HAIR LOSS TREATMENTS
 Medications for Male Hair Loss
There are two drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration and are shown to have a positive effect on balding, Finasteride and Minoxidil (Rogaine).
Finasteride is a 5-Alpha Reductase Inhibitor, that is, it works by blocking 5-Alpha reductase and so prevents the enzyme from converting testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT). It is DHT that causes male pattern baldness. There are two drugs that contain Finasteride, Propecia and Proscar. Originally prescribed by doctors for benign prostate hyperplasia (prostate problems), the drug has been shown to stop hair loss and in some cases reverse the balding process. Finasteride takes about three months to show results and hair loss occurs a year after the drug is stopped. Side effects are unusual but can include impotence, reduced libido, ejaculation disorders, breast tenderness and enlargement, hypersensitivity reactions such as rashes and lip swelling. Women of child bearing potential should not touch the drug and condoms should be used as the drug is excreted in semen as there is a risk of birth defects.
Minoxidil (Regaine) is found to be effective in about 25% of men with baldness on the crown. Applied twice a day in a cream the hair growth only occurs as long as it is used. Minoxidil was originally approved to treat high blood pressure. Side effects are unusual but Regaine should not be used by people with a history of heart problems, sudden weight gain, chest pains, fainting, or rapid heartbeat.
Beware of Baldness Treatment Rip-offs
There are plenty of sharks around just waiting to get their hands on your money by offering false hope of a cure for baldness. Some may even guarantee success for their pills, potions, scalp cleansers and stimulators or diets. The words they use to describe their products often incorporate ambiguous phrases that basically say, if it does not work, you will be one of the unfortunate few.
Surgical Intervention for Male Hair Loss
In the case of hair transplants very small plugs of hair are taken from the side or back of the scalp and transplanted onto the bald patches. The procedure has improved over the years and achieving natural looking results are even better. The methods used today are continually improving and we now have procedures that produce amazing natural hairlines and undetectable scarring.
Hair Transplantation is a common cosmetic surgery for men. Hair transplantation is a relatively recent technique where hair follicles are surgically removed from hair bearing areas and implanted into the bald areas of the scalp. Hair transplant is carried out for male and female pattern baldness and can also be used for hair loss resulting from surgery, trauma or burns. Most hair comes out of the scalp in groups of two or three hairs, 15% in groups of four or five hairs and some 15% comes out as a single strand. The surgeon transplants groups of these various follicle groupings of hair to mimic a natural looking hair pattern as it emerges from the scalp.
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