Intense Scalp Inflamation/Itchyness & hairloss

[ohlife]

Hey guys,

some help really needed.

Been on Propecia for just over 3 months now.. Anyway, not sure if its working yet - it shed for the best part of that 3 months, but in the last 2 weeks or so the shedding stopped for a bit and my hair just felt good. However, in the last few days, my heads been extremely itchy, and inflamed in some areas. Ive lost hair like crazy in this period - but it doesnt feel like a typical shed, more like, because im scratching my head so much, that the hairs are just destined to come out.

Thing is, im using nizoral 2% about 1-2 times a week, and I cant tell if this is making it worse or better. Ive read that if nizoral inflames your head, it can make itchyness and thus hairloss worse.

The main reason why I don't think it is just a build up of DHT causing the itchyness and inflamation, is that it is just SO itchy... Im confused, is DHT causing this, and if so - why doesn't nizoral help. Or, is nizoral causing this- if so, what can I use to help my hair for now?

Any help would be much appreciated,

Thanks.

[dari78]

i have extreme itching and hairloss too, did you have this sensation back when you first noticed harloss? the sensation i get is a mixture of burning itching, like crawling insect sensation too, and the area feels very sensetive to touch,, or if the wind blows even, i can feel it ticckling irritating that area,, im trying to get an understanding whats happening as this started 3 years ago age 37,, before this i was fine,,, i never see guys with bad hairloss scratching,, so is this mpb,,?

[ohlife]

Well, thing is, whilst my scalp has for years (before I even noticed hair loss) been rather itchy (probably just dandruff), the post-hair loss stage has been different. I first noticed it as the burning feeling you described.. really unpleasant. However, what Ive been getting recently, on and off, is just plain bloody itchyness, like the type you get if you have head lice (which, to be honest, might be worth checking out regarding). It feels like on my scalp there is all this waxy, crumby stuff that is making the roots of my hair very susceptible to falling out. Thing is, the problem only got worse after using nizoral, even if the few hours after using it it feels better. If nizoral isnt helping the 'dandruff' type feeling on my scalp, then what's next? I heard that nizoral only contains one dandruff fighting element, but not the other that is actually neccesary to remove the stuff, so i might try some common dandruff shampoo.

If any one can think of any other shampoos or treatments against the symptoms mentioned above, that'd be great.

Problem is, I can't tell whether a) whether propecia is working and the hairs im losing are shedding due to propecia, b) whether propecia is decreasing DHT levels, but the condition of my scalp is causing hairs to fall out, or c) whether propecia isn't yet working, and the condition of my scalp is just REALLY bad to due REALLY bad levels of DHT and nothing else.

that is my dilemma.

[dari78]

it does seem very confusing so many possibilities of whats going on,, i noticed the same as you about nizoral,, it can help dandruff in very short term, but after i use it feel good for few hours then i notice my scalp oily, and my hair actualy goes skinny like half the volume of the thicness of shaft,, i dont know how this happens maybe some chemical in the shampoo, the burningg i hget increases after using hairgel, in front area, this ios why im trying to get a better understanding of imflamation ,mpb and hairloss, to rule out if im getting skin reaction to chemicals in gels, products or if its mpb, as this only started after using gels, im also amaxzed how little there is on here being said about imflamation or sensations in scalp,, maybe whats going on with us is a seperate condition?/

[ohlife]

I think if anything its both. Whilst mpb is definately a factor either way, my question is whether 1) the shampoos etc. lots of people use cause irritation to the scalp which makes the problem worse, or 2) if the irritation is a result of mpb but could be helped by using the right shampoo, and therefore at least reduce the severity of the loss.

The thing is, lately my scalp has been pretty damn itchy, and incidentally I seem to be losing proper, really thick hairs, whereas its usually always just been the smaller, thinner ones. anyone know the significance of losing the 2 different types of hairs?

[Footymad]

i have extreme itching and hairloss too, did you have this sensation back when you first noticed harloss? the sensation i get is a mixture of burning itching, like crawling insect sensation too, and the area feels very sensetive to touch,, or if the wind blows even, i can feel it ticckling irritating that area,, im trying to get an understanding whats happening as this started 3 years ago age 37,, before this i was fine,,, i never see guys with bad hairloss scratching,, so is this mpb,,?

Dari

You describe my situation here as well. I am 33 years old and have suffered with noticeable hair loss for just over 18 months. Since starting with hair loss my scalp feels itchey all the time like crawling insects as you describe to a tee. What is thhis all about? Could it be a scalp infection too? MPB does run in my family so I dont hold much hope that it is an infection but I have got an appointment with a dermatologist in a weeks time to fin out what this horrible sensation is !!!!

[NvIs]

I'm also the same way!

about 4 months ago my scalp was itchy beyond belief. Its always been itchy my whole life, and just thought it was because my hair was so thick... After I got my hair cut thats when I noticed the hair loss. My hair was thinner all around not just the top!
I tried nizoral for a few weeks which wrecked havoc on my hair, but made my scalp all better.
I went to the dermotologist, which said the redness was nothing and my hair looked fine, but he didn't do any test, just an visual examination.
4 months later to now, my is doing much better, I'm loosing allot and its kinda getting lighter

I would like to know if this is what hair loss is. Does DHT cause the itchyness?

[Footymad]

I'm also the same way!

about 4 months ago my scalp was itchy beyond belief. Its always been itchy my whole life, and just thought it was because my hair was so thick... After I got my hair cut thats when I noticed the hair loss. My hair was thinner all around not just the top!
I tried nizoral for a few weeks which wrecked havoc on my hair, but made my scalp all better.
I went to the dermotologist, which said the redness was nothing and my hair looked fine, but he didn't do any test, just an visual examination.
4 months later to now, my is doing much better, I'm loosing allot and its kinda getting lighter

I would like to know if this is what hair loss is. Does DHT cause the itchyness?

I would like to know this answer too. Lets hope somebody on here can advise? My head was not itchey before I started losing my hair but now feels like little insects crawling on my head throughout most of the day on an off which gets worse the longer I leave my hair un-washed. I wash my hair every other day.

[Davros]

I experienced this "sore scalp" syndrome. Almost painful to touch, this creeping "insect crawling" sensation. Wind blowing my hair would actually hurt my scalp as the hair shaft moved.

From my first bout at fighting hairloss many, many years ago, I read on the alt.baldspot newsgroup that this scalp inflammation/pain was caused by the immune system attacking the follicles in the MPB region, the immune system recognizing the follicle with DHT attached as a foreign body or something like that.

I think when you're feeling this pain/inflammation is when the destruction to the follicle is being wrought. It is (iirc) one of the signs of alopecia in action.

I remember some fellow named Dr.Proctor saying that this was why immune suppressant medicines were successful at halting hairloss. It also explained why rapid onset alopecia occurred after periods of high stress, or incredibly stressful events, the incredibly elevated cortisol levels triggering this mechanism in the scalp.

Sorry if I'm foggy on detail, I'm trying to remember stuff I read on that newsgroup going on 15 years ago now...IIRC people were applying Cyclosporin topically to this end.

In desperation, I tried rubbing anti-inflammatory cream onto my scalp.

Was also using Finasteride 1.25mg and *******, for about 2 years. Whatever I did worked, as the rapid shedding stopped, and eventually I regrew everything.

Starting up again now though