Should I Do A Dht Blood Test Before Starting Finasteride?

[fpill96]

So I recently completed an online consultation with the Belgravia centre, who suggested I have male pattern baldness. Given that I am shedding miniaturised hairs, and my hairline seems to have thinned out over the past few weeks quite badly, I am wondering if I should start taking finasteride right now.

A while back I bought a packet as a sort of emergency supply as despite what my GP said, I suspected I may be balding and in case any shedding started, I wanted to be able to take it immediately. I am currently on a temporary work placement abroad where it is harder to obtain finasteride and related medication than in the UK.

The thing is, I am going back to the UK in just under 3 weeks time at which point I could order a DHT blood test and go to the GP another time and see if I can get a more objective diagnosis. But will my hair have receded noticeably more by that point? Should I forget about the blood test and hop on finasteride right now? Although on the other hand I feel I would be more comfortable knowing the base amount of DHT in my system so that through my life I always have the opportunity to test again and check the effectiveness of the pills I have bought.

What is your guys' experience on hair receding, could I go up a Norwood in the space of 3 weeks?

 

[Osprey]

I went to a hair transplant doctor for an appointment and I was told I was not balding as the hair follicles were apparently healthy, and my hairline at the temples is further receded than yours, however I have never had full temples. He might of got it wrong in my case, who knows. From pictures although, it looks like my hairline has receded but hasn't moved since I was a young kid. From what I can see there is no recession There is no way you will progress to a higher norwood in the space of 3 weeks. I was concerned as I noticed I was shedding around 80 hairs a day in September and my hairline looked slightly receded. I was checking mirrors constantly everyday for 2 months straight to the point where it consumes your life and it's all you think and care about which is extremely unhealthy. Best thing to do is take photos once a month as your hairline can't recede noticeably in the space of weeks at the minimum months. I wouldn't get started on finasteride just yet as there is no point unless you're 100% certain. The majority of people have baby hairs at the front of the hairline including women. In my opinion online consultations aren't effective as it can look and sound like you've got the symptoms but don't. Have to watch with these hair loss clinics, even the most reputable ones as they may get you on treatments you don't need for income as you're probably aware of. They may give you wrong advice and scare monger you into buying their product/service. However, I may be wrong. I know I haven't experienced hair loss even close to some others but I was in a similar situation not long ago.

 

[abcdefg]

male pattern baldness is very very slow. You have tons of time still there is no rush. Think about it for a while. There is no harm in getting baseline blood tests, but personally I think its a little over rated because if your in normal ranges what does it really tell you? You could have low DHT and still go bald or unchanged DHT levels but male pattern baldness stops from finasteride still. We just dont know why

 

[fpill96]

So here is a little update. I went to my GP and he was almost annoyed that I had come for a second time. He very briefly checked my crown and my top scalp and said yeah there are no signs of balding there, that I have a great head of hair and shouldn't worry about it. I tried to show him my hairline but he wasn't interested in assessing it. He suggested I try something called Follicle Fuel if I thought I was losing my hair or minoxidil in the worst case. I asked him about Finasteride and he basically listed the worst side effects but I think it was largely to try and persuade me not to use it. He suggested not using it at my age. I also did the blood test yesterday and am waiting for the results. The reason I took it was not so much because I think my DHT levels are abnormal, but just to check where I am, for instance do I have low DHT or high DHT within the normal range, and what my levels are so if I do start finasteride treatment and start thinking some time in the future that its not working, I can take another test and check if the medicine is doing its job.

As for my hair situation, it seems to have gradually gotten worse. No balding as such but hairline temples have receded a little further, so it is now noticeable when I have my hair combed to a side part. Very much passable as a mature hairline at this point, but not sure if I should start taking finasteride and just maintain what I have, not taking any chances if it gets worse.

 

[fpill96]

Finasteride is kind of a life time thing so it seems very daunting to me now to be sat here and make a decision that, however small, will change my life.

 

[Manochoice]

You should probably wait, you seem to have good hair. If you do have male pattern baldness, u ight be very lucky and have it progress really slow.

 

[fpill96]

So this is an update. So far I have waited but my hairline seems to be receding quite aggressively into a v shape. Guys at this point I really feel like i need to get on finasteride to stop this getting worse. If anyone thinks I’m wrong let me know. Appreciate all your replies so much! I would say I’m a NW2 with thinning front and temples (comparatively to before) and a couple of years ago I was a very thick NW1.

 

[fpill96]

Here are some more pictures. There is what I would assume is thinning and miniaturisation at the temples.