male pattern baldness or Telogen Effluvium? New Poster/New Story (With Pics)

[PropeciaInCS]

Hey everyone, I am new to the forum and just wanted to fill you in on my story.

I am a 21 year old male who just started noticing my hair thinning out around the end of march/april of this year. I didn't think it was anything to worry about until May/June when my hair began to accumulate everywhere I walked. Hairs would fall out just by sitting around watching TV. Everywhere I walk there is hair, which is when my panic began to set in.

After doing some research I came to the conclusion that I was either going bald or having a case of Telogen Effluvium. You see, at the beginning of February I suddenly became ill, having strep throat, the flu, my first outbreak of oral herpes, and an outbreak of Candida (yeast infection of my mouth). My fever remained above 103 for approximately 2 weeks until everything finally subsided with all of the antibiotics I took.

In june I saw a dermatologist who told me I had signs of Telogen Effluvium but it could also represent an onslaught of male pattern baldness due to the slight recession in my temples. I started on propecia that day and through 2 and a half months have remained. While my hair loss has slowed I have also begun to see the first signs of thinning hair as well as certain spots where my hair can be seen straight through. The good news (hopefully), however, is that when I run my hand through my scalp, I feel small hairs sprouting out everywhere, almost prickly to the touch. I have also had an outbreak of small red bumps all over my scalp, in the form of small red scabs. While I am hoping this is just Telogen Effluvium, I am always somewhat of a pessimist, and was just looking for your insight on my situation, as I am sure you guys have seen plenty of cases.

http://photos.yahoo.com/kbattamu02

Please take a peek at my pics and any ideas you could suggest would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Also... is it possible for the hairline to be affected during a bout of Telogen Effluvium? The hair that used to be where my temple recession is... is actually there, just much finer, yet it is keeping its color.

 

[Justlooking]

tough to say, propecia cant really hurt though..

 

[Sir_LagaLot]

ok..this probably isnt what you want to hear, but if you're having temporal recession...then IMHO theres a 99.99 % chance its male pattern baldness. no other hairloss causes this pattern (thinning in the temples). this "horn like" or "M" shape appearance comes only with male pattern baldness or age even..if your hairline is maturring though i doubt it matures to the extent of the temporal loss you've had.

t.e causes diffuse thinning all over....while male pattern baldness starts at the temples , front and vertex...

my temples look exactly like yours...and sadly are receding further even though i'm on the 2nd month of finasteride so far.

no other form of hairloss causes temple recession...not thyroid hairloss (which again is mostly diffuse, not alopecia areata, not an iron or zinc deficiency...)..

you still have alot of hair so relax and stick to your treatment.

best of luck.

 

[Chujgcha]

I have also had an outbreak of small red bumps all over my scalp, in the form of small red scabs.

TSAL+Nizoral shampoo 3 times a week. Shampoo with TSAL and leave it on for 3 minutes. Wash it out and shampoo with Nizoral and leave it on for 3-5 minutes.

Keep taking propecia.

Chuj

 

[wangho75]

ok..this probably isnt what you want to hear, but if you're having temporal recession...then IMHO theres a 99.99 % chance its male pattern baldness. no other hairloss causes this pattern (thinning in the temples). this "horn like" or "M" shape appearance comes only with male pattern baldness or age even..if your hairline is maturring though i doubt it matures to the extent of the temporal loss you've had.

t.e causes diffuse thinning all over....while male pattern baldness starts at the temples , front and vertex...

my temples look exactly like yours...and sadly are receding further even though i'm on the 2nd month of finasteride so far.

no other form of hairloss causes temple recession...not thyroid hairloss (which again is mostly diffuse, not alopecia areata, not an iron or zinc deficiency...)..

you still have alot of hair so relax and stick to your treatment.

best of luck.

What if you have male pattern baldness + T.E. or iron/zinc deffeciency? This is also possible I'd say. So hard to know exactly what to do sometimes aint it?

 

[Atlas]

Look like male pattern baldness to me...

