simonuk

Four Month Update Well, it's been four months now since I had my FUE hair transplant. There has been quite alot of new hair growth in the last four weeks, far more than I was expecting at this point actually. I've uploaded pictures from today and also before the operation so you can see the difference. I'm really liking the restored hairline and the temple area which had receeded a fair chunk is now looking fuller. It's still patchy but considering it's only four months on, I'm really happy with the progress. I am still taking Finasteride (1mg) daily, although I haven't touched the Regaine at all. I should really force myself to get that routine in order!

Hi guys, sorry for the delay in getting an update on here. It is now just over three months since I had my FUE treatment. I am still taking 1mg of Finasteride daily although I will run out at the end of January. I plan to continue taking this (or Propecia if I can't get a doctor to prescribe me Finasteride - anyone have this issue? The cost difference is quite staggering). I am also using Regaine although I will be honest, I do quite often forget and this regiment is poor on my part. The donor area is still visible when I clipper my hair very short and I presume it will always be noticeable if I am to shave my head (grade 0-1) in future. However, with about two/three weeks' hair growth, it's not visible at all. This will be my norm in future so all good there... I was quite surprised how itchy the donor area was for the first two months but this dissipated and eventually went away around the beginning of the third month. Since the operation I have been clippering my hair to the lowest grade as I have found it to be so easy to deal with and quite comfortable. However, I have now decided to do the opposite and let it grow out. The sole reason for this is because the redness in my implanted region is still as red as ever. After three months I was hoping it would have faded but no luck on that front for me. There has been quite alot of new hair growth this month. It is still patchy and with each new hair it gets spotty for a couple days and this adds to the redness. However, redness aside, I'm really pleased with how much hair has started showing up already. I wasn't expecting to see results until the new year. There may be a reason for this but the hair that was implanted near the temples has come through very fast and already individual hairs are quite thick. I've attached a few pictures I just took. Do let me know if you have any specific questions or want to see pictures in a certain light/angle. Thanks. Simon

Glad to hear you had a good trip! It sounds like it went really well and your trip to Dr Doganay and Dr. Ayhan was as pleasant as mine. Hope some of my advice helped even if just a tiny bit!

Hopefully some other FUE patients can chime in and comment on their experiences with the implant area redness/healing. I've read about varying timeframes for the redness to fade, from weeks to months. I bought some clippers and have twice now buzzed it on the lowest grade with an attachment. Perhaps when I get back from holiday I'll just let my hair grow for a while and see how it looks (not great I'd imagine!)...

It is now six weeks since my FUE procedure, so just wanted to share a quick update. I haven't noticed any more shedding of implanted hairs for some time now. What shock loss I experienced (which was very minimal) stopped long ago too. My pillow doesn't show any evidence nor the sink. I'm not sure whether to expect more/all of the implanted hair to fall out eventually. The implanted area is unfortunately still very red and noticeable. I've uploaded three pictures I just took. The area is a bit shiny as I currently have some cream on but I'm not noticing any positive effect to be honest. (With the flash off it looks much redder.) I'm going on holiday in three weeks' time and I fear I'll be wearing a hat still. On the positive side anyway, I can't wait to see how it progresses and am looking forward to to my head healing soon. I quite like the shaved head look and will be happy to sport it. Better be healed by Christmas!

Hi dannyboy785, the count achieved in the same timeframe is likely due to a number of factors... the surgeon/nurses' pace, method, number of singles/doubles/triples from graft extractions... However, I can't open a good debate on the subject as we had two different surgeries with different doctors/clinics (I presume?) and every operation is different.

Shampoo - I was expecting about 8 hours over two days initially, so 8 hours in a large session worked out well for me. I've seen other clinics quote this timeframe also for a typical FUE procedure. TOharbourfront - I hadn't heard of that product until you mentioned it, but it's not something I'll be pursuing after a quick read. To be honest, I'm quite happy to just let the redness fade away. I'm hoping it will have dissipated by the time I reach two month's post-op, so will just have to wait and see.

Progress after 1st Month It has now been one month since my FUE operation with Dr. Doganay. I experienced ALOT of shedding of the implanted hairs during the third week, and was amazed just how much would fall out in the sink or on my pillow after a night's sleep. However, this has really started to slow down now and to be honest, I'm not sure if any hair shed last night. I also haven't noticed anything today. I've uploaded a few pictures to show my progress. There is still a fair amount of redness in the implanted region. Depending on where I am, it can be less noticeable (bright light) to very noticeable (dim light). I'm still wearing a baseball cap at all times when I go out with one exception which was quite humourous... It was my friend's wedding reception the other night and I couldn't miss it. So in desperation, I actually managed to find some make-up (foundation) that pretty-much matched my skin-tone and applied this to my forehead and temple area to cover the redness. I actually got away with it thankfully (although did tell my friends anyway)! To combat the redness I've started using a hydro-cortisone 1% cream, and will stop after one week as per instructions. I do think I'm noticing some decrease in redness but can't say for certain. The donor region is very itchy and again, depending on lighting, is not so noticeable except just after I cut my hair. I've been sporting a shaved head and invested in a pair of clippers quite simply because it's so much easier for me. I first cut my hair a week ago and will probably keep doing this fortnightly. I think I may just keep the shaved head look until later in the recovery period when the hairs start to regrow and can achieve a style I like with the new hairline. That may change, but that's my perspective for now anyway...

I've been using Aloe Vera gel but have seen no real result. I've seen other clinics recommend limited use of hydro-cortisone 1% cream for after-care which I'm going to try as well for a week and see what happens.

I've found that my donor and recipient areas are quite slow to recover also. I'll update my thread on this forum tomorrow with 1 month photos, but the recipient area especially is still very red. I've read that some FUE patients have to wait as much as three months for the redness to finally fade. Hopefully that won't be my case!

Thanks for all the recent comments. sarang - You'll need to put all the lotions/shampoo and medications in the hold as they are well above the size limit for hand buggage. My hotel experience was pretty average but everything else was brilliant. I personally would recommend doing some research on the Internet (TripAdvisor) to find a hotel that you like the look of, and then work with Dr. Doganay's clinic to make arrangements. Vanilla - I'm not sure what the density is, as in follicles/cm2 for example. It is nowhere near the natural coverage obviously, but will just have to wait & see how it looks after six months and after a year ultimately. Antalya was a nice place, definitely a good beach destination. Weather was great too. Plenty to do, just have a look at tourist information on the Internet.

Thanks for the feedback and clarification. Much appreciated.

It will be three weeks' time tomorrow since I had my FUE treatment and shock loss is now in full-effect. I've attached an image of a few hairs that recently parted way, and I was curious if former FUE patients could tell me if they look normal? Specifically, the end of the hair follicle is black, whereas if I was to pluck a healthy "normal" hair from my head it would be white at the end. Just curious if that is to expected at this stage, or at all? Thanks.

Buzz2, I'm glad to hear that you had a positive outcome with Dr. Doganay. I visited him for FUE treatment a week before yourself, and it sounds like you had an equally personal experience.

Hi stinger99, I went to Dr. Hakan Doganay in Turkey. 3700 grafts in total two weeks ago. I don't want to hijack this topic so... I'm talking about my experience here: http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/172410-recent-fue-procedure-dr-hakan-doganay.html