desertboy

Not trying to scare you but think long and hard before you do any kind of surgery. Although my FUT surgery did help improve density and my hairline I was left with an ugly white scar that rings from one ear all the way back to the other. I had a scar revision surgery to repair the original scar and it now looks worse than the first time. Not saying this will happen to you but just be really careful. If I could do it again I'd either go FUE or just go with the shaved head look. A year later after my scar revision surgery I'm still getting ingrown hairs in my donor area that are not attractive.

Check your PM.

Actually no. It was very minimal the first time. I was used to shaving my head to a one or less guard so even a #2 was hard for me at the time. The scar used to be mildly visible only on the sides. Now it's all around. I now get it cut at a #4. The scar is still visible and I'm constantly being asked about it. I hate it but used to it now.

Trying to stay positive. It's funny I used to be so self confident and sure of myself. I'm in my 30's now and I have my days where I feel as self conscious as a junior high kid! I keep hoping for some new break through treatment that will help before I'm too old to even care.

I just did a Google search and I found my old thread! Mine doesn't hurt normally but if I rub my fingers on it there are parts that feel lumpy and tender.

Thanks for the honest comments. After my first surgery my scar did take forever to heal. Even 7 months later the donor area would occasionally bleed on my pillow at night which I thought was odd but I was told that was normal. Are 30 day followups the norm in the industry? That's good that you at least extended that to your patient. I had a 1 week followup to remove the sutures. Immediately afterward I got some mean ingrown type of hairs in the scar area but I was told that was a good sign that my hair was growing through. But nothing after one week. I'm going to wait another 2 months and make sure the entire area is completely healed. Maybe I'll go cut some lawns to raise money for FUE. Thanks again.

Pretty much sums it up. I'm feeling pretty bummed right now. I guess I had high hopes that it would look at least a little better. I even did all the massaging techniques like I was told but I guess it didn't help. The first couple of weeks the scar looked really good and minimal. But each subsequent week it has stretched more and more. Before I only had white visible scarring on the sides of my head visible with a #2 guard. Now after the revision surgery I have a complete ear to ear white smile highly visible even with a #5 guard and the smile is kinda uneven. It's noticeable in the back of my head too whereas before it wasn't. Even my barber says it looks like it got worse instead of better which isn't a good sign from someone usually so optimistic. I've been trying to cover it up a bit with Dermatch but the stuff looks ashy when it dries. I went to a wedding this past weekend with Dermatch on and my aunts scolded me for what they said appears I was wearing a baseball cap before showing up (you guys know what I'm talking about). It's been 3 months and the smooth white scar tissue has shown its ugly self. I feel once the scar gets that smooth white look there is no hope. Am I over-reacting? Is 3 months too soon to jump to conclusions? I thought about getting micro pigmentation but after consulting a HT doctor in Los Angeles he said I would still have that really obvious "baseball cap looking step," and the scar would still be very visible. I know some people have told me to just grow my hair longer. I guess I could but my hair is coarse and it doesn't look good when it's too long and bushy. Anyone else have bad luck with FUT scar repair? Did you go the FUE route? I'm thinking FUE but financially money is tight right now so it's just bad timing and I don't want to take out another loan. PS: I'm leaving pics and my doctor's name out of this discussion for now. I don't want to embarrass him or myself. He says I'm a poor healer.

I hate my stretched scar. Everyone notices. I live about 2.5 hours outside of Los Angeles in a middle class neighborhood. For the past year I've had people ask me if "I've been in an accident," but nobody has yet to ask me if I'd had a HT. Then again when I notice people like me I don't even bring it up since I know it might be a sensitive issue for them like it is for me so perhaps more people know about it but just don't say anything? Sometimes I'll wear DermMatch on the scar area to cover the white but that "step," is still visible and makes it look like I was just wearing a baseball cap.

Nice. I have a wider than preferred FUT scar (from Nov "09) from ear to ear and I'm looking for a non invasive solution to camouflage it. At this point I do not want to take the risk of re-harvesting the scar tissue to "repair it." I hate topical solutions like Derm Match since they are dirty and rub off on anything my head comes in contact with.

Hi friends: I have the classic ear to ear scar that you get from the Tricophytic technique. Only problem is that a year later hair never grew through the cut and my scar appears to have stretched to where it's visible even with a #5 buzz cut. I don't want to deal with another year long long scabby irritated healing session to have my scar redone. (Apparently I heal poorly) I work a lot with clients so I can't cover up my hair with a baseball cap at work like I did a year ago when I had my FUT surgery. I guess I just have to deal with the slightly deformed hair pattern around the scar (people always ask me if I was wearing a hat due to the ring around my head) but would like to at least disguise the white scalp that shows through. I've about had it with trying to cover it up with messy concealers that rub off on pillow cases and hands of people who touch my head. I've been tempted to stop by many of my local tattoo parlors but I'd rather go to a professional who has experience with FUT scars. I understand that if done poorly tattoo's can fade or discolor. I also know that when I'm much older and gray headed that the dark tattoo ink may look odd. I'm willing to take the chance that technology will be better in the next 25-30 years that will allow me to reverse this should I need to at that time. For now I'm young and want to enjoy my youth without worrying about my FUT scar. Any recommendations here in the Southern Cali area? Anyone know approximately what this type of tattoo would cost? If successful I might opt to have the thinner areas of my hair tattoo'd as well to give my hair a fuller appearance. ( I never plan on shaving my head completely I just like it short) Thanks for your comments in advance. I love this site. Nice to know I'm not alone out there.

I'm willing to try any experimental treatments with any local SoCal doctors that don't involve any more slicing into my scalp. Available if you are docs.

Hi: Long time lurker but first time poster. In your opinion is a re-suture and/or FUE TS the only feasible options in cases like this to remedy the scar? A year later after my FUT my scar looks just like this. I have to leave my hair at a 6 or 7 cut in order to hide mine. From reading this thread I must have poor healing properties that I was unaware of. I'm extremely self conscious about my scar being that I have to deal with customers and vendors all the time. But I'm also not excited to have to be seen with a scabby suture that I have to apply dressing to that makes my hair look all mashed up and greasy for weeks. I'm also worried that a re-suture may end up just like the original scar but only worse.