Female baldness and hair thinning has been a problem throughout the ages but most of the time the subject was taboo to talk about.  Women were expected to wear a scarf or hat and then when wigs came into vogue this was the method of dealing with the problem.  There was basically no research done into hair replacement for women unlike for men who had several options.

Luckily this is now changing as women demand a solution to their hair loss problems.  There are actually two methods which are showing good promise when it comes to hair restoration for women.  Hopefully, as time goes by more and more solutions will show themselves as more research dollars are put into this glaring problem.

The first treatment that is showing good results is the use of the FDA approved drug Minoxidil.  This drug has actually been used by men for several years with good results but it has just recently been approved for use by women.  Originally developed as a high blood pressure medication, Minoxidil showed that interesting side benefit of re-growing hair in men who were in the original efficacy studies.  Further testing indicated it did slow down the effects of male pattern baldness and would actually help some hair to grow back in.

Men have been using a 5% topical solution now for several years with good results.  The FDA has only approved a 2% solution for use by women due to the worry about possible problems.  It should be noted that many women have used their husbands treatment with no ill effects but studies have not confirmed this.

The second new treatment for female hair loss in implantation.  Normal implant methods do not work because women tend to have thinning problems over their entire scalps instead of localized bald spots like men.  Males usually have thick hair growth at the back of their head even if they are bald on top and this works well for a donor site.

The new Direct Hair Implants method allows women to have body hairs implanted into their scalp.  These hair shafts are generally thicker than scalp hair so they don’t work well at the hair line but they do work as fillers.

Don’t give up hope, there are ways to help with hair replacement for women.  Talk to your doctor today about any new treatments offered.