Hair Loss Blog

Hair Loss Blog

Hair Loss Blog

Hair Loss Blog

Hair Loss Blog

J Invest Dermatol. 1984 Jan;82(1):90-3.

Direct effects of minoxidil on epidermal cells in culture.

Cohen RL, Alves ME, Weiss VC, West DP, Chambers DA.

Minoxidil induces generalized hair growth when administered systemically, or localized hair regrowth when applied topically to sites of hair loss in severe alopecia areata or male pattern hair loss. The pharmacologic mechanisms by which minoxidil stimulates hair growth are unknown. This study was designed to examine whether minoxidil has direct effects on neonatal murine epidermal cells in culture. In the presence of minoxidil, cultures showed a marked dose-dependent second peak of DNA synthesis 8-10 days after culture initiation. In addition, two morphologically distinct cell types appeared. Indirect immunofluorescence staining with keratin-specific antibody revealed cytoplasmic keratin fibers, suggesting the epidermal origin of these cells. Our experiments demonstrate that minoxidil can affect epidermal cells in culture by altering their growth pattern and phenotypic appearance.

Hair Loss Blogs

Am J Clin Dermatol. 2000 Mar-Apr;1(2):101-5.

Alopecia areata. Pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapy.
Papadopoulos AJ, Schwartz RA, Janniger CK.

Alopecia areata is a common form of non-scarring alopecia that appears equally in males and females of any age, although children and adolescents are more commonly affected. The disorder is usually characterized by limited alopecic patches on the scalp, but more severe forms may affect the entire scalp (alopecia totalis) or body (alopecia universalis). Characteristic nail changes may also accompany hair loss. Alopecia areata has been linked with certain human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II alleles, indicating a probable autoimmune etiology. Current research implicates T lymphocytes in the pathogenetic mechanism of disease. Other autoimmune diseases are also linked with alopecia areata. The diagnosis of alopecia areata is usually made clinically, although a biopsy is diagnostic for this condition. Treatment is challenging and aims at the regrowth of hair in affected individuals. Intralesional corticosteroid injections are widely used in mild disease. Topical anthralin and minoxidil may also be clinically efficacious. Topical sensitizers, such as squaric acid dibutlyester and diphenyl-cyclopropenone, are sometimes employed. Various therapies for the disease may have efficacy in different patients, making a universal treatment algorithm difficult to implement. Patients should be handled on an individual basis, with the final outcome based on the cosmetic regrowth of hair. Maintenance therapy is also important in patients that do achieve acceptable regrowth, necessitating a highly motivated patient and good rapport with the treating physician.

Drugs. 1999 Jan;57(1):111-26.

Finasteride: a review of its use in male pattern hair loss.

McClellan KJ, Markham A.

The 5alpha-reductase inhibitor finasteride blocks the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), the androgen responsible for male pattern hair loss (androgenetic alopecia) in genetically predisposed men. Results of phase III clinical studies in 1879 men have shown that oral finasteride 1 mg/day promotes hair growth and prevents further hair loss in a significant proportion of men with male pattern hair loss. Evidence suggests that the improvement in hair count reported after 1 year is maintained during 2 years' treatment. In men with vertex hair loss, global photographs showed improvement in hair regrowth in 48% of finasteride recipients at 1 year and in 66% at 2 years compared with 7% of placebo recipients at each time point. Furthermore, hair counts in these men showed that 83% of finasteride versus 28% of placebo recipients had no further hair loss compared with baseline after 2 years. The clinical efficacy of oral finasteride has not yet been compared with that of topical minoxidil, the only other drug used clinically in patients with male pattern hair loss. Therapeutic dosages of finasteride are generally well tolerated. In phase III studies, 7.7% of patients receiving finasteride 1 mg/day compared with 7.0% of those receiving placebo reported treatment-related adverse events. The overall incidence of sexual function disorders, comprising decreased libido, ejaculation disorder and erectile dysfunction, was significantly greater in finasteride than placebo recipients (3.8 vs 2.1%). All sexual adverse events were reversed on discontinuation of therapy and many resolved in patients who continued therapy. No other drug-related events were reported with an incidence > or =1% in patients receiving finasteride. Most events were of mild to moderate severity. Oral finasteride is contraindicated in pregnant women because of the risk of hypospadias in male fetuses. CONCLUSIONS: Oral finasteride promotes scalp hair growth and prevents further hair loss in a significant proportion of men with male pattern hair loss. With its generally good tolerability profile, finasteride is a new approach to the management of this condition, for which treatment options are few. Its role relative to topical minoxidil has yet to be determined.

