worried22

If it makes any difference, the procedure I had was an FUE slit. Maybe it has something to do with the slit incision being bigger than the grafts themselves...?:confused::confused::confused:

worried,

 

Got your PM and the secondary part of what you are shedding appears to be a part of the graft tissue beneath the scalp line. That's also why it appears to be more white in color because that part is beneath the epidermis.

Thank you for your input. But do you think it's normal that I'm shedding those tissues?:confused::confused::confused: If I'm losing "graft tissues," shouldn't I be concerned about that at all? And most of all, does it happen to other people as well?

Nope, they are actually scab formations accumulating alongside the follicle. Two things are happening: 1) the skin attached to the implanted graft is drying out and 2) a new scab forming around the recipient incision site. The new scab sometimes attaches itself to the hair and grows until the scab flakes off or the hair is shed. What you don't see in any of your pics is the hair bulb that is the root for growing hair. So, you're good.

Thank you for your reply. Your answer does make a lot of sense. I see from your signature that you have had HT yourself, so do you mind me asking approximately what percentage of your shed scabs had this needle-like structure? Knowing that I'm not the only one with these strange-looking scabs would be of great reassurance to me. As for my case, approximately half of all fallen scabs had these protruding needles, and I just couldn't afford the possibility that I've lost half of my grafts, which is why I'm so worried about this.

A magnified view of the problematic scabs:

Thank you for your answers. Since I may not have been clear enough the first time, I've attached a little diagram that I've drawn to clarify exactly what my concerns are. The picture of the scabs that I've posted in the original thread consists of two parts - the round, darker ball-shaped part (denoted by the blue arrow in the diagram) and the white and long cylindrical "needle" part (red arrow in diagram). Upon close inspection, I found that the darker "ball" has a flat surface where it meets the "needle" part, which led me to believe that the border of these two parts is the scalp line (denoted by the green line in diagram), which could only mean that the white needle is indeed dislodged from underneath the scalp line. This conclusion is what alarmed me of the possibility that the "needle" is part of the follicle tissue. I am perfectly aware that shedding hair shafts along with the scabs is a normal thing in the post-op phase, but I'm only worried because these scabs have something that appears to have come from UNDERNEATH the scalp. Considering this, does anyone have an idea of what the "needle-like" things are? And is it indeed normal for a FUE scab to contain these "needles?"

Any input would be greatly appreciated. :confused:

(And no, I haven't had any bleeding at all when I removed these scabs.)

Thank you for your answer. I also heard that it's pretty hard to dislodge the hair follicles after 9 or so days, but I'm having a very hard time figuring out what these white needle-like things might be, if they are not hair follicles. At first, I thought it was dried-up pus that spilled into the cavity that holds the hair shaft INSIDE the hair follicles, but they simply looked too big for that to me. Failing this, I was not able to find a viable explanation for what they might be. About 50% of my fallen scabs look like the photo, with the other 50% consisting only of the round-looking scabs WITHOUT the white needle-like part. I would greatly appreciate if any of you guys could offer me an explanation as to what these white things are, or at least if anyone has had successful regrowth after shedding scabs looking like this.

12 days after HT, I removed all the scabs by rubbing my finger against my scalp, but some of the scabs that were dislodged had these long, thin white things attached to them. Is this normal, or should I be concerned? What are they anyway, dead skin? I hope they're not HAIR FOLLICLES?:mad::mad::mad::mad::confused::confused::confused: