fireman

Nice pics Richie; that's fairly long-ish. Looks good too. I'm scheduled for a transplant in March and am finding that as the date gets closer questions are popping up that I hadn't thought of earlier--like how will it look if i want to grow it out. Thanks for the reply!

I've been checking out the results posted by patients and it occurred to me that no one really grows their hair long post-transplant. Any one know the reason or have theories? Maybe the new hair isn't as dense on top so it doesn't look good long?

Wow, thanks for all the great, thoughtful replies. It sounds like it would be in my interest to seek a few more opinions from HT doctors. To answer a few questions from folks who replied, I supplied a video to Surgeon A--that's how he determined I had very good laxity. I would have to say my greatest concern right now is whether or not harvesting from the sides is an option; I think that's where I need further confirmation before proceeding. As far as the price, well, there is a difference there. If I go the two-procedure route I'd definitely be spending more than a single session. However, price isn't as much of a concern (not that I love to spend money unnecessarily); what is most important is getting the best possible results. This is something I don't want to half-ass... One other question: when the surgeon closes the donor area, does it pull up the back of the neck, creating an odd look? Or does the laxity make up for it? I'm just wondering if the pulling on the back of the head to close up the incision has any noticeable side effects on appearance.

So I'm on track to go in for a transplant (I'm a NW5), but my dilemma is deciding between two different surgeons, each one with a different approach: Surgeon A thinks I could yield a significant number of grafts in a single session due to my very high scalp laxity. However, I'm concerned that the surgeon uses staples to close the donor area (I need anywhere from 3-4,000 grafts for decent results) and that this will result in a noticeable scar and might use up the donor area, in case I need to go back for more some day. Also, I've only done an online consultation with this doc; he hasn't seen my hair in person. I had a personal consultation with Surgeon B, who also thinks I have high scalp laxity. However, he was able to examine my scalp and is concerned that the area above my ears is not as dense as the back; thus he only wants to harvest from the back. Plus, his approach is conservative; he wants to do the first session of 1500, let the donor area heal and the transplants take before doing a second session about a year after the first. Also, he closes with sutures; he says this minimizes scarring and he would never use staples. My questions: what's the conventional wisdom on a) single session vs. multiple sessions, b) staples vs. sutures c) and choosing a doc based on online consult vs. personal. I should note that both docs have good reps; I'm really just trying to make an informed choice by weighing their different approaches. Hoping folks on the forum may have some pearls of wisdom to share. Thanks.