natural hair loss shampoo website and information.
These types of products may be used in cooperation as a preventative tool, if used early and prior to acute hair loss, or subsequent to noticeable loss of hair. Whatever the stage of balding or thinning you are experiencing specific products may perhaps be required to defeat this latest challenge.
In androgenetic alopecia, the genes influence how the hair grows. They activate an indifference to a class of hormones called androgens such as testosterone and the related hormone which reduces the hair follicles. Decreasing follicles create thinner hair and ultimately none at all.
Consequently, androgenetic alopecia is the result of the body’s decrease of producing new hairs and not due to extreme hair loss. Heredity also plays a part in the age at which you start to lose hair as well as the rate, pattern and degree of your baldness.
Official author and natural hair loss expert. Natural hair loss treatments, prevention, dht, and alopecia reviews, stories, and studies can be found at
If you’re asking so that you can lay off the relaxer or stop using it all together I have bad news for you the problem with relaxed hair is that it is damaged hair and there is not much you can do to it but keep touching up your roots every 6-8 –if you don’t do this your hair will break and you will be left with split ends and badly damaged hair.
The best bet to fix relaxed hair is to keep it natural by cutting the damaged hair and starting all over. Again the best way to handle relaxed hair is to keep it moisturized and to do this by moisturizing your hair with deep treatments. Understand that relaxers dry out your hair and if you don’t moisturize it, it will get brittle and break out
The very best oil for this is a product called Mira hair oil; it will keep your relaxed hair moisturized and also promote new hair growth
So again the best way to handle relaxed hair and to keep it healthy is to make sure to keep the ends of your hair well moisturized and trimmed. That’s the only way to make relaxed hair healthy.
One of the reasons why keeping the hair moisturized is key because when you have relaxed hair you have essentially taken out all the elasticity of the hair as you forced your curly hair to be straight, so knowing that it is extremely difficult to keep it strong,
So the solution to taking care of relaxed hair is to get regular trims and touch ups – once that is done supplement with a good herbal oil treatment to keep the hair moisturized
Remember to focus on your ends – protect the relaxed hair even further by wrapping your hair up at night and cover it with a silk scarf.
Try the powerful Mira hair oil for free below by using the link in the author’s box
Rob Maraby is the author of over 25 self published books on health, beauty and marketing! Try Mira hair oil for Free-click here and you will not be disappointed
What is the on the market? Any treatment that truly understands the nature of pattern hair loss is one that you will definitely want to try. Fortunately, it is an extremely easy problem to understand, as there is just one simple cause… nutrient-deprived hair follicles!
Not only that, but the causes of your follicles not getting what they need are extremely few in numbers. In all actuality, you will only need to address three. And each of one of these comes complete with its own individual treatment, making total hair restoration possible for countless gentlemen!
Best Hair Regrowth Treatment – Hold On A Second:
Before we start celebrating prematurely, however, there is one thing you must understand. The reality is that your condition may not even be treatable. Perhaps you’ve gone completely bald and are showing patches of scalp with no hair at all.
Sadly, if you are in this stage of your hair loss, you will most likely only benefit from plugs or transplants. This is not to say you shouldn’t seek out advice from a dermatologist or other qualified professional to see what else may work for you.
What I am about to share with you are three steps for hair restoration that have been of great benefit many men with treatable hair loss. These are 3 simple steps that solve each of the reasons for follicle starvation mentioned earlier. May this serve you well!
Best Hair Regrowth Treatment – Step One:
Give those hair follicles what they need!
Makes perfect sense, right? If you’re unable to feed your follicles what they’re desperate for because you don’t have the right food, then how can you expect to reverse your condition? It simply will not happen.
These ever precious minerals and vitamins include essential fatty acids, zinc, copper, follic acid, magnesium, and the b-complex vitamins.
While it may be true that healthy foods are the best sources of these nutrients, taking a powerful, natural multivitamin supplement will give you exactly the right amounts of what you need every time. Anyway, healthy food seems to be getting less healthy and more expensive every day!
Best Hair Regrowth Treatment – Step Two:
Arrest the murderer!
There is an androgen (male sex hormone) that is literally murdering your follicles slowly. It’s called dihydrotestosterone, but most people simply know it as dht. Those of us with pattern hair loss are genetically predisposed to produce way too much of it.
This disgusting androgen clings to your hair follicles, leaving them unable to assimilate proper sustenance from your bloodstream. So basically, dht kills your hair via slow starvation! But it can easily be stopped.
There are many dht blockers available to you these days. One powerful choice among these is finasteride, better known as Propecia. This medicine is very powerful, highly effective, and FDA approved.
On the downside, serious and potentially long-term sexual side effects have occurred in users of the drug. These include impotence, decreased volume of ejaculate, and decreased libido. And while it’s true that these side effects are somewhat rare, accounting for only 1-2% of all reports, a lot of men simply don’t believe it’s worth the risk.
Many of these men turn to nature in an effort to slow the production of dht in their bodies. A highly revered all-natural dht blocker is the extract of saw palmetto. Others that have been shown effective at blocking dht are pygeum, emu oil, and nettle root extract. No matter what dht blocker you take, if you want to grow your hair back, you absolutely must take a dht blocker… there’s no debate about it!
Best Hair Regrowth Treatment – Step Three:
Restore circulation to your scalp!
It doesn’t matter how much dht you block or how many vitamins you take. If your blood can’t even get to your starving follicles, then your problem isn’t going away any time soon. Makes sense, right?
A great way to promote healthy scalp circulation is with minoxidil. FDA approved and proven to regrow a man’s (as well as a woman’s) hair, minoxidil is thought to open up the blood vessels in your scalp, enabling them to deliver much-needed nutriment to your weakened follicles.
By simply applying some of the topical to the affected area(s) of the scalp once each day, thousands upon thousands of people have regrown their hair with minoxidil!
Best Hair Regrowth Treatment – Putting It All Together:
By implementing this powerful strategy, you are providing yourself with an excellent chance at full hair restoration. The idea is quite fundamental. You enrich the blood, you free the blood from “attackers,” and you deliver the blood to your sick hair follicles. It is the most complete hair regrowth system you will come across.
One product that performs all three of these essential tasks is .
If your condition is still treatable, and you would like to take a closer look at Provillus, you are invited to do so at this time.
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Lee Murray is a nutritionist and hair restoration expert living in Spokane, Washington with his wife, twin daughters, and brand new baby boy.
