hairbank

Jotronic, I just had time to view the video........it's amazing. I watched several times and couldn't catch a glimpse of a scar. It makes me that much more psyched about my upcoming HT with Dr. Wong later this month. I know I'll be in good hands! Hairbank

kg, I had my first HT with Dr. Samuels in St. Louis, MO. I don't know of anyone on the site that's gone to him. He was only a 2 hour drive for me so I consulted, reviewed some before and after pics and signed up. I think his placement of grafts was okay, though probably more invasive that I'm sure Dr. Wong will be. All in all I'm please with results from the first, but would have gone for many more grafts if I knew then what I know now (if you know what I mean). Hey, I'd be glad to send you some post-HT pics before you go. I'll be back home on Feb 16th and will try to post on HTN Feb 17th or so. I just found out about the scalp exercises today and am starting to work on it. Pat - thanks for the encouragement and all of the invaluable information you provide. I'll definitely be posting post-op pics and keep everyone updated. Hairbank

I've been searching for a reputable place on the web to purchase Finasteride (Propecia/Proscar) and came across something called Prosmin. I guess its supposed to be generic Proscar. I searched our forum and didn't get any hits for it. Has anyone heard of this before? Do you know anything about it? It costs $45 for 30 tablets of 5 mg each (proscar dose) or $85 for 60 tablets. The manufacturer is a company called Biotenk, which is based in Argentina, any info on them? They also show Finpecia (generic Propecia) as being available. The company is called United Pharmacies and is based in Oceania and says receives stock of meds from UK and Australia. Any info is appreciated. Thanks. Hairbank

Pre-op pics taken 2-1-06..2nd HT with Dr. Wong scheduled 2-15-06.

Best of luck to you kg007. I'm ahead of you 5 days - I'm also having my 2nd HT with Dr. Wong, scheduled for Feb. 15th. We'll have to keep in touch and compare notes on progress! You've got a head start on me though, I'm about a NW 4 with not much on the crown. I'm going to start there and work forward depending on how plentiful the harvest is. I'm hoping to get some pre-op pics posted for comparison. Hairbank

As GuitarPlayer said this varies for the reasons he mentioned. Also, it is my understanding that, if the shock loss occurred to hair suseptible to Male Pattern Baldness, it may never come back. It's tough to determine. My first HT was similar to yours in that I had them fill in around existing hair on top and in front. I had substantial thinning of the MPB suseptible hair (shock loss). It's hard to say for sure but I don't think much of it grew back. I hope others reply to this but in my opinion this varies much and no guarantee that the hair will come back should be given. The good news is with 2000 on top, assuming you already have some hair to blend, even if a little shock loss occurs you should still have decent coverage. In my case, I only had 1200 and was pretty happy with the results! Hairbank

I'm scheduled for my 2nd HT with H&W (Dr. Wong) February 15th. My first HT was about a year ago and I received 1200 FUT's..........hindsight being 20/20 I would have researched further, traveled to what I percieved to be the best and gotten many more FU's. All that aside, my understanding from my consultation is that if I want dense packing where there is existing hair I need to shave the recipient area (I agree with the reasoning on this). Now, I'm filling in the crown where I have little hair, but, if they harvest enough, I may get some dense packing in the front/temple/hairline area where I have some existing hair. My plan is to clip all hair down to #3 (1/2") before the HT which will hopefully suffice. Then, if enough grafts are harvested for potential dense packing have them go ahead and shave the recipient area. If the recipient area gets shaved, I plan to clip the sides and back to the length the recipient area has grown out to before returning to work. From your personal experience, how long before hair will cover the donor scar area??? Could you clip it to a #2 after 2 weeks and have it covered? How quick does hair grow? I plan to take off work about 2 weeks for this but work in a professional environment and can't wear a hat. I want to conceal it as best I can. I'm probably being paranoid about this but really don't want coworkers to know. This site has been a wealth of information to me. I appreciate all of your input. Thanks, Hairbank

I'm scheduled for my 2nd HT with H&W (Dr. Wong) February 15th. My first HT was about a year ago and I received 1200 FUT's..........hindsight being 20/20 I would have researched further, traveled to what I percieved to be the best and gotten many more FU's. All that aside, my understanding from my consultation is that if I want dense packing where there is existing hair I need to shave the recipient area (I agree with the reasoning on this). Now, I'm filling in the crown where I have little hair, but, if they harvest enough, I may get some dense packing in the front/temple/hairline area where I have some existing hair. My plan is to clip all hair down to #3 (1/2") before the HT which will hopefully suffice. Then, if enough grafts are harvested for potential dense packing have them go ahead and shave the recipient area. If the recipient area gets shaved, I plan to clip the sides and back to the length the recipient area has grown out to before returning to work. From your personal experience, how long before hair will cover the donor scar area??? Could you clip it to a #2 after 2 weeks and have it covered? How quick does hair grow? I plan to take off work about 2 weeks for this but work in a professional environment and can't wear a hat. I want to conceal it as best I can. I'm probably being paranoid about this but really don't want coworkers to know. This site has been a wealth of information to me. I appreciate all of your input. Thanks, Hairbank

I've heard nothing of him but that's not to say he wouldn't be good. Anyone else heard of him or had an HT from him?

Yes, that's my understanding. Kind of cool when you keep the transplanted hair then it starts to grow! Everyone's a little different. Good luck with your progress!

Hang in there. It's so soon after the procedure. I'm sure you'll be sprouting hairs soon. It's a bit of a slow process, but well worth the wait!

