The scalp inflammation/itchy/burning/tingling thread

First off I'd like to point out that I've done tons and tons of research on this subject. I've read just about every post on every big hairloss forum about scalp inflammation, tingling, burning and itchiness where hair loss occurs. I even went to a doctor, who took one look and told me that it wasn't MPB but probably a neurological problem. I started off with a perfect scalp, but as of about January or February of this year, I started feeling intense itchiness/burning/tingling in my crown and in other areas on the top of my head where, soon thereafter, hair loss occurred.

I know that there are many of us that feel all of this, and many that do not. For those of us that do, it's a crippling sensation. You feel a hot scalp, sometimes it gets unbearably itchy, other times it just tingles as if there are tiny ants crawling through your hair. And no, it's not lice or any infection because it's been ruled out. For some of us, like me, Nizoral doesn't even help much. It sometimes even exacerbates the problem.

From all my research on the subject, I've deduced the following. This is by no means the absolute truth, but just what I've gathered because I want to find out the real reason as to why it occurs and if there is a cure/possible halting of it.

1. It happens mostly in diffuse thinners
2. The current hypothesis is that all the tingling and inflammation is immune mediated as a result of DHT attacking the hair follicles
3. Finasteride supposedly SHOULD stop it
4. Wherever the burning/inflammation/itchyness happens, it is soon followed by hair loss
5. Nizoral may help/may worsen
6. Tea tree oil/Emu oil/Amla oil may help
7. Fish Oil may help
8. Corticosteroids are a huge question mark

As you can see, there's simply not enough information on the subject. I've been on propecia for 2 months and nothing has changed in regards to my inflammation; as a matter of fact, it has probably even gotten worse.

I know some of you will say "go to your doctor" but the mere fact is most if not 90% of these dermatologists have no idea about the subject and are likely to just call it dermatitis and give you ketoconazole. It starts when we experience hair loss- this is how we know that it is probably DIRECTLY linked to hair loss and MPB.

So, fire away. For those diffuse thinners among us (and perhaps those that aren't diffuse thinners but get the same sensations), tell us your story. Tell us what helped you, what made it worse, how you cured it if you did and anything else on the subject. It's a psychologically taxing sensation because you know you're going to lose more of your hair and there is probably nothing you can do about it.

Hi Dave,

Thank you for starting this thread. I too have terrible issues with scalp itching, tingling, and burning. At this point I've been to three different dermatologists, all of which were pretty useless. I was diagnosed with seborrheic dermatitis and given prescription strength Nizoral shampoo. The Nizoral helped clear up the dandruff flakes I was getting but did nothing for the itching. I then was given several different corticosteroids to use on my scalp, which again did nothing. I agree with you that most dermatologists are clueless about this phenomenon. For me, the itching and burning are worse in the regions of my scalp that have been affected by MPB. Strangely, these sensations are not present 100 percent of the time, they seem to wax and wane over the course of a day. The only things I have been able to identify so far as triggers are water and sunlight. I now dread taking a shower or being in situations where my hair will get wet because I know it will set off a firestorm of itching that will last for about an hour.

At my last visit to the dermatologist, the doctor suggested I try an antidepressant called Neurontin. I'm not too clear on the science, but it is supposed to inhibit Substance P, which is thought to be a factor in scalp inflammation. I'm torn though, as one of the side effects of Neurontin is hair loss, and I don't want to take a drug that stops the itching but causes even more hair to fall out. On the other hand, I feel like whatever is causing the itching and burning can't be good for my hair, so I'm not sure what I will do.

I know what you mean, man. It's worse after I take a shower, even though I use sulfate free shampoo (aveeno pure renewal.)

And if I don't take a shower even for one day, my hair becomes greasy as hell and limp & see through.

Catch 22. It sucks.

In my case it only becomes a problem if I don't shampoo for a day or two. Nizoral has helped me out a lot as well. From what I can remember it's been a problem since I was a kid, if I didn't shampoo my head would just itch like crazy. The tingling/burning is a new thing though.

I experience this itching all over the scalp, it is worse when I don't wash my hair. When I sweat it itches like crazy. I experience days when I barely feel it, days when it itches like hell. Nizoral did nothing for me.

Are any of you guys on FIN? Some people say its all due to DHT wreaking havoc on your scalp. Has it helped for you guys? I've been on it for 2 months and hasn't helped at all.

