Q: Doctor Bernstein, I was looking at your website and saw the photos of medical hair loss treatments only, with Rogaine and Propecia. Doctor, are all those pictures just with medical treatments or is there concealers as well? I don’t mean to sound rude or disrespectful, but are the pics all real and genuine? Those are some impressive responses to medical treatment.

A: The photos are un-retouched and without concealers. These are responses to medical treatment alone. Yes, medications (finasteride and minoxidil) can work really well in select patients. Patients with early stages of thinning usually respond the best. Contrary to popular belief, the medications can work in the front part of the scalp, as long as the area is not shiny bald.

Perhaps about 1/3 of patients respond well enough to be put on the site. Most others have a good response, but not necessarily improvement significant enough to be easily noticeable in photos.

Q: Are the “result” photos from taking Propecia and using Rogaine legitimate? Some of the after photos look too good to be real and a few patients looked like they combed their hair to look like they had more coverage.

A: The before and after photos of patients using Propecia and Rogaine are my patients. All photos on our website are un-retouched. When patients have a good response to medical therapy, they often have more flexibility in how they can groom and style their hair. This is reflected in the photos.