Just so we're all on the same page..........shock loss pertains to existing hair, not transplanted hair, right? My understanding is the transplanted hair may or may not fall out. If it falls out, it'll grow back, or, it may go into a dormant stage for a couple months then just start growing. As I said in my above post, I think I kept around 40% of my transplanted hair, the other little guys fell out then came back later. Now.........I did have some shock loss to my "existing" hair around the donor area, of which, most has come back after a year (not all). I also had substantial shock loss to my existing hair (not transplanted hair) since mine "filled in" hair that was around the top and front. Those hairs never returned, but my transplanted hairs filled in nicely. Definitely much thicker looking that before. I hope my post is not confusing to you (I often confuse my self!). After I read your reply I just wondered if we were comparing "apples to apples"! Hairbank

Do you have any pics to share? Glad to hear everything went as planned for you. Hairbank

Most of the results I see here are great and have encouraged me. The majority of the transplants go as planned. Since you've decided to "go for it", I wish you nothing but the best of success.....as I'm sure do the rest of those here. Keep us posted and post some pics. Hope it turns out great.

I would say I kept up to 40% of the transplanted hairs, they started to grow after 2 months or so. My 1st HT was about a year ago. I had minimal shock loss from the donor area. However, I have noticed that the hair in the donor area is a little thinner than it was. My donor strip was like a big smile on back of my head, the "thin" part is a the top corners of the smile by my ears, if that makes sense. The bottom of the smile is fine.

I used to use this stuff a 2-3 years ago on top and crown until my crowned thinned enough I just didn't have enough hair........you could see a little shine on my scalp! From looking at your pic's, you'd be a perfect candidate. I looked into a lot of concealer's at the time and feel Dermmatch is the best. Dermmatch does stay in all day. The effects won't fade or wear off until you shampoo them out. I'm not sure I would excercise with it in? Depending on how much you perspire it would probably be okay.

Annapolis HT, Are you sure about the flying after HT? Several on the forum have flown for the HT and I'm assuming came back the next day. I have a 2nd HT scheduled with H&W Feb. 15th and plan to return the morning following. Any others care to comment on this? Hairbank

Hi Bill, I think I notice the most recent improvement between your 5 & 6 month pics from the "top" view. It looks like the angle of your head may be slightly different, but the 6 month looks thicker. Everyone's experience is different, but I would guess you'll still have some new ones sprouting and some definite thickening in the near future! Robert's post should be an encouragement you............what a difference!! Good luck and keep us posted. Hairbank

Good luck and hope to see your pic's soon. I'm having my 2nd on Feb. 15th and won't be far behind you!

Chris, When researching for an HT, you want to leave no stone unturned, right? After all, the whole HT thing is about an appearance we're wanting to achieve. So, quality is ultra important, correct? To me, the opinions posted on this site are invaluable. Do I want to see the credentials of the surgeon I plan to use? Sure. Pictures of past work? Yes. However, I would place a higher value on the opinions and personal satisfaction of those having gone to the surgeon in the past. Viewing past posts on this site.........it sounds like Bosley or MHR may give you decent results, or, depending on who performs the procedure, maybe not. To me, selecting from the coalition members referenced on this site was the choice. There have been others mentioned here that were not members and have done great work. But, each of these coalition members were exclusively selected based on their ethics, skill and results. I've been reading your posts.....have you checked with your doc about a refund of the deposit? If he's ethical and you have second thoughts, it's hard to believe he wouldn't return it to you, or at least the majority of it. Hairbank

A question for those that have had their 2nd (or more) HT? How many grafts was the surgeon able to harvest? I know this will vary for everyone but would appreciate your sharing the info. I just scheduled my 2nd HT with H&W for February 15th and plan to post some pre-op pic's closer to the time. I had my first HT a year ago and only received 1200. I've been told the 2nd varies quite a bit. I'm going for as many as I can get.....up to 5000 if possible! I've been told since it's the 2nd HT they may not be able to get as many. How many were you able to achieve on the 2nd or more? Thanks, Hairbank

A question for those that have had their 2nd (or more) HT? How many grafts was the surgeon able to harvest? I know this will vary for everyone but would appreciate your sharing the info. I just scheduled my 2nd HT with H&W for February 15th and plan to post some pre-op pic's closer to the time. I had my first HT a year ago and only received 1200. I've been told the 2nd varies quite a bit. I'm going for as many as I can get.....up to 5000 if possible! I've been told since it's the 2nd HT they may not be able to get as many. How many were you able to achieve on the 2nd or more? Thanks, Hairbank

Chris, This is the toughest part..............it's up to you! You have a wealth of information here to review. I can't think of a thing to add, maybe someone else can. You've been advised to the possible negative consequences of having the HT done at your age. If you experience heavy shock-loss, yes, you may see little improvement from the HT and could possibly thin more. I don't think anyone can give you a definite here. Share your concerns (and our advice) with your surgeon. Get a 2nd or 3rd opinion. At the very least, push the date back a little. It is a BIG decision. Given it the attention it deserves. Hairbank

For appearance concerns.........you'll want to have enough hair to cover the donor scar. For my first HT, I was told 1", but I think 1/2" may have covered it. I clipped it to 1/2" after the stitches were taken out (at 10 days) and it was barely noticeable. You'll probably have some scabbing and maybe a little pinkish look to the skin. If the surgeon is good and does nice work, you probably won't have much scabbing. Even if you do it should have come off by the time you return to work. The pinkish skin color will also go away but I'm not sure on the time frame? The newly transplanted hair will most likely start falling out within the first few weeks after the HT but I don't think anyone will notice. You may choose to keep your hair clipped kind of short until it starts coming in?? For the first couple of days after the HT, you may experience swelling on the forehead or around the eyes. I used an icepack applied for 15 min. a time, 3-4 times daily and did not have any. I think you have more chance of this when the HT is toward the hairline, like in your case. I imagine you'll get some pre-op/post-op info from your surgeon which should provide plenty of detail. Hairbank

At close to the 3 month mark, the transplanted hair should be well "seated". No worries!