Shampoo

Sam I know this has been a really tough journey for you. I hope and pray it comes to a conclusion so that you can feel better about your look. I know I am not in your shoes, but before removal I would go ahead and try the buzz cut now and who knows maybe that could save you a lot of time, money, pain and you could start your new look as early as tomorrow. Good luck.

I think you should try the buzz cut first. That option is FREE. What do you have to lose by just going forward this week with a buzz cut? You may be ok with just a buzz cut without removing anything. After looking at your pictures I don't really see the value in removing transplanted hair. I wonder if there is data available about uprooting transplanted hair again and the survival rate? Sam I wonder if SMP could play a role if you go with a buzz cut?

Would you consider a shaved look?

Is there any way I can contact him

I bet Spex would be happy to help you and discuss your situation.

He recently posted in this forum or you can contact him thru his website:

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/184824-my-new-hair-loss-hair-transplant-website.html

Hair Transplant UK, Dr Feriduni Hair Transplant, Hair Treatment UK

I used it 4-5 times a week (I know I over used it)

Spex posted on another forum a few years ago that patients must be careful with Nizoral and using it too often.

Nizoral Shampoo and "Shedding"

How long were you leaving the Nizoral on your scalp?

Thanks hairthere..that would be convenient with Dr. Arocha whom I have met and think highly of.

I definitely would be interested in some SMP thickening in the future.

However right now I am only 4.5 months post-op from my final FUT procedure and I don't want to do anything with my scalp until at least the 12 month mark.

Let's keep in touch.

ps: Would you say most of your "thickening SMP" has been with clients that have also had an earlier hair-transplant or guys that have never had a transplant? Also what is the satisfaction rate with guys that are doing SMP as an added feature after a transplant? I know it must vary but how often do clients need a re-do or touch-up?

SMP to make their hair look more dense? Im looking for pictures to see how it would look.

I too am interested in SMP for additional density on a non-shaved down/non-close cropped scalp.

This SMP provider posts on this message board and here is a link to their "thickening" page tab:

Thicker Hair -- FREE CONSULT - AHEAD INK - 347.446.4757AHEAD INK — Temporary Scalp Micropigmentation

In this industry I have observed that very good doctors are falling prey of psychologically unsettled patients who have unrealistic expectations from the surgery.

I have thought the same thing myself.

To be honest it surprises me, but it probably shouldn't, when we see patients on this message board with obvious mental illness obsessing and sometimes freaking out about their hair transplant even when the results look pretty decent. You would think the doctors would be able to easily spot these types during the consults and pre-op communications, but I guess not.

Guys I think Dave is referring to SMP here rather than a transplant

Ooops sorry

Consults vary from clinic to clinic, but if you have done your homework and choose one of the top clinics then the consult would usually involve visiting with a rep of the clinic, filling out some paper-work, and then finally a personal visit with the doctor.

The doctor should spend 20-45 mins with you. You will get a feel for the clinic and the doctor and see if there is good chemistry.

The doctor should examine you hair and balding area. The doctor will also ask if you are taking meds, ask about your age, ask how long you've noticed balding, and family history of baldness.

The doctor should then discuss with you what your goals are. It is very important that doctor and patient be clearly on the same page as far as goals and expectations BEFORE the surgery.

Next the doctor will explain to you if those goals can be met and roughly how many FUT or FUE sessions it could take to achieve a result you will be happy with.

Pricing would also be discussed at this time.

You should prepare for every consult with some notes and questions to ask so you don't forget anything important

You may want to ask if you can meet some recent patients that have had this doctor perform a hair transplant in the last 2-3 years.

You may also ask about the technicians employed by the clinic. Technicians can be a critical part of the success of hair transplant. Are the techs full time employees? How many techs work at the clinic? How long have the techs worked at the clinic and/or been in the industry?

You should NEVER feel rushed by a top clinic.

Joey...I will attest that fibers work very well, so well they are addictive. However I have stopped using them due to serious concerns about breathing the fibers on a daily basis. In my opinion masks to prevent breathing the fibers are not practical to use on a daily basis. Also not sure if it it would be an issue, but fibers used daily to cover a NW6 is going to be a pricey habit.

What else you use to fall asleep during op (IV + twilight sedation apart from valium.

As stated I only used a precise dose of my own Xanax.

1.5 mg Xanax one hour before surgery.

And another small dose during lunch of .50 Xanax.

These doses made me sleep/extreme groggy during the entire 9 hours.

However Xanax and dosage reacts to each person differently.

What worked for me, may not for somebody else.

I am not a doctor, but as far as IV, twlight, etc...

I don't think those are practical/safe for procedures like hair transplants that last several hours.

Did you still have to experience the first initial anasthetic shots first or did they put you to sleep straight away.

Xanax for me pretty much takes away every concern...it's like "whatever"

I don't hardly remember the first shots.....again because of the Xanax it was a "whatever".

I was too loopy and unconcerned.

Xanax works great for me during a hair transplant.

One time I was on Xanax on a real bumpy plane ride

and I remember actually thinking "I don't even care if this thing crashes"...lol

That's how much Xanax relaxes me!

can you let me know who you used which doctor etc...

regards

My doctor was Dr. Jerry Wong of Hasson/Wong.

my swelling hit after both surgeries late on the 3rd day and lasted 4-6 days. I would say after my larger 2nd surgery the swelling made me appear almost unrecognizable, but it subsided pretty quick in a few days.

yeah chris39 I am always skeptical, but after seeing and talking with this guy I've worked with for years, he said "what have you got to lose, it's not like it's expensive". So I thought "yeah why not"? He is back in Nicaragua this week, but when he gets back to the US I may ask him if he'd mine if I posted a before and after pic. The dude looks so much better and he says he has not taken any hair type meds. Who knows? We'll see.

