TheEmperor

newcomer, I have read that when follicles are partially damaged, that they can cause decrease in shaft diameter or kinks in the hair. I know from watching my tranplanted hairs grow, there are some interesting things going on. FOr instance, there are some hairs from the first HT that kept growing, but got radically thinner from the day of HT#2. You can see the hair is thick and then all of a sudden gets thin. As far as kinks, I believe they will work themselves out over time as the follicles heal and adjust. If not you will be able to style around it. Good luck.

I have seen the hairlines designed by your doctor. He sometimes uses varying angulation in the hairline. If you let the hair grow out to length, it will probably help to straighten it. Other than styling products or perms, your options are to have the offending hairs removed (FUE or laser), or maybe get another HT to help hide the problems. YOu need to post pictures to get good advice.

Yes, you are correct. Much depnds on the density at which it was placed. You may need a second pass.

This really works. I am seeing some sprouting in the temple region too, where there were no hairs before. And at four weeks. COuld be coincidence, but it might be worthwhile to investigate these supplements for post HT growth.

Follow your physicians instructions. I believe that is too early. Later is better than too soon.

Agree.

I know this will probably fall under superstition and/or coincidence, but at 3 1/2 weeks post-op, I am starting to see small stubbles. A few days ago, I figured these were hairs from the first HT which were knocked out and started to regrow. Now I'm not sure. There are at least a couple of new hairs in the hairline between the jaggies where there was no hair before. I saw signs of sprouting from my last procedure as early as week 7, although overall I was considered a "slow grower". The supplements are "Sundown: Hair, Skin, & Nails" (Biotin, B-complex) and CVS brand MSM, both from CVS. Might as well add these $5 supplements to your post op recovery. Maybe Biotin and MSM help recharge the new follicles. (?)

As you are 38 and still have hair in the front, I believe you would be a good candidate.

This is a very good question that does not receive enough attention. It all comes down to the quality and density of your hair, and the width of the scar. Even skilled docs scars can be 3-4mm wide. WIth a scar that wide it will be difficult to cut your hair with clippers. If you can live with keeping your hair an inch or longer, it should cover the scar well. Dont bank on being able to use clippers.

Do you mean that "singles" are usually attached to other surrounding bundles? Does cutting away a "single" cause potential damage to the graft as opposed to keeping it part of a larger group?

Sleep will be difficult over the first two weeks and this will drain your energy. Also depending on the planting strategy, your native hair, and healing characteristics, it may be obvious something was done for several months, maybe more. Therefore I do not recommend staying in Vancouver. I would follow their standard recomendation and fly home the day following surgery. This will get you home before the major face swelling starts and you can recuperate in your own home.

Drive to Arocha, get an assesment, and if this requires additional surgery, have Beehner fly you out and comp your hotel. This could be serious and a coalition doctor will certainly take responsibility.

matx, I dont want to alarm you, but a single cyst can get quite large. If you are dealing with many cysts, on the order of 50+, then I would advise doing something sooner rather than later. I had a cyst once which started out as you describe as "watery" or "loose". I think there is a pocket of fluid deep in the skin (deeper than a pimple). Over time, the cyst begins to form scar tissue, will get harder, raised, and can quite large. The solution was to have a minor surgery to excise the cyst. (It had grown to the size of a half dollar and was a big raised bump on my lower back, not painful at all). THe fluid trapped in the cyst reeked, which leads me to believe they are not exactly sanitary and may harbor bacteria. My concern for you, if indeed these ingrown hairs have caused cysts, is that they will grow and form a significant amount of lumpy scar tissue. If you are dealing with not one cyst, but with many, you may have a considerable problem on your hands. THat said, I wish I could reassure you that everything will be OK, but I think you need to be proactive in the treatment. Perhaps you can have Dr. Beehner identify the punch sites that are causing problems and do a deep incision/extraction to kill or remove any ingrown hairs. It might be time consuming, but the alternative is to watch the cysts grow and harden over time. Surgery to remove a cyst involves an incision and carving out the scar tissue pocket that has grown under the skin. If you have a large number of cysts, this could be a serious operation. I wish you the best, please try to stay positive.

