Tav1

It's been a minute. Got busy, life got in the way, lost my password - you name the excuse. A Picture: Before (I started the first step with Umar) and after (as of today) un-retouched, zero product used or otherwise any BS tricks to inflate the appearance of current hair in any way, etc. is attached. FWIW: Dr. Umar has almost completed (it appears to me as I drive by anyway) a brand new custom clinic a half block or two South from Rosecrans on Sepulveda, right in the heart of Manhattan Beach, CA. Almost directly across from Manhattan Village. Pretty much as close as you can get to LAX and still be in the best part of town, with a great hotel (The Belemar) a block away. All of which tells me the Doc is doing something right by his clients. Hope all is well otherwise for everyone. Now four years in I can say that your transplanted hair only continues to thicken during the cycling. I am now able to cut my hair pretty short, parting it the way I used to.

17 months. Before/after. Feelin' fine.

If your Doctor did not prescribe something specific for the donor area (which mine did), either as suggested above or Bacitracin Zinc ointment. Twice a day. Scratching the donor is not advised. This should have been done starting from day one after surgery, although a week or so of ointment couldn't hurt as this point.

Approximately 16 month update. I tried to mirror one of the original pics I sent to Dr. Umar for my consultation with a before/after, hence the bad photography. Very pleased with the progress thus far and expect the small touchup I did with Dr. Umar in May to fill in as the months go forward. Remember Dudes and Dudettes, I'm 50 years old, so for me, this level of density is exactly on par IMO.

Transhair - I would encourage you to reach out to Dr. Umar, as I have seen many complicated repair cases he has successfully treated as part of his practice. His dermatology background might also be an invaluable asset to you in helping to diagnose and outline the proper course of action.

Awesome dude. I well deserved end to a long journey. Congrats!

14 month update: I went back for a "touch up" of 220 grafts on May 4 of this year, approximately one year from my original transplant, as outlined above. Shock loss is real - that's my takeaway. But in this case, it seems to be recovering quickly. The shock loss was at its worse around a month after the procedure, but only a month later, seems well in the way to recovery. I had posted this in a shock loss thread, but thought it best to post here as well. I'll update with more complete pictures in a month or so, as things seem to be progressing quickly. The comparison below is June 4 (one month post 220 FUE) and August 5 (two months post).

Looks great at only six months Ernie. I hate to tell you this, but you're not done. Looking at your progress (and based on my own experience), I'll bet you'll be even happier in the next few months. Most that grow on your sort of timeline really see progress yet again in the time between where you are now and nine months. So it will only get better - just sit back and enjoy that ride.

I've technically had two "touch up" procedures since my initial 4,000 graft procedure back in April 2015. The first one was necessary to repair a necrotic area that developed shortly after my initial procedure. It was so early in the healing process that if surrounding "native" hair was impacted there would have been no way to tell. That entire process I documented in a previous post here. The second "touch up" occurred in May of 2016, approximately 13 months out from my initial large session. This was purely voluntary and cosmetic to enhance was I thought was a slightly weaker left frontal portion. I'm unable to locate a pre-op picture from the top down, but the first picture below gives you an idea of what I considered to be a weaker left front. The picture was taken 10 months after my 4,000 graft procedure. The second (left/right comparison) picture shows shock loss as of June - one month out from my 200 graft touch up versus one week ago. Obviously, just in the past month and still only 13 weeks out from the touch up, the shock loss is starting to resolve itself. That said, as you can see, the initial shock loss was nothing short of "shocking!" I believe there are several factors in play to insure a maximum recovery from touch up shock loss as well as to insure the new grafts grow as expected: First, I would wait at least one year from any initial large area transplant prior to chasing perfection via touch ups. This gives the transplanted hair/any previously shocked out natural hair enough time to nearly fully resolve, cycle and mature, giving those hairs a much more solid foundation to withstand any subsequent trauma that occurs from touch up procedures. Second, I would maintain a diligent regime of (preferably) Fin/Minox pre and post any touchup to insure you are impacting the scalp and body with the available "fuel" to resolve and grow. Time out of body for transplanted hairs is much shorter in smaller FUE procedures obviously, so under the right conditions, one can assume that shocked hair may start to recover and newly transplanted hair may start to sprout on a more accelerated timeline - say versus the larger initial procedure. Regardless, as ModernHair seems to have experienced as well as myself, touch ups can certainly be like taking twenty steps back from a hair standpoint before moving ahead. And it can be a little jarring seeing what even small procedure trauma can have on previously transplanted/native hair due to shock loss. We can only hope it is temporary. Just my two cents.