I was on finasteride when I first noticed the intense scalp itching. Since that time, I've stopped due to side effects. Being on or off finasteride doesn't seem to have made a difference in my case. Corticosteroids didn't help for me either.

This has pretty much been my story: diffuse loss, very resistant itch. I have been taking a supplement called Tocomin SupraBio which I had heard a lot of anecdotal evidence of people experiencing less itching whiles taking it. It's pretty cheap so I bought a couple bottles. It seemed to help for a while very noticeably, but now its back with a vengeance even though I've been taking it faithfully.

My next attempt will be a full size laser helmet, as I've also heard people experiencing good success taming itchiness with one of those. I'll def update if I get any positive results with that.

The burning is from blood not free flowing there by preventing your scalp from regulating heat. It is then that your scalp which usually has blood close to the surface sweating, loseing heat becomes dry and hot explaining the burning and dandruff from a sweat free scalp. The itchy tingling is an involuntary physiological response from your body forcing you to scratch to move stagnent blood. Much like having a scab that itches because the body is trying to free the injuries stagnent blood clotting. Infections itch to try to make u spread them same as bug bites.

Have had this problem 2 times :

The first time was when my vertex/crown first started thinning about 12 years ago.

I noticed this: increase sex drive, increase body hair, horrible itch/burn and rapid loss in the back.

I believe it is DHT+some other unknown factor as it only happens to some of us.
At the time a hair Dr guessed that it may be some kind of autoimmune response.

I had never had a problem with minox but when this started using minox in the back only made the burn even worse. But even without minox the problem was still there just not as severe. One thing I figured out over time was the itch/burn was most severe to whereever the mpb was spreading, mostly the area right next to my crown outline.

BTW FIN did eventually reduce the problem 95% but it too a long time to work. Give it at least a year.

Back in march my dr put me on a low dose of T and my mpb started up again . Itch/burn/red scale all came back but not as bad as the first time.
It has recently been reduced and I am not sure why. My body has adjusted to the higher levels of T or maybe Nizarol as I started on it about 1 month ago.

Anyway give the Fin a year and hopefully that itch will be gone.

so if I experience itch all over scalp, do I have thinning all over?

Not necessarily... I've always had an itchy scalp (mild psoriasis), but have only been losing my hair for about 8 years. It has been more itchy where I am losing hair, so I would agree that there is a definite correlation, but then the sides sometimes have that feeling as well and they're going nowhere (yet). So, I would say that itching [I]probably[I] indicates where hair is going to be loss, but not always, so don't get too down about it!

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Originally Posted by ovoxo

so if I experience itch all over scalp, do I have thinning all over?

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I normally got the itch only where I was losing hair. The interesting thing is I never had any itch whatsoever at my hairline area. Only vertex/top where I was losing.

Just wanted to resurrect this thread. I've had a very faint burning/tingling sensation on the back of my head for a few days... from the bottom of the neck to about the top of the ears. It isn't present in the crown or vertex areas. I've also experienced some thinning in this area over the last six months or so.

It's not burning so much as a kind of radiating warmth. It's not painful.

Anyone have thoughts on this? I've been applying minoxidil every other night to the back of the head to try to address the thinning. Is this a good idea, or should I hold off? Could it be exacerbating the tingling or loss in that area?

I made this thread 5 months ago, after being on 2 months on propecia. I mentioned that the burning was still going on.

I'm glad to report that after being on it for 7 months, the burning has gone away. It officially went away at about the 4 month mark. I firmly believe it is due to DHT causing reckless abandon on the hair follicles.

Same deal here long time problem for me and hair loss also although its slow. I tried saw palmetto and it made it go away but over time it came back. I just quit because I had sides and figured I may as well just use propecia because I dont think saw palmetto is strong enough. I think for me its DHT related but I need to try finasteride first and see.

I also have a strange story, my scalp itches like crazy, sometimes it wakes me up! I also have bump-like spots on my scalp, but that's not something new. I always had them since like I was 17. Now I am just a few months from turning 30. Anyways, even though I was suffering from MPB for quite a time now, I never ever had this itching before. My scalp was not itchy even when my hair had it's biggest hit in the beginning of 2012. At the time I had been using Fin for like 5 years. Fin should be good for itching, right? Oh sure :) My itch started when I was on Fin, I doubled the dosage, not a change. Now I am a Dutas user for 5 months, anything changed? NO! This itch is gonna kill me, I am serious.
One thing I remember, before my itch started I was reading this forum and came up with the idea that how the itch is related to MPB. I said to my self, well at least I don't have it, then I added "haha, now I am gonna start itching just because I read this". It was a joke, but it happened. I am not even sure if my itch is physiologic anymore, I tried lots of things, Nizoral, T-gel, Omega-3, Baking Soda etc etc. None of them helped. Can it be I was asking for it psychologically?

