THE ITCH - painful or just itchy? HELP

[EvilLocks]

Hi

I have no official diagnose but from the pattern of hair loss, and obvious miniaturisation + other androgen excess/ sensitivity symptoms I have Androgenetic Alopecia or androgenic alopecia..

I have also had scalp pain/ itch for the entire time I've had thinning, but my hair doesn't shed excessively and the pain/ itch is constant every minute of every day without breaks, unlike a lot of people who says they experience scalp pain/ itch every now and then when their hair sheds a lot.

The pain/ itch in my case feels like there's an infection, not just a regular itch. It does not go away when scratching the head. It usually gets better right after showers but quickly comes back. It started on the top of my head but is now most of, if not all over the head. My hair started to thin on top but now all over/ most of my head, so I'm 100% sure the pain/ itch is related to the hair thinning.

Is this the DHT itch? Because it's not really itchy, just feels infectious and kinda hot, plus creepy and crawly like it's not really clean even if it is... It also feels like my scalp becomes "hard" in a way, is this fibrosis? The level of pain can vary from a 3 on a scale from 1-10 to about 8 or nine... At worst it feels impossible to do anything else but cry... Can DHT itch be this bad?? My hair has thinned very very fast without much shedding (!!!) but it seems like 90% of what grows back is miniaturised so I think that's why... Does anyone else experience this kind of PAIN, not really itch but still kinda? I know it's normal to feel a bit of scalp itchiness or discomfort with Androgenetic Alopecia but this intense?

I also wanna mention I have tried and is still on rogaine, oral spironolactone and finasteride and neither has lessened the itch any. And just to clear things up the itch was there BEFORE I ever tried any treatment for hair loss, so it can not come from the treatments. I was not on any kind of meds at the time the itch appeared so it must be something else.

Also my scalp does not look red, it looks pale and white. So I suspect if there is lots of inflammation like I think there is, it must be underneath the skin, perhaps the very follicles themselves. They are probably sucking up DHT like a swamp :/

What do you think? Anyone with this experience?

 

[animalnitrate]

I'd also like to know the answer, your situation and mine are similar!

 

[baldymonk]

Lol I wonder why rogaine does not talk about this itch on their website. Why don't they tell us advice or what it actually is?

 

[EvilLocks]

Lol I wonder why rogaine does not talk about this itch on their website. Why don't they tell us advice or what it actually is?

I think it's because not everyone with male pattern baldness has the itch, and it's poorly understood. But it's weird that you cannot find one informative article that talks about male pattern baldness and the itch since quite a lot seem to get it... The dermatologists have no clue either, I've been to 3 different ones and neither had anything to say when I mentioned the itch.

My theory is that those with aggressive male pattern baldness get the itch, because so many follicles a time is attacked by DHT this creates inflammation which in turn gives you the pain or itch sensation. This happens at follicle level in my opinion, since the scalp is not red or look inflamed, it must happen deeper. But this is just my theory. It could be wrong, because I also heard about people with aggressive male pattern baldness with out the itch.

- - - Updated - - -

I'd also like to know the answer, your situation and mine are similar!

I actually read your story and yes they seem similar. My hair also became very greasy and horrible like you mentioned!

 

[WenJo]

Hello,
I also had the intense scalp itching and tingling for about 2 weeks before it started getting better and hopefully doesn't return. I tried Nizoral as recommended on this website, but it didn't provide any obvious relief and I'm not sure why it would since the active ingredient is ketoconazole, an anti-fungal, and I don't have a fungal infection of the scalp. My reason for responding is to share that I noticed a reduction in the itching and tingling after starting an oral hair loss supplement called Viviscal. The product was recently mentioned by NY dermatologist Dr. Neil Schultz. He does the DermTV series available on YouTube. The Viviscal supplement contains Vit C, niacin, biotin, iron, zinc, AminoMar (marine complex), horsetail, & millet seed. I found oral Viviscal at Walgreens, locked up with the Rogaine products. It's also available from the company website. But more to the point, Viviscal also makes a topical hair and scalp serum that I've been using. I found this product at CVS with their hair care products. One of the ingredients in the scalp serum is grape seed extract, which is known to have anti-inflammatory properties. The serum is easy to use, on either wet or dry hair, doesn't make the hair oily, has a light menthol aroma, and creates a cooling sensation that counters the itching. So far I'm happy and reassured with what seems to be a positive response to the Viviscal products. I've also started eating more sardines & canned red salmon for the omega 3s which have an anti-inflammatory effect.

 

[resu]

The itch in my opinion is the result of excess seborrhea, the sebaceous glands are enlarged so they produce more sebum, some people have the fungus/bacteria that creates dandruff so they get the itch. My dad doesn't have dandruff but is a NW2-3V and he doesn't have the itch. Some people have the the fungus but don't have hair loss like my mother. I have both yay!

 

[Dench57]

Bumping this - how is your scalp pain/itching doing EvilLocks? Ever find anything for it? The way you describe it sounds exactly the same as mine.