Look at total hair counts. I have seen some docs average around 15% 1's. H&W seems to average around 25-30% 1's. This may be very good for naturalness, but makes apples/apples comparisons difficult.

I can't be sure without post op pics, but it does look like a yield problem. I would expect more growth at 6 months. If you get poor growth, it is usually a bad idea to return to the same doctor, even if they offer free touch ups.

Everything I have read about Keser is that he will turn you away due to your age and balding pattern. I think you should be OK as long as the HT is done as if planning for a NW5/6. I do not believe FUE is recommended for NW5+ restorations. You are still very young. Much will depend on you hair quality and eventual level of baldness. If you dont plan on shaving, strip is probably the better option. If you donor density is 80/cm2 and a typical strip is about 30cm x 1.5, then you can probably get 45*80 or 3600 grafts with your first strip. If your laxity is higher, then more. FUE extractions will decrease the number of grafts available for FUT. Good luck.

I like that Keser desribes FUE as an adjunct for patients who have already had strip. If we accept that Shapiro, Feller, and Keser are performing great FUE results, I think we really need to document the limitations of FUE. Those doctors that "play by the rules" and respect the limitations of FUE should probably be allowed into the coalition. (Maybe there should be a coalition "FUE code of conduct" similar to what Keser has stated as his guiding pinciples.) I can think of a couple situations where it is going to be a better option for the patient. A) THe patient has minimal loss and is older B) The patient is stripped out and needs FUE to harvest head or body hair C) FUE into scar. D) FUE for spot repair (eyebrows, etc) E) Patients who have lax scalps and are prone t stretching. If we accept that these are valid uses for FUE that benefit the patient, then the coalition would be better by recommending surgeons that offer these services. Of course, it should not recommend FUE surgeons who do not respect the limitations, as that would be potentially damaging to patients. Also, physicians who do not perform the extractions themselves or attempt to automate the procedure should be disqualified. It is interesting to think about the economics of FUE. Dr Keser employs two other staff members and seems able to move 1000 grafts a day. I wonder how that compares to a strip clinic that employs many more technicians, but is able to move more grafts per session, and service more than one patient a day. It may be such that FUE prices could match strip some day, because there is less overhead. However, I can't imaging a doctor wanting to extract thousands of grafts each week by hand. That just seems so labor intensive that it would cause burn out. And also, we need a definitive answer: How good is FUE yield? (on average)

I am not sure that there would be any studies that describe the effect of stress on HT. One thing to consider is that having a HT can be a source of stress itself, depending on how well you grow, how well it was planned and designed, if you have realistic expectations, how much it disrupts your social life, etc. If you are already in a stressful state that you feel is impacting your health, I would address that before getting a HT. And when you do get a HT, be mindful of your stress levels so that your healing is not interrupted.

Dr. Keser is the real deal! I am impressed.

aaron, Looks great for the graft count! :jealous: Hopefully my #2 will grow out and help as much as your second procedure. Keep us posted in the coming months.

ON the plus side, by the time you are my age, there will probably be a "cure".

First time to Vaucouver, I was "detained" by Canada immigration for 3-4 hours. THey kept me in a special side room in a queue full of other people waiting for deeper questioning. Second time to Vancouver, I walked through customs without a problem. Showed them the customs letter from H&W and answered their questions. Going back into USA, I was never asked to remove the cap on either trip. Dont remember being asked the purpose of my trip. THe were more interested in contraband.

Wow, I would say that this advice in contrary to conventional wisdom which states that valuable donor needs to be preserved. Strip harvest provides higher yield. I agree a strip scar is not ideal, but 2500 FUE grafts will give him just a little bit of fuzz and will hardly be connected to the sides. 7K strip grafts might give him a more respectable look.

This is pretty much it. I am guessing that Drs. Hasson or Wong would plant a conservative hairline on you... so if you can live with a hairline that is higher than your original, and if your hair quality is good, you dont have to live life bald. But you wont have rock start hair either.

I dont think a lower hairline will look good. That is like wishing you had shorter legs and longer arms. Just not attractive. Put your pics next to leading men in hollywood. You hairline appears low by comparison.