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Hair Thinning & pills, specifically Entocort...

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 7/11/2009 8:36 AM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone,

I have just started taking Entocort about 3 weeks ago and I feel like my hair is getting a lot thinner...I just started to notice this about a week or so ago...and I am also taking prednisone and asacol, but I have taken both of those before and never experienced the hair thinning feeling. Has anyone else experienced this hair thinning with entocort or do you think it could be from one of the other drugs or maybe it's just unrelated. I am 27 and I have long, thick hair usually and have done nothing different as far as shampoos or other products...please let me know if any of you guys have experienced this before and if entocort caused it.

Thanks!
Posted 7/11/2009 1:48 PM (GMT 0)
I had the same problem three years ago when i was taking Entocort. But thank goodness it only lasted for about a month and then stopped. My doc said he thought it was because of the flare I was in, but I didn't agree.
Elizabeth
Posted 7/11/2009 1:50 PM (GMT 0)
Many of our meds can cause some hairloss. Many have added extra Folic Acid and Biotin to their supplements to help stop the hairloss. Good luck!
Posted 7/11/2009 9:30 PM (GMT 0)

I'd have to say that it's the combination of prednisone and entocort being the main cause of the hairloss. Prednisone can mess with your hair alittle, so I bet the entocort was just the icing on the cake, as both meds are steroids.

What to Do??

As mentioned by Nanners, taking folic acid 1-2mg per day would be a great idea, along with a multivitamin. I do this, and I'm a mid-20's male, so balding is probably a normal thing, but I've noticed that my balding has at least slowed down some. Effects may take up to 3 months to notice...

PS. don't forget to look into some sort of calcium supplement as well if not already taking some...due to the steroid use...

Good luck! And don't feel bad, as unfortunately the steroids are one of the main things that work for me, more so than biologics etc...


Posted 7/11/2009 11:42 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks guys for the advice...I will definitely try the folic acid and the multi-vitamin. It's just weird because I have really long thick hair and I'm the person that people think has extensions, it's so long and thick normally...and this has never happened before. You bring up a really good point though that Pred and the Entocort together are probably the likely culprit, hopefully it will get better now that I have tapered off the Pred.

Irishmom, you said that it stopped after about a month, did you have to get off the Entocort or did you stay on it? And, what happened, your hair just got thicker all the sudden..sorry if these questions sound silly but I have really never gone through this before and it is kinda freaking me out.

Also, you bring up a good point, Entocort is a steroid and I forget that...because my doc said it's so safe...I thought of it more like Asacol, which is a non steroidal...because I was told that Entocort doesn't really cause the same side effects. But, honestly, I am not getting better with the Entocort yet..how long would you give it to help?

The other option is Humira and I thought I'd try Entocort first because it seemed less risky, but if it's not working and thinning my hair...then not really worth it...how long would you give it before you'd say on to the next?

Thanks guys & girls!
Posted 7/12/2009 12:01 AM (GMT 0)
Come to think of it I was also on prednisone at the same time I was on the Entocort so it might be the combination of both meds. My hair just stopped falling out but it took awhile for it to get thick again. My doc said my body just got used to the drugs. Of course other people didn't notice the hair loss, but I did. Finally I couldn't take the side effects of all the meds and the hopsital stays for bowel obstructions so I had bowel resection surgery and got off most of the meds. But this definitely doesn't cure the disease as I found out about 7 months later.Good luck with figuring out what meds work best for you. It is a very difficult process.

Elizabeth
Posted 7/12/2009 1:26 AM (GMT 0)
turn  I have the same problem with hairloss especially when on prednisone. I don't remember having the problem on entocort.  I am also on humira which seems to increase the hair loss and when I am under stress it also gets worse.  The main reason I am writing is clinically it is not neccessary to be on both prednisone and entocort.  This is dual steriodal therapy and can supress the immune system more.  The whole reasoning behind entocort is to alleviate the need for a systemic steriod which targets the whole body, while entocort only targets the gut.  You may want to talk to your GI to find out why you are on both.

 

Posted 7/12/2009 4:56 PM (GMT 0)
I've not taken a Prednisone and Entocort combination. I haven't taken steroids for any length of time other than a Medrol dose pack. However, I did one time do a 6 week regimen of Entocort w/3 week taper and I did have hair thinning. My gastro and her NP swore up and down that it was Pentasa, not Entocort, that could cause hair loss and thinning. The NP says she even looked up possible Entocort side effects and hair thinning and loss was not one. They swore up and down it had to be the Pentasa - but then they also said they didn't see any hair thinning. (Only my hairdresser and I knew for sure ??) Yeah, well I had been on Pentasa for YEARS by that time w/o hair loss or thinning. So either it was the Entocort or it was the combination of Entocor and Pentasa.
Posted 7/12/2009 4:58 PM (GMT 0)
I was tapering off Prednisone and he put me on Entocort, I am now off Pred...and on Entocort and Asacol. But, it's not really helping sadly. Thanks for the advice. Humira causes hair loss or thinning too ????
Posted 7/13/2009 12:03 AM (GMT 0)
In my case, I believe the Humira lowers my immune system causing the hair loss, brittle nails, and my increase infections that I keep getting. I hope you feel better soon. Crohns is such a terrible disease. The complications are almost as bad as the disease itself. I haven't really had any remission since 05. Vitamins do help with hair and nail care, B-complex and of course, biotin. take care
Posted 2/22/2016 11:28 AM (GMT 0)
I have been taking entocort for 3 months now and it is the only crohns med I am taking and have added no other meds or changes and have noticed significant hair thinning as I have fine thin hair to begin with. I can say with no doubt at all that entocort is the culprit as I am a licensed hairdresser myself and if anything have been eating much healthier because the entocort did make me feel better but it DEFINITELY caused major hair thinning. I am taking my last pill today and hope my hair will start to thicken a bit. I have to say, the trade off of feeling better was worth the hair loss-I just wasn't expecting it.
Posted 2/25/2016 3:32 PM (GMT 0)
I doubt it's the Entocort for you, at this point, because it takes hair 3-4 months to fall out after trauma to the body, whether it be by medicine, surgery, or disease. If you have been taking prednisone for at least that amount of time, I'd suspect that instead. Entocort is quite similar to prednisone, except it is meant to absorb in just the intestine. However, about 10% of it or more can affect the rest of the body.
Posted 2/25/2016 4:29 PM (GMT 0)
Well that makes perfect sense then because it just started falling out a couple weeks ago which puts me around three months. Hopefully now that I am no longer taking it it will stop falling out before I am a bald girl:)
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