Should I go back on Rogaine? Discontinued in December and experiencing high shedding. Have FPHL. (photos)

Question

Used Rogaine Women 5% foam for 1 year for FPHL. Quit this December w/o tapering off of it. My shed was high at 100+ and worsened in June 2017. I didn't see new growth and had bags and puffy eyes. These subsided after a few weeks of no Rogaine. Shed is now 250 a day when wash and style. I lose about about 100+ otherwise. I have low bp and can't take Spiro. I don't know if I am already experiencing shed from going off Rogaine or if it will get worse at 3 month point or more.Get back on it?

Emrah Cinik, MD · Answer

Rogaine is a very good treatment. Once you quit you will lose the hair that has been gained during rogaine use. look at some alternatives like laser comb, PRP etc..

Jeff Donovan, MD, PhD · Answer

These are great questions and you’ll want to sit down with a hair specialist to review. It certainly could be that you have a shed from stopping Rogaine but a physician can confirm once they have all the details. There are several options to discuss with your physicians including restarting topical minoxidil, oral minoxidil, topical antiandrogens, oral antiandorgens, laser, PrP. Spironolactone does not affect blood pressure that much in healthy women. But all these details need to be carefully reviewed.

William Rassman, MD (retired) · Answer

Once you develop a dependency on minoxidil and have hair growth from it, stopping it will cause a loss of that new hair

Should I go back on Rogaine? Discontinued in December and experiencing high shedding. Have FPHL. (photos)

Answers (3)