I am trying a new daily shampoo. A friend at work that is from Nicaragua that was early phase balding is looking really different. I asked him what was going on and he stated that about a year ago he started using a shampoo that is supposed to help balding.

Admittedly I am pretty skeptical, but this guy looks almost shockingly different. He showed me pics on his cell phone of his head while he was on beach vacation about 2 years ago, and it appears he has really regrown hair. I was so impressed with his story and his "new" hair that I bought some of this shampoo on Amazon. What the heck, what do I have to lose, I have to have a shampoo...so why not?

I just started using it last month and will report back later on any results or lack of...however I am right in the middle of the post-op ugly duckling phase, so it may not be the ideal time to test it out as my surgery results will be coming in too.

ismmoh...I would agree with the others that at this time it may not be a very good idea for you to have a transplant. You gotta really want to do this, because it's no picnic.

I have some situational anxiety and Xanax has worked wonderfully for me during both of my more recent transplants. I would guess I was in a nearly asleep/very groggy stage for 80-90% of the long day. Of course Xanax can affect everyone in a different way. Good luck on your decision.

I mostly agree with SKYLAR....good sound logic....but there is a bit more to the story about Hasson/Wong FUE.

If I have another surgery, and want to get it done in North America I would certainly return to Hasson/Wong for my first FUE surgery....ok I am biased....but I just trust these guys are going to be exceptional at anything they perform.

Hasson/Wong FUE:

"I admit that we have been slow to jump aboard the FUE bandwagon"

https://hassonandwong.com/setting-new-standards-fue/

But whats the difference in a doc specializing in FUE versus a doc specializing in FUT if they both deliver the same quality HT? If theyre Top 10 delivering the same quality I could care less who specializes in FUT or FUE. The most important thing is that they give me the best work possible. As long as my hair is crazy dense with a cool hairline FUT or FUE wont matter since the result will be the same.

There are other things to consider glenalm.

Sure the Top 10 doctors may give the best work possible, but what about Top 10 doctors that differ on size of procedures, differ on pricing, differ on travel/locale, and seem to have specialization that certain patients prefer?

Some patients want large procedures so they only have to go through the "ugly duckling" phase the least amount of times.....

So sure Top 10 Doctor X may be as qualified as Top 10 Doctor Y, but maybe Top 10 Doctor X will routinely do a 5000 graft session in one day because he has a huge staff of extremely talented technicians to pull it off, but Top 10 Doctor Y prefers smaller sessions with a smaller staff and a shorter work day and mainly does procedures of 2500-3000 grafts...which may require some patients to have more procedures to get to 5000 grafts?

That may not be important to you or some patients, but it became very important to me to get the most done in one day without sacrificing quality so I could avoid more travel trips, more surgery days, and more ugly duckling phases.

2EachHisOwn, but you can't really say "it doesn't make any difference" to everyone....non of these factors may matter to you, but they certainly do to some patients.

Also FUE vs FUT costs can be a factor with some patients. So if Top 10 Doctor X specializes in FUE it will most likely involve more money, possibly overseas travel for North Americans, and more procedures to get the same amount of grafts as Top 10 Doctor Y that specializes in FUT.

This is BS as far as 2016 is concerned

I am not in favor of synthetic hair implants, but it says this study was done in 2015.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26016977

my money is on Dr. Konior and not on the techs of the other two doctors (Konior places the grafts himself)

funny how everybody thinks differently, because I don't see that as necessarily a positive, especially for large sessions, but being that this case involves a small amount of grafts it would be fine and most likely an excellent result.

Interesting info...

96.2% of patients declared to be satisfied from the result of the implant

90.3% of patients recorded no pathology after surgery/ies.

Only 5.9% presented mild infection pathologies

resolution of the septic and chemical pathologies occurred in 97.9% of the cases within an average of 15 days with the use of systemic antibiotic and/or steroid local therapy.

In 2.1% of the cases it was necessary to remove the fibres

The implant of polyamide hairs (Biofibre®) can be considered an efficient surgical technique that allows immediate aesthetic results.

In our study, hair implant technique demonstrated to be safe and well tolerated by patients.

but I am still very skeptical and would like to hear from other doctors

My guess would be a very, very, small fraction of balding men ever have a hair transplant. I would think a larger group may at some time at least try Minoxidil and/or Propecia, but most balding men reluctantly just accept their fate and for a variety of reasons end up basically doing nothing over the long term.

i dont think its a good idea to sit and do nothing for 4-5 more months like some here are suggesting.

Of course if he is concerned he should contact his doctor or go see his doctor if he is in the same proximity.

However there is a difference between "doing nothing" and "being in a panic" which is what his title of this thread stated.

I still think it is borderline ridiculous to be in a "panic" at 5 months.

This patient has been asked to post before/after pics but has failed to do so.

We live in such a "fast food drive thru window world" that we are conditioned to think everything should happen overnight....but It takes decades to go bald....is it out of the realm of possibility that it will take 10-12 months for the hair to grow back from what has taken decades to fall out?

I am not a doctor but I would think besides alerting the doctor and having the doctor examine and discuss the situation with him....what else can be done until the 1 to 1.5 year mark? Some people fill in faster than others....such is life....but very little judgement as far as success/failure can be made early on post-op.

So when you say "do nothing"....I assume you mean just discuss with a doctor, but I doubt any doctor is actually going to "do anything" except wait and see which is very much the normal path to take.

"When do you think a post op patient should start to panic over the results?"

15 Months