Sure you want no body hair? Dutasteride and body hair to scalp hair transplants!

Hair Removal Methods Laser hair removal
#1

Amazing new developments:

For guys who have a lot of body hair like myself, we are frequently balding due to the conflicting effects of DHT on your scalp hair and body hair. Recently, a new drug that inhibits body hair growth and supposedly promotes scalp hair growth has come out. It is called Dutsteride and is a much more powerful DHT inhibitor than Propecia. It might have some more serious side effects, but it is not overly dangerous and has been approved in all developing countries by the releveant boards (the FDA in the US). It might be worth a shot before thinking of laser hair removal which is usually not permanent and is also very expensive. One of the original patients for the Dutasteride trial, Dr. Monahan, experienced significant scalp hair regrowth and back hair fallout!

However, even more of a breakthrough has been seen in body hair to scalp hair transplants. The doctor responsible for this is Ray Woods of Australia, an unbelievable surgeon. Unfortunately he is very very expensive, but from my experiences on different hair loss (scalp hair loss that is!) websites, he is absolutely phenomenal. Many baldies have limited donor hair at the back of their scalps, in which case Dr. Woods transplants body hair to add significant density to someone’s scalp hair! Generally he prefers to use chest hair first, but he can also use body hair from other areas if chest hair is unavailable. The amazing thing is that after a while, chest hair that is transplanted to the scalp starts getting the characteristics of scalp hair!!

See some of these sites:

http://www.4hair.com.au/default.asp?MenuID=215&RefMenuID=164&Category=

http://www.hairlosshelp.com/hair_loss_treatments/hair_transplants/hai rtransplant_cuttingedge_bodyhair.cfm

So,

BEFORE YOU GET RID OF THAT CHEST HAIR THROUGH LASER (IF AT ALL POSSIBLE) THINK OF WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS.

I was very serious about getting laser hair removal a few months back, especially since I have a nice toned body, but lack of scalp hair and too much body hair makes it of no use!

Now, there is no way I am getting rid of the chest hair. I might do the sides of the stomach and lower back… but thats it!! The future looks good for body hair to head transplants - and they will get cheaper since US surgeons are already getting into it.

[ November 26, 2002, 12:43 PM: Message edited by: Kilimanjaro ]

#2

Thanks for the post, Kilimanjaro!

Dutasteride, like other androgen blockers, is likely to reduce DHT, which can help slow or stop male pattern baldness. Its effect on body hair is not as well documented. Finasteride has a better track record, so it may be better to go with something tried and true. Generally, the doses needed to cause hair reduction in males can have unwanted side effects, so you need to speak with a physician before starting an oral antiandrogen.

The issue with body hair donor sites is the scarring after. When taken from the back of the head, this is not noticeable. Punch grafts taken from the body have been possible for a long time, but the issue has always been the pinhead-sized scars many patients have. For some this is worth having head hair, but the scarring at the donor site is often visible. Unless you have a lot of body hair at the donor site, you may have to deal with scars.

It will certainly be interesting to see where things go in upcoming years.

#3

Andrea, thanks for your reply. However, I have a few concernss about what you said:

Body to hair transplants have been available for a while? The news I have read is that this is a new technology. In the past, they tried punch grafts and the scalp rejected them. Now, with the Woods method, they plant each follicular unit at a time. Apparently, Dr. Woods takes 14 hrs or so to complete a limited procedure – and you have to come for more to get decent coverage on the scalp. Transplantation of body hair to scalp hair takes much longer than the normal procedre of transplanting your permanent head hair at the back to the front.

As for scars, the Woods techniques is very safe from what I have read from his patients on various forums. As it is, I don’t think there is a single man who would not be willing to trade scars on his body for a nice head of hair!! I mean men who are concerned about balding here. There might be a few (The Dalai Lama) who don’t care!! Andrea, do you really think a man (or woman for that matter if the woman were to have long body hair) cares about scars on his chest if he could get a full head of hair in return? If so, maybe you should participate in some of the hair loss forums… some of these guys are on the verge of suicide.

[ December 03, 2002, 09:00 AM: Message edited by: Kilimanjaro ]

#4

Kilamanjaro

Why would chest hair be implanted into the scalp if body hair only grows up to a certain length?

Unless you plan on having a buzzed cut forever i dont see why would you wana do it

#5

Mike77,

You need to check all the links that I posted in the initial message. Also, many people who are balding have very long chest hair.

However, basically, they have found out that chest hair that is transplanted to the scalp starts growing longer and taking on a lot of the characteristics of the sclap hair that you have!! If you see the pics on Doctor Woods site, you will see the miraculous growth on the head!! As I said before, I will never ever laser my chest just because of these new developments in hair transplants. As it is, I never wanted to have a hairless chest in the first place and look too feminine. Now, I just hope to get rid of lower back hair and upper back peach fuzz along with some stomach and side area hair.

Finally, even if a bald man could get a buzz cut, he would be happy. I would be happy to get Adam Sandlers short hair when I am his age for crying out loud!! Having lengthy teenage hair in your fourties might sound great, but you also want to look reasonably close to your age and mature!

Am I sounding too vain? :slight_smile:

#6

Kila

Dont believe everything you read

There are propably more scams in hair transplantation then any other cosmetic field so be carefull you might end up with scars or holes all over your body and your head might look even worse.

Peace

#7

I would second what Mike77 said, Kilimanjaro. It’s been documented by Jahoda in the 1960’s that transplanted rat whisker bulbs can be grown in different places, and that transplants can even be done from person to person (documented by Jahoda in 1999).

The real issue is not body-to-scalp stuff, but follicular unit extraction (FUE). Rassman et. al. showed earlier this year that FUE is probably only workable in 25% to 35% of patients. Besides the scars all over your chest or back, which many would rather not have, there’s a good chance you are not a good candidate.

The Woods information is interesting, but hair transplantation is even more rife with scams and hype than hair removal. There will need to be A LOT more data before there is anything definitive about body-to-scalp follicular unit transplantation. I’m sure the guys at the hair transplant boards have even more on all this. As you note, many are obsessed with that stuff over there, and we know from these boards that there are always people willing to cash in on others’ desperation.

There will undoubtedly be many interesting developments in the study of hair over the next ten years, but miraculous breakthroughs don’t happen. Things gradually evolve over time and get better through trial and error. Those who jump on every new thing that comes along tend to lose their money. Better to look at every new development with some skepticism, especially when it’s coming from someone who is trying to sell you something.