Can Ketaconazole cause permanent hair loss

[chet atkins]

I'm not your typical hair loss forum visitor. I'm 44 and have at least 95% of the hair I had in high school.

About 10 years ago I had a severe bout of dermatitis on my scalp. I left it untreated for about three months before finally getting a doctor to look at it. He prescribed Ketaconazole 2%. I used it as recommended and it quickly cleared the condition. Unfortunately, I noticed in the temple and surrounding area where the condition was most severe my hair thinned a very, very slight amount. I did some reading and discovered that the follicles may have become permanently damaged by the dermatitis. Nine years passed and no change since the bout of dermatitis. Then I did something foolish: Despite having 99.9% of my original hair I began using the Ketaconazole I was given in 2005 on my temples as a preventive measure. After about 2 months an entire square inch of hair completely fell out on one side and a slightly smaller area on the other. That was several months ago. Though I do see a few dozen short hairs growing at the new hairline, the area where the hair disappeared completely remains dormant.

I've read Ketaconazole can accelerate shedding in the early stages of use but can it cause permanent irreversible damage in cases where there was no previous hair loss problem?

Believe me, I'm very attentive to my hairline. I've watched it like a sentinel since contracting dermatitis. I would have noticed even minor thinning or recession. It was like a light switch, though. One month there was thick, plentiful hair on my temples, the next, a bald patch the size of a silver dollar.

[chet atkins]

I would assume only idiots like me use a hair loss product when they have zero signs of actually losing their hair, but does anyone know of an example where Ketaconazole caused permanent hair loss?

[mariechin1234]

Ketaconazole is a hair treatment for hair loss and not the cause of hair loss.

[hairlosskills]

Not unless keto was ablr to penetrate a few layers of the scalp and causing damage at the base of the follicle

[chet atkins]

Ketaconazole is a hair treatment for hair loss and not the cause of hair loss.

Yes, I understand it is a treatment, but it can also cause thinning and even hair loss in some situations. In fact, hair loss is listed as a side effect in the literature that comes which the medication. I've personally experienced this side effect (as described in my OP), and I'm wondering if the effect is permanent or temporary.

Information from someone with experience in this matter is what I'm out for here.

[FrankieRed]

I am 45 now and 2 years ago I used ketoconazole shampoo (Revita) for 3 weeks because I noticed a slight tiny thinning at my crown. And I do mean tiny. Only I noticed it and no one else. Otherwise I had a nice full head of hair. I was on TRT (testosterone replacement) since age 40 and felt this may have been the reason for the tiny thinning patch. Anyway within 3 weeks of the ketoconazole I lost massive amounts of hair to the point where you could see directly through my hair to my scalp. I would say I lost 1/4 of my hair on the top and some on the sides too. I immediately stopped using it and only half of that hair has grown back. And this was 2 years later.

I have come off testosterone for almost a year hoping it would come back but no such luck. ...I kind of got the feeling that I needed to continue using it for a good 3 of 4 months until the shedding phase ended and the hair is supposed to all grow back thicker. There is a guy Chris from "Hair loss from steroids" who claims this is the case, though I am too scared to try it again out of fear of losing everything what i still have.

Now I am afraid to go back on TRT because I don't want to lose what I have left as well, so i am basically screwed.

[knox777]

Anyone else that can add anything to this topic? Same has happened to me.

[chet atkins]

Thanks, it's good to hear from others who have experienced this phenomena. I didn't notice any thinning at all when I began the Kz applications but thought, being in my early 40's, I would start preventative measures to insure I kept all my hair as long as possible. BIG MISTAKE. I ceased using the Kz about 14 months ago. About 1/4 of the hair has returned. Not having had any hair loss before I started using Kz, I don't know if the "shedding phase" scenario would apply to me. Who knows, perhaps it triggered the hair loss cycle and my only recourse now is to use the Kz in the way prescribed by the likes of Chris of "hair loss from steroids".

All things considered I think I'll just let nature take it's course from here on out. I have a full head of hair with the exception of this quarter-sized area on my right temple from the Kz and it has shown no further signs of thinning. Really, at 44, I have nothing to complain about. I'm not even graying yet.

[chet atkins]

Wish I understood the science behind this phenomena but unfortunately I'm way out of my league in that regard. It would also be nice if someone knew if the effect is permanent or not.

[knox777]

Wow, 14 months! Not starting to feel too hopeful now