rich91403

Hi rbte11, It is very difficult to compare one physician with another. The physicians listed on this site are all highly credentialed and it is a personal choice based upon your experience while consulting with a physician. The physician will make you feel comfortable with a suitable approach to the hairloss strategy you develop with him. Look at pictures, speak with the doc and ask to speak with a few past patients. Go with your feeling after the due diligence. I used to work with Dr. Parsa Mohebi in Los Angeles. He is a fabulous Dr as well. He is very open and honest about what can be done and if he can help or not. Consulting with him would give you a world of information and he often recommends you see at least three physicians for consultation. It is important that you personally experience the interaction with a doctor and see if you feel comfortable with that physician. Best of luck in your hair restoration experience!

Your welcome SBA! Thanks for being receptive to my humble opinion. Pain is not a great indicator in this particular situation. The donor area has altered sensation at this point. There will be patches of hyperesthetic and hypoesthetic around the donor area. You are a healthy guy. Wound healing should be complete within one month. After that I believe there is nothing to worry about. You're almost there. A few more weeks of modified training and you're right back to full capacity!

SBA, Good to hear you are hitting the roadwork again. Flat bench work positions the trainer where the back of the head is one of the contact points against the bench. You probably do not realize the pressure from the contact as your head helps with stabilization while performing intense lifts. Why not utilize the upright chest machines in the gym? This way no adverse hemodynamics/no elevated blood pressure to the head in a supine position and to minimize or eliminate touching the back of your head against the vertical pad. Not touching the pad is good for sanitary reasons and also not to stress the incission sight. If you do the flat work roll up a towel that elevates your head and acts like a cervical pillow support. I'd stick with the upright substitutes for a short while and you will not miss a beat as to retaining prior lifting capacity.

Futbol, 2 months post op? You're good to go. You could have resume cardio work and light resistance training within a few days of your procedure with the recommendation of not trap work or forward head flexion. You are absolutely ready for full conditioning weight/circuit/cardio training. You are certainly ready for stand up kicking and boxing training. Grappling and ground work, to be safe, can be resumed in another 4 weeks. I really feel you can return now but if no competitions or matches are scheduled why not wait another month. Personally I think you were given overly cautious advice. People who do not live the physical culture/training lifestyle can be very dismissive with telling you take 6 months off. Lift, run, work the bag and sparring are appropriate at this point. See you in the UFC

Johnny, It is always best to make a recommendation based upon clinical information obtained in an examination and detailed history........but given your question I feel 1500 grafts would be a very sufficient number for you. This opinion Johnny, is offered but I really would like to know familial hx, miniaturization study, donor density and some of the other stuff that comprise a good faith examination. Let me know how it turns out.

Salem I commend your decorum and it is evident you are not bashing Transderm. There is only disappointment with the surgical outcome. It appears your experience there was very professional and pleasant absent the result. There are a few reasons why your procedure may not have been successful. This must be evaluated by the physician and medical staff where services were rendered. The lack of any growth (one successful transplanted follicular unit) is concerning. Absent some systemic condition this situation must be addressed by them. Given your cordial treatment and the appreciation you expressed for the staff, I believe this company will maintain their good standing by performing their post operative duty and go over why the surgery was not successful and what can be done to satisfy you. Sorry about the disappointment but don't give up hope.

Johnny, There is so much that needs to be known before a solid recommendation can be made. Your hair in the front still looks pretty good but an advancing hair loss pattern may be in the future. What is the familial history of hair loss? How old are you? Did the doctor do a microscopic evaluation to determine miniaturization study? If you have values based upon the miniaturization study of active hair loss, then why wait. The miniaturized hair is probably going to fall out anyway so you may as well address the problem now and enjoy the new asset for a longer period of time. I understand your concern that it may appear to be a lateral move, but if active hair loss is going on then you can frame it as seamless transition to not having the appearance of baldness. Like I suggested above; a bit more clinical information needs to be factored in before a solid opinion and advice can be rendered. best of Health

Salem, What a patient should expert from a hair transplant physician is honesty, professionalism and accountability. A medical procedure can never be guaranteed. A doctor should help you in determining a realistic goal by listening to your desire and explaining what modern medicine can do. Sometimes there is a perception difference that is difficult to overcome. Your doctor should have the medical file with examination findings, objective, surgical protocol and certainly presurgical photographs. These must be maintained. A patient is well within his right to return to the office for a follow up examination, progress report and assessment of status. The physician should be available to discuss the outcome of your surgery with you, listens to your concerns, objectively examine the results based upon the previous record and what the plan was for you. His duty is to be honest, objective and to operate in the patients best interest. Loss of medical records is unacceptable in this day and age.

