Tav1

Three month update: it's been three months to the day since my last FUE procedure. My necrotic area has healed, and luckily, there are a few grafts and original hairs that seemed to have survived the incident, but as I've stated before, Dr. Umar will fill in any impacted area free of charge down the road a bit. He's asked that I come in for a checkup at the end of this month, so we'll see where it stands at that time. I've gone through some pimples in both the donor and recipient, and actually, got quite itchy over the past few weeks. The donor has healed nicely after what I thought originally might be a bit of shock-loss. Looks completely normal now. I'm continuing with Fin and Minox, as well as yelling at my hair with the bullhorn I bought last month. Sorry for the single and not so good pic, but I'm running to catch a plane for the 4th holiday. The crown looks good, although you can't see it. Promise proper pics at month four. It's very difficult to see, but I've sprouted those "translucent hairs" pretty much all over the donor area, so I'm hoping month four starts to fill in a bit.

Tawakui - this does not look correct - in fact, it appears to be cause for some concern. Have you spoken to your doctor recently?

There are already a few threads on this topic. While six months is correct, SPF 15 is not. You need a much, much higher SPF that blocks UVA/B and everything else under the "sun." And reapply very, very often - even if the product says it is waterproof. Especially if you are in and out of the water. I am ahead of you in terms of my FUE procedure (three months tomorrow) and my Los Angeles-based Doc told me in no uncertain terms to protect from all sun exposure at this stage of recovery.

Excellent progress at four months in. Congrats.

We will understand now that you are well on your way to a completely different space in time that you'd ignore the board and move on with your life like so many others have...ha P.S. - ditch the hat completely - I can't see any need for one whatsoever at this point. I've read all of your stories back from the beginning. Looking great.

I'm confused Blake. We all know where his head is headed (pardon the pun) so what exactly is the purpose of being this conservative? It appears to be a classic pattern of hair loss. Also, the temple points look more pronounced in the progression pictures, but I don't see that documented. And not related to your comment, but posting results without age and or meds used is sort of defeating anyone's ability to comment as to the "plan" going forward since we have no viable reference point. And related to your comment - "Excellent planning" is hardly an informed opinion, let alone a viable long term roadmap when so many factors are absent.. Thoughts? PS - it wasn't shaven in the traditional sense as we know it in the US. A bit of a misnomer.

You are an extremely fast grower for certain. Keep us updated.

Spex - not sure why anyone in the US should bother with the inconvenience/cost associated with prescriptions for something that has been plentiful as a generic from a variety of drug companies for several years now. Particularly when reliable generics can be ordered for as little as around USD 20 cents per 1MG dosage - no script necessary. I've been doing it this way for years now.

Excellent photographic presentation. Really shows the progression well.

Looking very good growth-wise for just a little more than four months. I'd imagine you'll see almost weekly changes over the next six+. Congrats!

Stick with it. You already fixed 95% of the dome, with your success, I'm guessing those meds will take care of the last 5% in a few months time. Please keep us updated.

Look at that pile o' new hair. Looking good. As as long, long time fin user, I can attest (at least for me) the areas where you feel thin (e.g. top of crown) are very well served with the fin/minox combo. I had a virtual bald area on the top of my crown and the combo literally eliminated it. Going on ten plus years now....

I did so recently as well (under a new username long lost from back in '07). I wholeheartedly second that emotion. David - on behalf of those seeking solid advice and direction pre-op, comfort post operatively (even if a hasty or somewhat uninformed decision was made), and generally, legible, non-combative discourse on a wide range of hair-related topics - thanks.

You looked like a new person at five months, yet another at six, and now completely different yet again at seven months. Fantastic result! Congrats.

thewalker10 - did your doctor not provide detailed written pre-operative instructions? Rogaine is but one of several things that you need to stop prior to your HT to prevent the possibility of excessive bleeding. Pro-Op instructions vary by clinic, but there are universal preventive measures to take, all which should have been outlined for you.

I agree with Mav on this one. Interesting how in your panic-stricken original post you neglected to mention that somehow you thought it was a good idea to further traumatize your donor with SMP three days after punching out a boatload of hair. Nor that you never even tried to call the number provided to you by your very own HT doctor. You're the kind of guy who, if you asked me whether to turn right or left, I'd tell to go straight. Cause I knew I couldn't win. This is a free forum with well meaning people and some very good advice, not your personal after-hours emergency clinic. Good grief.

Your first HT was certainly a success based on your pictures, but I see where you are coming from now. Sorry if I'm not reading you correctly, but how many grafts did you decide on this time around? Is it 500, or did I miss something? Cheers

I had necrosis on a virgin scalp following FUE, which I documented on this forum. Which was the reason I inquired with Dr. Feller. Dr. F did not address the potential for complications with mega FUE following (granted, a 2010) strip surgery, but I was curious if that prior strip could have in any way made a mega FUE less warranted for this person.

Dr. F - I applaud your taking time on the weekend to respond to this person. A question, did you consider that this person had a previous strip procedure (as outlined in his profile) and factor that into your response, if warranted? And if so, is there anything from his prior work that could have exacerbated the situation beyond what I presume a one-day mega FUE would have otherwise? Lastly, I saw in your video the recommendation of immediate antibiotics. Is there any possibility of necrosis in the donor from a mega FUE?

While I applaud your research, unless you've had a procedure, experienced it, weighed your original research and expectations against the realities that then occured personally pre-op, post-op and on through the process both mentally and physically, then you are correct. You are not an expert. Everything you're posting here is second hand. Or as you say, your opinion. While opinions are welcomed (and there are clearly many of them posted here), nothing should substitute Doctor forum contributions, personal consultations and careful reading from actual patients before making any HT decision. The rest is noise to a certain degree in my opinion - non first-hand, non medical professional opinions. Particularly since you have yet to share your characteristics. But it appears you've already made up your mind on your Doc, but are not looking for any forum input (no pics, no discussion of choice of Doc, etc.) and that's fine. I have to lean a little towards hairweare on this. You are making perfunctory statements on many threads about what people should or should not do - without the caveat that you have not actually experienced a HT. Should we call you Busa 2.0?

Your recipient area looks really good for two months - I'm not seeing much redness, if any. How is your donor looking?

Two month update: it's been eight weeks since my last FUE procedure and six weeks to the day that my necrosis was initially diagnosed. Well, good news/expected news - good news is my area of necrotic issue is around 99% healed and redness in the transplanted area has decreased a good bit; expected news is the 99% of my transplanted hair has shed. Damn, they don't call this phase the "terrible twos" for nothing! I still get some donor itch, and now just starting the occasional pimples (a first for me) at both donor and recipient. And I've continued my regimen of twice daily minoxidil, along with once daily finasteride 1.25mg. Oh yea, I also purchased a bullhorn, and I wake up in the morning and proceed to scream my f@#ing lungs out to try and wake up my dormant hair. It's early days, but I figure why not try it. Next update in a month, which hopefully will start down the path towards some initial visible growth. Cheers.

Outstanding results thus far. Congrats!

Looking good and right on track. I'm seven days behind you in terms of my two-month mark - we're about to turn the corner. In terms of the Rogaine, just use it more liberally at night and skip the morning - alot of Doc's recommend this method if you're using 5% and experiencing redness. Or switch to foam for daytime if you want to continue twice a day. It might be the PG in the liquid causing the continuing irritation - very common.

It does not appear as though you've shed many grafts, if any. And the donor looks to have healed very well. Hopefully you'll be one of the small percentage that doesn't shed. Congrats.