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Originally Posted by Dave123

I made this thread 5 months ago, after being on 2 months on propecia. I mentioned that the burning was still going on.

I'm glad to report that after being on it for 7 months, the burning has gone away. It officially went away at about the 4 month mark. I firmly believe it is due to DHT causing reckless abandon on the hair follicles.

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After your scalp stopped itching did your hair stop falling out?

I am a diffuse thinner, hair started to drop 3 years ago. My scalp itch stopped 4 months after I started propecia and my hair loss also stopped completely at this time. 4 months later I started losing hair again and the itch returned, I believe, at least for me, this ispretty solid evidence that dying hair follicles are responsible for the itching and tingling. Nizoral does tend to help at least a little though....

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Originally Posted by konfusion

I also have a strange story, my scalp itches like crazy, sometimes it wakes me up! I also have bump-like spots on my scalp, but that's not something new. I always had them since like I was 17. Now I am just a few months from turning 30. Anyways, even though I was suffering from MPB for quite a time now, I never ever had this itching before. My scalp was not itchy even when my hair had it's biggest hit in the beginning of 2012. At the time I had been using Fin for like 5 years. Fin should be good for itching, right? Oh sure :) My itch started when I was on Fin, I doubled the dosage, not a change. Now I am a Dutas user for 5 months, anything changed? NO! This itch is gonna kill me, I am serious.
One thing I remember, before my itch started I was reading this forum and came up with the idea that how the itch is related to MPB. I said to my self, well at least I don't have it, then I added "haha, now I am gonna start itching just because I read this". It was a joke, but it happened. I am not even sure if my itch is physiologic anymore, I tried lots of things, Nizoral, T-gel, Omega-3, Baking Soda etc etc. None of them helped. Can it be I was asking for it psychologically?

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Had to bump this old thread as I was am in the same position you were Konfusion. I also swithced to Avodart for five months with no success, this stuff is a curse. Did you have any luck getting the itching and/or shedding to stop?

I am in the same boat though as you guys. I think its MPB related but its a combination of androgens, immune system, and androgen receptors. I will just say I went to a few derms many years ago tried prescription shampoos and steroids nothing ever helped me. I tried every shampoo you can think of nothing really helped more then a day or two.
I kid you not when I say saw palmetto made it go away, but its a long story and that lead me to believe in my case its androgen related. The big question though is why is one hair more sensitive to androgens then others? It feels like removing most androgens with propecia just causes your hair to adapt to less androgens and carry on how it was. We need more research into receptors and why hair is sensitive.

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Originally Posted by burtandernie

I kid you not when I say saw palmetto made it go away

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that is strange, I was just about to tell I started a supplement consisting of 300 mg saw palmetto (in addition to finasteride of course, as for my duta story, it is over for seeing no improvement and noticing mental sides). it is a little bit early but my scalp feels healthier, I think it might be due to saw palmetto. anyone else taking it with finas?

I used 320 mg gel caps from gnc. After having effects similar to finasteride I just dropped it and I used it again later on and it did nothing the second time. I dropped it the first time after deciding its probably more effective to use propecia. I do think its androgen related for me but I still have my reservations about propecia because I think its a lot stronger then saw palmetto which makes me nervous

Did anyone have the itch go away after starting propecia? Did it go away everywhere even the front/temples or mainly the crown?
I still feel there is a connection between the itch and hair loss. I just wish someone definitely knew what it was, but given our current knowledge I doubt its ever going to happen

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Originally Posted by burtandernie

Did anyone have the itch go away after starting propecia? Did it go away everywhere even the front/temples or mainly the crown?
I still feel there is a connection between the itch and hair loss. I just wish someone definitely knew what it was, but given our current knowledge I doubt its ever going to happen

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I never ever had itch up front...only in crown and mid section. And yes after a few months the itching stopped.