Amazing healing of both donor and recipient in just two weeks. As you chart progress, it would be good to go back in and edit your original post to include any pre-op pictures for reference. Those are always helpful for everyone. Would also be good to know what you/Vories are planning in terms of aiding the growth and maintenance, be it with Rogaine, Propecia, etc. Happy growing.

Outstanding dude. That is a crazy good result at only six months in. Total home run result already - congrats.

Take a look at my thread mosd - it was an ugly start to a great finish. And the journey was worth it.

Totally agree ontop. Not certain exactly how this sort of "herd mentality" into some alternate universe occurred, and I've even seen threads recently where people are getting second opinions after just 3-4 months. That is just lunacy. People need to stop feeding the beast here. I even got a bit sucked into the false accelerated timeline mentality and started to believe I was some sort of unique slow grower. Looking back, I see now that I actually fit comfortably within the established norm in terms of the growth/maturation timeline. IMHO - it's at 9 months where a HT patient should begin to feel as though they are starting to see where they'll end up - and that's with another full 9 months still to go to final result. Certainly in my case, it was months 7-9 that trumped the first six months combined in terms of visual result. People need to pump the brakes on this 6 month BS.

Hey wylie - thanks. Yes, Dr. U has worked on many extremely difficult cases, and I've seen the great results from many of them. I was really just saying that my original case was otherwise straight forward - and later experienced some complications through no fault of anyone - but was nicely resolved due to the diligence and care of the Doc.

Much appreciated chris. Update: I returned today to Dr. Umar for approximately 150 grafts as a "touch up," as noted earlier in this thread. This was my second time at Dr. U's new offices, but the first time seeing the full facility. Quite frankly, once I was there, while one of his techs was taking pre-surgery pics, I'm not sure either of us actually new for certain where the new hair would be placed. After all, I was 100% happy with my progress thus far. But at the same time, Dr. U felt like the frontal left could use just a bit more density, due to some lack of growth most likely impacted by my previous necrotic issue. And I almost backed out of the procedure, as I was already very pleased and didn't want to think about the post-op care that must be undertaken. I almost had an "anti hair greed" moment, if that's possible. Dr. U performed a flawless no-shave technique in a brand new, spotless new surgical suite. I was comfortable the entire time. Dr. Umar does all extractions with UGraft, and all site incisions. He has various techs running around at all times making certain everything is perfect, and he takes his time. I ended up with 220 grafts (at no cost to me) and it took approximately 3 hours. Towards the end of the procedure, Dr. U came in again to make recipient sites for 10 more grafts. Just ten! That man wants it perfect. So all in all, great experience once again. I was the only patient, three (or four) techs and Dr. U running around taking care of me, great surgical suite and another great experience. My only regret is that Dr. U wanted to sprinkle a few grafts on my frontal right side (in addition to the left), so I've got to sleep on my back for a few days. Damn you Dr. U! Great aftercare packet with instructions, ointments, pillow covers and all the rest. As anyone who has read this thread realizes, I just spell it out how I see it. But I have to say, as someone who already was extremely pleased with my doctor, procedure and outcome, Dr. U, his staff and his facility are just getting better and better. I don't think I've said this overtly in this before, but I would encourage anyone considering FUE for a new or repair case either on the West Coast or otherwise with the ability to get there, to give Dr. Umar a call for a consult. Cases don't get more complicated than mine did (through no fault of Dr. Umar's practice), but the outcome has already been outstanding, with 220 more hairs to grow for perfect refinement. And as a fifty-year-old dude now (good lord), I could not have asked for a better outcome.

Much appreciated JON86!

Update: It has now been one year since my original HT procedure with Dr. Umar and approximately 6 months since my repair to the previously mentioned necrotic area. I just returned from a visit with Dr. U, so a few things to report. Dr. Umar and staff have recently moved to a brand new facility. It's close to where his office was before in Redondo Beach, CA, but with what appears to be much more space. Everything is sparkling clean, huge reception area with coffee, water, snacks, etc.; multiple patient rooms and what appears to be a large surgical area. All on one floor. Those of you that have been to his previous offices know that it used to be two somewhat disjointed suites, so it's great to see everything all on the same level. His entire staff remains and they all seem to be doing great and everyone's very busy. His long-time techs are there, and of course, Dr. U does all extractions and site prep. I went for a review, we took some pics and shot some video. Overall, both Dr. U and I are very happy with my progress - frontal third, temple points, crown, etc.. But part of what was slightly impacted by the necrotic area was blood flow to the left frontal side. And now that all the other grafts have grown so well, we felt a small portion of the frontal left could use a little touchup (~150 grafts or so). So that little non-shave procedure was quickly scheduled for a few weeks from today. I can't emphasize enough the quality of follow-up care from Dr. U's office and staff. From email reminders for visits to scheduling to his desire to make each patient completely satisfied - even people like me that have a little "hair greed" and want the left front to be perfect. I'm a big fan of his younger look, his mild manner, and in my case as noted previously in this thread, the fact that he is also a Dermatologist. I mean, who better to examine any scalp issues that occur post-transplant? Anyway, that's it for now. Progression pics and a larger one year pic attached. Feel free to ask any questions.

