QoM Archives - Page 2 of 5 -

Does my child have scalp ringworm?

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Hello,

I have been taking my son to a new barber for the past month. I am now noticing he is having small dry patches throughout the top of his scalp. After washing his scalp with shampoo his head becomes very irritated( head and shoulders shampoo) and you can open the skin on top of his head. What should I do? Also, he had ringworm on the back of his neck after sharing a helmet with a teammate year around this time. Could this bacteria re-surfaced ? Thanks for any assistance!

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Dear J,

Unfortunately, it sounds as if he contracted scalp ringworm (fungus) again, and may have become infected/irritated, as indicated by the description you gave. He will certainly need to see a doctor to get treatment. He should get both topical antifungal creams and oral antifungal medication, as well as an antifungal shampoo. The oral medication should be taken for 4-6 weeks, otherwise the scalp ringworm can return. Using a shampoo alone will not cure him. During the treatment, he is to not share any hats, combs, brushes, towels etc. Anything that goes on his head must be washed on a weekly basis. He is also to avoid going to the barber at this time.

July QoM

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Can you reverse relaxers?

I feel like this is a long shot. But, I’ve been asking around and even googling questions trying to figure out what I can do to get my daughters tight kinky curly afro back. My daughter mixed (African-American and white), I of course learned as much as I could about her hair and may have even received false advice for her hair from peers. Last summer I chose to relax her hair with a product (Just for me), I thought it would make it easier for me to manage her hair. And well, at the time, it did. But now I want those beautiful curls back. I keep her hair moisturized and I never brush, only comb. She now has wavy to loose curls. What can I do to get those natural bouncy curls back? Did I ruin her hair? I’m willing to spend a pretty penny on any good, working, product to bring back those curls. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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Hi there, I’m sorry you were led down the wrong path. The Just for Me product is a chemical relaxer which permanently straightens the hair. The only way to allow her hair to go back to its regular curls is to have them grow out and cut off the straight ends gradually. This is called “Transitioning”. Or you could just cut off all her hair and let it grow out. This is called “Big Chop”. There is no easier or faster way to get back her curls. Unfortunately, you cannot reverse relaxers or have them washed out, wear out, or sweated out, despite what people say.

For the future, you may consider using newer products on the market that straighten the hair without permanently keeping the hair straight. One such product is African Pride Dream Kids Texture Manageability Maintenance. I have tried products marketed to adults. They do work. They help to keep the hair straight for up to 6 weeks and wear out each time you wash the hair. I just wanted to keep my hair straight for a few days, instead of it reverting within hours. Do not depend on these to keep the hair straight permanently because they require application of high heat on a regular basis. Otherwise, a regular flatiron will have to do and those will revert within a few days when you next wash her hair.

June QOM

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Dear Doc,

I recently flatironed my natural hair. After I washed it out, some sections of my hair remained straight. Is there anything that I could do to restore them?

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The short answer to that is no. Unfortunately, when hair is subjected to high temperatures, especially without a heat protectant, the proteins are permanently changed. The only way to restore the hair, is to have it cut off.

There are reports of persons who have tried to revive their heat damaged hair with intense deep conditioning about twice a week. That may help IF the hair wasn’t completely burnt straight. However, there is absolutely no guarantee.

Having had this happen to me in the past, it was quite frustrating to have to cut sections of my hair, but in the end it did grow back.

May’s QOM- Which hair growth serum should I use?

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Doc, which hair growth serum should I use?

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I’ve been asked this question so many times in so many different ways. Everyone wants the next great hair potion. Most persons are bombarded by a myriad of hair growth serums on the market. However, what should the discerning customer use to gauge what product she should purchase?

All are not created equally and all do not address ALL types of hair loss. Most non-medicated hair growth serums contain carrier oils such as coconut, olive or jojoba oil. Additional reported active ingredients include essential oils such as rosemary, nettle, and cinnamon oils. The essential oils help stimulate the scalp through various undetermined mechanisms resulting in hair growth. Other ingredients that have been included in non-medicated hair growth serums are: Saw Palmetto, (to help those with Androgenetic Alopecia), Caffeine, Capsicum, and Castor oil. The latter has received so much attention in recent years that virtually everyone has a bottle of it. Please see my blog post on it: http://askthehairdoc.com/athd-investigates-castor-oil/.

So how does one choose the right product? First of all, remember that the only topical product proven to grow hair for Androgenetic Alopecia is Minoxidil. All others, except caffeine, have not been extensively proven to grow hair. Other hair loss disorders such as Traction Alopecia and Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia may not necessarily respond to topical products and may need oral medication to halt hair loss. Unfortunately, I cannot specifically say which is the best product to use. Even Minoxidil (Rogaine), has been shown to not work in everybody. So my advice is to try one product at a time, and if after 4 months there is no improvement, then move on. If after two products, there is no improvement, consider getting a consultation. Don’t try to purchase every product out there, because the efficacy of some of the products have not been extensively studied and so most consumers have to rely on anecdotal reviews. Hopefully, as hair research increases, more effective products will be available on the market.

April’s QOM

Can the active ingredient in Latisse ( bimatoprost, careprost,etc) really grow back scalp hair? If

so, What type of growth can it stimuate and is a maintenance program needed to retain the

hair growth?

There is so much talk about this online but no definitive answers. Prostamide is FDA cleared to

regrowth lashes, why not scalp hair?

Many thanks,

Joy

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Dear Joy,

Yes it has been shown to regrow hair on other areas besides the eyelash. Bimatoprost, a prostamide receptor analogue (stimulator), is the active ingredient in both Careprost and Latisse. An animal study done on mice did show that it enhanced hair growth, however its efficacy was not compared to Minoxidil. I also haven’t found studies on scalp hair regrowth in humans. In my search, I have found more Stage 2 human studies with Lantanoprost than with Bimatoprost.

A probable reason for the company not doing a full- on robust study for this indication, is because of the comparative cost of making the product versus Minoxidil (Rogaine). There is a marked difference in pricing between the two products. For the product to be marketed for scalp hair regrowth, it must outperform Minoxidil not only in scalp hair growth but also in pricing.

Hope that helps!