I wrote some time ago to this thread, now it is update time. I mentioned that I started saw palmetto. My regimen is now fin daily, 300 mg saw palmetto daily (also i.cludes 4 mg isoflavone which I dont know much about but they argue it is good for hair) and 2 times a week dutasteride. My itch is 80% gone. I still sometimed feel it but very mildy, it used to be a hell for me so I am very happy about not having to scratch my scalp like a crazy person. On the other hand no real improvement in shedding or hair condition at all. Maybe this is just masking the itch without removing the cause or the itch is not related to mpb at all, I don't know. I just feel more relaxed on the scalp.

Was the itch equal everywhere or more front/temples? so after finasteride it went away everywhere equally or does it still itch more in the front than back?

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Originally Posted by konfusion

I wrote some time ago to this thread, now it is update time. I mentioned that I started saw palmetto. My regimen is now fin daily, 300 mg saw palmetto daily (also i.cludes 4 mg isoflavone which I dont know much about but they argue it is good for hair) and 2 times a week dutasteride. My itch is 80% gone. I still sometimed feel it but very mildy, it used to be a hell for me so I am very happy about not having to scratch my scalp like a crazy person. On the other hand no real improvement in shedding or hair condition at all. Maybe this is just masking the itch without removing the cause or the itch is not related to mpb at all, I don't know. I just feel more relaxed on the scalp.

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how long have you been on this updated regimen?

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Originally Posted by OrdinaryUser

how long have you been on this updated regimen?

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About 8-9 months I think, cannot exactly recall when I added dutas.
As for the itch, it was mainly in the frontal just behind hairline, mid region and vertex. Vertex and mid region were terrible.
And also note that itch 80% gone, not completely but it feels so much better now. Before this regimen I used to take 1 mg dutas daily, and it wasnt helping with the itch at all. I stopped it and did not use anything for like 15-20 days, then I started the fin and saw palmetto. And after sometime I added 2x weekly dutas because I felt fin might be too light for me after a complete year of dutasteride.

There is no real answer to the burning tingling stuff. I mean we dont even know if its different things for each person or not. If its an immune system thing we probably wont ever know with how little anyone knows about that and how dangerous it is to mess around in that area. Androgens might be the cause but only in some people or it could be seb derm who really knows. Each person has to guess and check different things because its clear no one has any real idea.

I'm like a timer, if I stop FIN couple days to a week my whole scalp starts to itch, tingle, burn and hair starts to fall. This is such a funny feeling something inside my scalp eating at my follicles, obviously DHT. As soon as I take FIN few hours all the problems go, no itching, no tingle nothing :).

When i first started to lose my hair i got these, it would bother me so much. i would scratch it or just do a hair pull test and noticed i would lose hair there. Over time these places were spots that had a lack of hair. For example i would get that sensation on the crown area in the cow lick area. 2 months later and that area is a small bald spot. i would also get that in my hairline area where im receding. Once i got on ru though i dont get those anymore. Unless i dont apply it or i get a bad batch of ru i start getting those sensations and hairloss. Thats how i know when i get a bad batch of ru.

Like a lot of you it seems, my first onset of hairloss was accompanied by burning, itching, etc. It then happened intermittently when my hairloss episode slowed down a little. Another contributing factor for these sensations of the scalp was when I trialed Rogaine about 6 months ago. In conjunction with worsening my hair by thinning it all over in what I hope to be just a reversible shed, it also gave me the itch I experienced the first time I had hairloss, but this time it was worse and there were red nodules forming on my scalp that have since scarred.

I stopped Rogaine and tried ketaconazole with no relief. I then got on finasteride, a low dose, and only gave a little relief. What has given be the best relief and a removal of at least 3/4 of the itch is salicylic acid. It could be a good addition to any regimen to help with overall inflammation.

Hi guys does anybody know why my scalp has only STARTED itching now after 5 months on propecia?? Iv never had this problem and only had a receding hairline when i started.. I started minox 4 weeks ago but i only apply it on the hairline. My whole head itches in places and when i scratch it and tug the hair atleast 3 hairs come out at a time. I also started keto shampoo 4 weeks ago but stopped it a week ago thinking it was causing the shed. It is obvious now that it wasnt. Help please??

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Originally Posted by Stressed

Hi guys does anybody know why my scalp has only STARTED itching now after 5 months on propecia?? Iv never had this problem and only had a receding hairline when i started.. I started minox 4 weeks ago but i only apply it on the hairline. My whole head itches in places and when i scratch it and tug the hair atleast 3 hairs come out at a time. I also started keto shampoo 4 weeks ago but stopped it a week ago thinking it was causing the shed. It is obvious now that it wasnt. Help please??