 

[PropeciaInCS]

so assuming male pattern baldness is the case, since I am only 21 and there is, for the most part, hair everywhere just thinner than other places, is there a good chance that propecia will be of good use? I have read where it takes 5 or so years for a hair follicle to shut down, so would propecia be more successful on a case such as mine? I just want to make it to 30 then gracefully bow out like the rest of us, or at least until HM or a breakthrough comes along

 

[wangho75]

so assuming male pattern baldness is the case, since I am only 21 and there is, for the most part, hair everywhere just thinner than other places, is there a good chance that propecia will be of good use? I have read where it takes 5 or so years for a hair follicle to shut down, so would propecia be more successful on a case such as mine? I just want to make it to 30 then gracefully bow out like the rest of us, or at least until HM or a breakthrough comes along

that's BS dude, because im 30 and I sure as hell dont feel like 'bowing' out. 30 aint that much different than 20. Do follicles shut down? I dont think so, because I have regrowth where I havent had growth for as far back as I can remember. My hairline is a testament to that. It's not thick growth yet, but there are about 10 short darkies where I cant remember having hair. Take Propecia/Proscar!

 

[Minox_Baby]

If you get on propecia hoping it will stop your temporal recession straight away it won't. It usually takes a year for propecia to reach its full effectiveness, so I would get on fluridil as well straight away.

Regards and good luck,
Warren.

 

[silkeysmooth]

I can't say for sure, but if you think you have male pattern baldness then Propecia is the way to go, because it will drastically reduce DHT levels, and since you're catching it early you have a much better chance of maintaing for at least a few years, until something more potent hopefully comes along.

 

[PropeciaInCS]

well i didnt exactly mean bow out at thirty, but if i am 21 and losing hair, do i really think propecia is gonna keep me in the game for more than 9 years? Plus my temporal recession is barely noticeable to anyone but me since i use the "messy" look anyway. The main problem i have is the diffuse thinning everywhere, even my sides are losing hair to where i can see my scalp. I was sick as hell in february for like 2 weeks, and the next few months i still have that Telogen Effluvium glimmer of hope seeing how this hair loss did come out of nowhere . we will see soon though wont we.

 

[20sometingtoo]

but if i am 21 and losing hair, do i really think propecia is gonna keep me in the game for more than 9 years?

Doubtful. After a few years you'll probably need to add extras (i.e. minoxidil). But you'll have a good recovery with Propecia I'm sure. I'd shave my head if I were you. Then try and forget about it. By the time you hair grows back the Propecia should have kicked in hard.

 

[hairfin]

im 21 too and noticed lately the same as has happened to you (although id noticed hair falling a lot i didnt take it seriously until i realsied what was happening!!) i shaved my hair to a number 2/3 (it looks better for us guys at that length) and i started taking .88 finasteride (1/6 proscar) every other day, been on it nearly 3 months, not noticed any regrowth but i think its stopped falling as much as before, guess im gonna have to wait at least 6-8 months to see some progress, also add nizoral 2% shampoo to you life.

like you as long as it takes me to about 27+ im ok with it.

 

[Sir_LagaLot]

t.e always presents a glimmer of hope for people facing male pattern baldness...

dont fool yourself and dont waste time...your temporal recession clearly screams "male pattern baldness"..

nobody can tell you how long finasteride might help you..or if it'll even help at all..

you should try a 1mg daily dosage of finasteride, and add nizoral to your regimen along with some multivitamin..preferably containing biotin and zinc.

 

[PropeciaInCS]

Well I am nearing my third month on propecia and i have noticed that the hairloss has slowed down actually. But I have two more questions regarding what is going on...

1) Would taking propecia every other day have the same effect as every day? I am starting to see some watery sperm over the last few weeks suddenly as well as a harder time gettin it up. Hopefully this will subside, but anything you guys can throw in would be nice.

2) Because my hair has thinned but is still producing hair... should i expect my hair to come back thicker the next hair cycle seeing how the propecia is minimizing the dht? Or should i just expect the same thickness of hair. I am to the point where i just had a massive shed over the last 2 weeks and the top of my head feels like a porcupine. So it is all growing back, just not sure how thick. I guess we will see

 

[silkeysmooth]

Taking propecia every other day is theorized by some to have nearly the same effect as taking it every day, as a chart measuring DHT levels after varying doses of finasteride showed that DHT levels are suppressed to nearly the same level for the first 48 hours.

I dont think anyone can say for sure whether it takes a new hair cycle for finasteride to become effective, but many people report shedding after propecia, so it could be true.

 

[PropeciaInCS]

Ok, over the last 2 weeks I have noticed something that is really starting to bother me. As i have said, I am in almost month 3 of propecia use and over the last 2 weeks my sex drive has decreased and I am having a hard time getting erections and my semen production has also dropped. This is all in the last 3 weeks. Is this normal and is it going to subside? I am freaked out because my hair is actually improving as I said earlier, my head is basically a porcupine.