Just stop dude. You are falling into that same mirror-staring trap everyone inevitably falls into for some period of time. There isn't anything unique or amazing happening with your dome in one month post HT. Period. Nor two or three or even - in most cases - four months. Just the facts. And no, there are not people that see "cosmetically significant" growth after two or three months - that's just plain nonsense. If you've been lurking here and elsewhere, you should know the reality of the situation. And you'd have read the same kinds of posts as this one time and time again. Relax - you went to one of the best. As long as you don't see any of the typical troubling signs, you'll be fine. You simply cannot wind the clock forward outside of implementing a consistent Minoxidil routine to (potentially) speed up the process and a finast to keep your hair. Grow well.

I was out of town and missed my last appt with Dr. Umar. It's really difficult to assess the donor as I don't shave down in the back, but my hairdresser certainly isn't able to see a bloody thing no matter how hard she looks.

As have I, with documented results on this forum. New posters who create accounts and target specific Docs with repeated negative posts and zero hard data are typically trolling with hidden agendas.

Any time. I don't know the answer to the first question. Nor the second, but I see Dr. U again in two weeks and will ask. I can tell you that I've asked my hairdresser/barber to closely examine the donor and I see no reason why I couldn't go very, very short - there really isn't anything to see in the donor - very clean.

Hey farmcat - I've have to say that (in the back of my mind) I was pretty unsure that the result would in any way be satisfactory until I took a pic at seven months and really compared versus my starting point. As I've stated before, I knew I was a somewhat slow grower, and the first setback with the necrotic area didn't help, nor did the second setback which was caused a bit I of shock loss to surrounding hair from the repair to the necrotic area. As well, I really could not get the Rogaine cooking until just a few months ago. I tried (and certainly did successfully with the crown, which I know helped speed growth in that area) but at the front, avoiding hitting the healing necrotic area with Rogaine for the first few months, then again avoiding that same area right after it was repaired, retarded what could have been faster growth. If you add it all up, I really had to wait until Nov 1 of 2015 to really be able to slather Rogaine around at will on the frontal grafts. Having said all of that, in the two months since I felt "satisfied" a few things have happened. All of the "wiry" hair that came out initially - particularly at the hairline, flattened out and became more consistent, taking on the texture of my existing hair. The frontal portion "thickened" in that the hair shafts matured and got fatter. The new hairs of course grew to a length that allowed them to be styled. I expect this maturing of the shafts trend to continue, and if some new hairs pop up, great. If not, I'm good. With three months to go before the ol' year mark and another eleven to the "full result" at 18 months, I fully expect improvement, albeit subtle, to my head, based on the history of other results and my growth thus far. If I ever wanted to sprinkle another 800-1000 or so near the front for a fuller look, it isn't something I'd recommend I think until at least month twelve. Although subtle, there are changes that occur after the six, seven, and eight month mark, and I expect the trend to continue, so waiting the full twelve just seems logical. At that point, I can fully access and also do an unshaven FUE with what I would expect to be minimal downtime or cosmetic impact immediately post-op.

Thanks Jon86. @win200 - you just had to remind me I'm turning the big 5-0 in a few months. Damn bro - that cuts deep - Lol.

Sure - looks like I skipped the eight month update. Tomorrow will be nine months since my original FUE procedure and approximately three months since my 180 graft repair to the necrotic area. Things are progressive just fine, and the graft repair is now now starting to sprout, which is a little early for me (versus my timeline of growth from the original procedure). The growth and maturation of the new hair over the past several months now allows me to "slick back" the hair a bit, which offers a more professional look for certain office situations. Although the 180 graft repair seems small, it was implanted just behind the hairline, so when this hair grows out, it can only help from an appearance standpoint. The picture below is before, at seven months, and today (nine months, wet). Although the crown is not shown in the pic, that area grew quite well and is now completely devoid of scalp showing.

Looking good there mate. Congrats!