Hi Tom, A good question but a difficult one to answer. Dr P should be able to give you a more accurate assessment. The goal is to attempt to achieve 40% density to eliminate the appearance of baldness. There are many factors that determine how to attain that 40%. Hair thickness, character, size of the region to be covered and of course, graft placement technique. Tom, I like Dr P's strategy with you. I think it very appropriate to address the anterior third of your scalp. This will frame the face (provide facial symmetry) and give you a "frontal presence" that reduces the baldness presentation. The crown will hopefully be addressed later. It sounds like there is a moderate number of available grafts and we see there is a great demand. This surgical plan seems very suitable and appropriate given your present situation. Good luck Tom.

Tom, I'm glad you have located a good physician. In the meantime it never hurts to do a virtual consultation with a few doctors. The more information you gather the better. 3 months is quite a waiting list. Did you see any of his previous work? I'll try to find some information on Dr

SJ, How are the 3000 grafts going to be allocated? What Norwood class are you? If you are a class VII and 300 grafts are placed throughout the entire class VII MPB region, it may not provide adequate density that diminishes the appearance of baldness. Other factors like the size of your head and hair quality (diameter and type) make a difference. In my experience 3000 is not enough to cover and entire head in a satisfactory manner if you are an advanced class. Many factors need to be known before a more precise answer can be provided given your question. Best of Health

Tom, You're welcome. I commend your good attitude and reaching out in preparation with moving forward. There a doctors here in the US who offer partial travel reimbursement and hotel accomodations while you are here for your surgery. I worked with a very good doctor, Parsa Mohebi, who does offer patients these considerations to make their surgical experience a pleasant one. He is a recommended physician on this site. There are many excellent surgeons here in the US and it may be worth your while for a visit/procedure. There is a limited amount of viable grafts that needs the utmost in professional care and utilization. If you elect to stay regional, please do your due diligence with selecting a physician. Please keep us posted on your progress and then great results to follow!

Bato, RCWEST is exactly correct. Hair loss is not a result of high DHT levels. We all have different levels and there is no standard or threshold that once you supercede it, hair loss begins. If you have the genetic predisposition to male pattern hair loss, DHT is going to affect it. Your physician was appropriate in ordering laboratory work but I don't understand the "normal" values being non contributory to your hair loss given all the clinical studies out there. If you are suffering a temporary stressor, then hair may grow back by itself. Otherwise you should strongly consider the DHT blocker to mitigate future hair loss and to possibly rehabilitate the miniaturized active hair loss population. Good luck Bato

Frat, Based upon familial history and the pictures you have submitted.......active hair loss is going on. This post is not going to offer any new revelations that many of the other learned members of this site have not already recommended. I was there (right where you're sitting) and I understand the devastating psychological effect of being a young man faced with the expression of the genetics we inherited. I know the feeling of wet hair in the gym locker room, bright sunlight, who is sitting behind me and pressing my head against a bench press and what it will do to my carefully placed hair after I get up. The great news is that there are modern medical measures that can be taken to address this problem. The fellas have discussed finasteride and minoxidil already. I suggest you go visit a hair transplant physician for an evaluation only! Get a miniaturization study performed. Have your donor density checked and this may give you a bit more information about your present status and possible prognosis for future hair loss. Also wearing long hair (long hair is heavier) causes hair to create more separation and parting in certain regions of your scalp. So frat, do what you can conservatively and rest assurred that a front line hair restoration physician can really help you out down the road should it remain a great concern. Best of Health

Hi Tom, Sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with your first procedure. I do agree with you that the net result from your surgery has been minimal. It appears you are a class VII and 2000 grafts will not be sufficient to provide adequate density. 2000 grafts can help rebuild an age appropriate hairline that frames your face and tapers backward in the anterior 1/3 of your head. I am assuming there was some type of limitation placed upon the surgical protocol due to donor availability or possibly another constraint. Tom, where were the grafts placed? The photos look like most were placed in the front. Was the crown or top addressed? In either case, I agree that your outcome appears to be less than what I would expect from 2000 grafts (appx 4600 hairs). Moving forward: How is your donor hair (density), scalp laxity and what is your hair restoration goal? Let's see how we can devise a strategy to make this a positive outcome for you. Best of Health