Re: IWANTPERFECTION'S STORY- NEW PIC UPDATE PG4!
DoctorHouse said:
Clayshaw, For myself, I was referring to the NEW test that tells whether finasteride would benefit me or not. I emailed the company and they said that test is for all ages concerned. The other test which was the first one is for people under 40 years old. That would be more appropriate for IWP. By the way a few months ago I bought the instrument that Rassman recommended and did my self miniaturization test and honestly I had difficulty making out what was going on. To me all the hairs looked basically the same. I had some areas with little hairs but I had no idea if these hairs were coming or going. I can understand why IWP "thinks" his hair is thinning when it looks so great in his pictures. I think he may have a bit of paranoia because he may have lost a minor amount due to his thyroid but if my hair looked as thick as his does now, I would admit to myself I was not thinning and my presence on here would have been non-existent as it was when I was his age and my hair did look like his. However, my hair is not going to look as good as that because I do have thinning and whether it be from age or male pattern baldness, I have no idea because the miniaturization test I did does not tell me too much. As I said before, the hair transplant Doctor told me I have 30 percent loss of density mainly concentrated just down the middle of my scalp. I know its considered "thinning" but is it also male pattern baldness. Nobody seems to be able to tell me but based on seeing what these 20 year olds on here have, I have my doubts now. That is why maybe the genetic test could help shed some light on finding out I have been taking a medication for 3 years with NO benefit. Yet the hair transplant Doctor says keep taking it.
I've always read that you need at least 40-50% density loss for it to be visible to the naked eye. I've seen that in many places, including on the website of the company offering the test. So if your Doctor is telling you that you've got 30% loss, but you can see it, something is wrong.
In addition to that, what you describe is female hair loss, not male. I have yet to see a man with that pattern, and in my life I've only seen it on two women (I work with one). You're the Dr. here... is female hair loss due to DHT?? If not, and thats what you're experiencing, would a DHT blocker have any effect?
I think with the miniaturization tests, you're supposed to look at hair in the "safe" areas of your head and compare hair counts and shaft thickness to the areas where you suspect thinning. It's hard though, I know what you mean. I looked at my head, thought I saw NW7 thinning, and then looked at the pictures in the forum on Rassman's site. They had pics of a patient under the scope, and I thought, well, that looks like me. Then they showed a pic of his head, and he had no hair. The areas where I see thinning on myself under the scope look ok to the naked eye, the patient's head was almost bald. Its much easier if you shave your head. The problem is, I saw an article on PubMed that said that the definition of miniaturization in Androgenetic Alopecia was "overly broad", and needed to be revised. I can't link, sorry. I think hair shaft thickness is supposed to be uniform throughout the scalp, and if it's not, there is miniaturization present. Still, I stand by my previous statement that Rassman is a propecia saleman.
I can't imagine that there is a genetic test that would accurately predict a person's response to finasteride. How would that even be possible? Sounds like snake oil to me. I understand that finasteride blocks a certian percentage of DHT, like 60 or 70%, and that the people that it does not work for have follicles that are very sensitive to DHT.
Have you considered the possibility that you're losing your hair due to something other than male pattern baldness/the effects of DHT? Could it be an immune system thing, some other form of alopecia (areata, for instance)? Maybe you should see a dermatologist instead of an hair transplant Doctor.
As far as IWP is concerned, if you lose hair due to something other than male pattern baldness, it shouldn't follow any specific pattern. One of my best friends has AU, and it started with an oddly placed bald spot. If IWP lost hair due to some thyroid issue, it wouldn't be in the male pattern baldness pattern. I stand by my statement that he is not balding. If by "I Want Perfection" he means he doesn't want a mature hairline, well, tough sh*t. If he means he doesn't want an NW3+, I think he's good to go. I just don't see any hair loss there. I don't see a mature hairline. His hair is rounded off at the corners. Thats NW1. He said he started noticing thinning temples at 19... That sure sounds like the beginning of a mature hairline. His basis for believing he's going bald is counting hairs in the sink, which is worthless as far as an indicator goes, and his reaction to finasteride. Well, if his hairline is maturing, it makes sense that finasteride would slow it down. Hairlines mature due to the effects of DHT, if you block enough DHT, then your hairline won't mature, or it will take longer. Its just sad to see people taking a drug they don't need. I guess we all know our hair better than anyone else, and if he thinks he's balding, then maybe he is. But if you truly need 40% loss to see it, then there's no way that he could see any hair loss, because there's no f*****g way his hair was 40% more dense than that. Thats way more hair than most guys have.