Link: http://centpharm.com/wordpress/

Another Hair Loss Treatment Blog

Link: http://loanscom.net/b2e/

Hair Loss regrowth and treatment blog

Link: http://nitrone.com/b2b/index.php?blog=2

Blog on hair loss and hair loss treatment

1: Plast Reconstr Surg. 1979 Mar;63(3):369-71. Transfer of a large, single temporo-occipital flap for treatment of baldness.

Lauzon G.

A technique is described to correct male pattern baldness by transferring a large, single, temporo-occipital flap after one delay.

Link: http://www.drproctor.com

Int J Pharm. 2000 Jan 20;194(1):125-34. New topical antiandrogenic formulations can stimulate hair growth in human bald scalp grafted onto mice.

Sintov A,et al

The purpose of this study was to test the ability of topical formulations of finasteride and flutamide to re-enlarge hair follicles in male-pattern baldness. This was evaluated by an experimental model of human scalp skin graft transplanted onto SCID mice. A comparison was made between formulations containing finasteride and flutamide, and a vehicle formulation in terms of the mean hairs per graft, length, diameter of the shafts, and structures of the growth stages of the hair. Flutamide and finasteride had a significantly higher effect (P<0.05) than the placebo in all the tested parameters, but flutamide demonstrated more hair per graft and longer hair shafts than finasteride (P<0.05). The number of hairs per graft for flutamide and finasteride groups were 1.22+/-0. 47 and 0.88+/-0.95 hairs/0.5 mm2 graft, respectively, versus 0. 35+/-0.6 hairs/graft for vehicle-treated graft. Similarly, hair lengths for flutamide and finasteride were 5.82+/-0.50 and 4.50+/-0. 32 mm, respectively, versus 2.83+/-0.18 mm for the vehicle-treated grafts. An in vitro diffusion study of flutamide gel using hairless mouse skin demonstrated the beneficial effect of the vehicle composition in comparison with a hydroalcoholic solution or a gel containing no penetration enhancer. It is therefore suggested that this topical composition containing flutamide or finasteride may effectively result in regression of male-pattern baldness.

Cell Stress Chaperones. 2008 Spring;13(1):31-8. Epub 2008 Feb 5.

Prevention of chemotherapy-induced alopecia in rodent models.

Jimenez JJ, Roberts SM, Mejia J, Mauro LM, Munson JW, Elgart GW, Connelly EA,Chen Q, Zou J, Goldenberg C, Voellmy R.

Alopecia (hair loss) is experienced by thousands of cancer patients every year.Substantial-to-severe alopecia is induced by anthracyclines (e.g., adriamycin), taxanes (e.g., taxol), alkylating compounds (e.g., cyclophosphamide), and the topisomerase inhibitor etoposide, agents that are widely used in the treatment of leukemias and breast, lung, ovarian, and bladder cancers. Currently, no treatment appears to be generally effective in reliably preventing this secondary effect of chemotherapy. We observed in experiments using different rodent models that localized administration of heat or subcutaneous/intradermal injection of geldanamycin or 17-(allylamino)-17-demethoxygeldanamycin induced a stress protein response in hair follicles and effectively prevented alopecia from adriamycin,cyclophosphamide, taxol, and etoposide. Model tumor therapy experiments support the presumption that such localized hair-saving treatment does not negatively affect chemotherapy efficacy.

Cleve Clin J Med. 2009 Jun;76(6):361-7.

Diffuse hair loss: its triggers and management.

Harrison S, Bergfeld W.

Department of Dermatology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.

Diffuse hair loss can affect both sexes at any age. Anything that interrupts the normal hair cycle can trigger diffuse hair loss. Triggers include a wide variety of physiologic or emotional stresses, nutritional deficiencies, and endocrine imbalances. Loss of telogen-phase hairs is the most common. Hair loss during the anagen phase is usually caused by chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Finding the cause, or trigger, of the hair loss requires a thorough history and examination and will enable appropriate treatment. Patient education is key in the management of diffuse hair loss.

Related Links

Shedding: how to manage a common cause of hair loss. [Cleve Clin J Med. 2001]

[Physiopathology and diagnosis of hair loss] [Schweiz Med Wochenschr. 1971]

Diagnosis and management of the hair loss patient. [Cutis. 1987] PMID:3652735

Alopecia. III. Diffuse hair loss (nonscarring). [Cutis. 1983] PMID:6682748

'Atrophic telogen effluvium' from cytotoxic drugs and a randomized controlled trial to investigate the possible protective effect of pretreatment with a topical vitamin D analogue in humans. [Br J Dermatol. 2005] PMID:16029334