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Everyone I know (including myself) has gone through a time when their hair thinned considerably. My worst shed happened ten years ago. It all grew back. Coincidence often causes us to jump to conclusions. My advice... Stay healthy, use all of the proven oral and topicals and look forward to more effective treatments coming our way fairly soon (2.5 - 6 years).

35YrsAfter also posts as CITNews and works at Dr. Cole's office - forhair.com - Cole Hair Transplant, 1045 Powers Place, Alpharetta, Georgia 30009 - Phone 678-566-1011 - email 35YrsAfter at chuck@forhair.com
The contents of my posts are my opinions and not medical advice
Please feel free to call or email me with any questions. Ask for Chuck

Black tea rinses are a DHT blocker bc of the caffeine in it, you should try that.. try it once every 2 weeks after washing your hair.. follow up with a moisturizing conditioner bc the black tea rinse can be drying to your hair

Sorry to resurrect this thread but it's the best I've found with people in a similar position to me.

I've been on Propecia for 3 months now and I am absolutely certain it has caused my burning/scalp itch. I seem to be an extremely rare minority, as most people's itch stops once they get on Propecia.

I've had receding at the temples for 3-4 years and never experienced any itching, 2 months into Propecia and BAM I got this burning/tingly sensation above my temples. Fast forward 1 month and this area has thinned considerably, where I never had thinning before. I've spent hours trawling through threads and 90% of people agree this sensation is followed by hairloss and is DHT "attacking the hair follicles. I cannot work out how Propecia could cause this itch since it supposedly lowers DHT. The only thing I can think is an increase in Test, since I have had a higher sex drive since this itch started. I've been using Regenepure shampoo for the past few weeks but it's not helping. My hairline has worsened faster in the last 3 months than it had in the last 3 years. I just don't understand how Propecia could possibly be causing this. I'm going to come off it for a few weeks anyway and hope to god the itching stops because it's unbearable, 24 hours a day.

Dench57, I am experiencing something very similar. The only difference is that I've been on finasteride for a year and 3 months. At the one year mark ( October ) a huge she's hot me. I never had a shed at all during finasteride until this point. My hairline thinned considerably on the left side and receded a bit along with a burning/stinging sensation. The shed hasn't been as bad as it was in December, but I still get a burning/sting sensation along my hairline and on the sides. I think it may be caused by a shedding cycle synchronized with a fin shed.

In your situation, shedding in the first 2-6 months is extremely common. You may have more follicles entering the shed at one time then you normally would due to the effects of finasteride. This would cause that type of sensation similar to what people get during telogen effluvium. I'm not positive about it though so don't quote me on it, but I've read some stories of people shedding on fin and having that issue and it clearing up after the hair re thickens.

I too started weaning off of fin, but found myself taking it again at the 1.25 mg dose hoping that my hair will thicken up in the coming months.

Meant to say in October a huge shed hit me... My phone sucks

For me, I'm pretty sure seborrheic dermatitis is the cause of my itch. I've noticed for years now my skin sheds a lot and I've got some bad beard dandruff, excess sebum production in my ears, and sometimes my chest hair gets a rash, where it is thick, along with scalp itch.

Hair loss started with some vertex thinning and now noticing temples getting pretty thin. Only way I treat it is with keto shampoo(regenepure) and water/apple cider vinegar mix as a conditioner. Seems to help with the itch but sometimes i notice it get itchy just a few hours later. Doctor also gave me selenium shampoo which is good on affected areas, like my beard and chest. Just don't like the smell of it that lingers all day.

Thank you for the responses guys, it helps being able to talk about this stuff.

Ziggy - was Finasteride working for you before? And have you noticed any regrowth from the shed that hit you?

The burning/itch has definitely been localized to an area above my right temple where it's thinner than ever, and I'm worried it will never recover. The reason I'm so concerned is that I can find countless information on various Propecia side effects, shedding and so on, but there's very little people who've had Propecia cause this burning sensation so I really don't know what's happening.

From all I've read it seems shedding on Propecia can generally be taken as a good sign, but burning/itching of any sort is a bad sign - it's basically just the feeling of your hair getting attacked. There's plenty of people who say they shed and the hair came back stronger which is great. But I can't find anyone who's had this burn and said it passes and the hair recovers. Sounds silly but I need to find that success story to keep me going through this.