symphonyofdreams

I'll email the doctor for the pics. the problem is and what confuses me is if I showed you guys the picture comparison he showed me everyone would say wow! great work! 60 percent of the area that was worked on looks much better. the new hair line area though sucks. I'd say something like 40 percent good density. I just don't get how mid scalp could have improved so much but hairline is so poor.

I don't have the before and after pics. at the 9 month follow up I'll get the pictures from the doctor and post them. I don't want to put the doctor on blast until later. as of now much is up in the air about how good the final results will be. I'm just confused as to why the pics he showed were so good compared to my hairline results

I recently had my 6 month post op doctor vist following my 2,000 graphs done June 7th creating a new hairlineand going to mid scalp. I went into appointment feeling extremely disappointed with results. I felt like at best Ive gotten 30 percent of what the final results should be. what's weird is the doctor showed me a top of head shot of hair with same hair length(buzz cut ) same lighting etc and results were drastic. so much so it makes me question if it doctored. odds are it's not because of how quick it was taken and when I was shown the pics but what I don't get is why my old hairline to mid scalp has improved so drastically and new hairline is so weak in comparison . I normally only look at myself straight on in a mirror so the hairline is what I see so I'm baffled as to why my old hair area is looking so much more improved in comparison.

I sent an email to my doctor to voice my concern about my results. The nurse called back claiming that hair takes longer to grow in in areas you were completely bald before. This makes 0 sense to me but is consistent with what has happened so far. Any truth to this or doctor just coming up with excuses?

After a ton of reading on Fue Timelines from Doctors and Doctors answering questions from people in my situation it's even more concerning. It seems the general consensus is by the 6 months mark one should see 50-60 percent of final results. I'm now 5 months and a week in and i'd say i'm at 25 percent or so. I don't i have unrealistic expectations having looked at hundreds if not thousands of pics/ videos before doing the surgery. Typically by 6 months in one has at least a new hairlined framed in. often times lacking density but at least something. I have a handful of hairs in the frontal middle of my new hairline. I'll try to relax and let time pass but i honestly haven't seen much of an improvement from the 3 months mark to now 5.25 months in.

Sounds good. Encouraging

Today marks the 5 month mark post 2,000 Graph Fue. I had 1,000 to create a new hairline and 1,000 to create additional density to mid Scalp. So far my new hairline has only a few hairs here and there in the front. the new left temple region has significant growth. The right temple is only slightly better than middle new hairline and far behind the left. Where the old hairline was to mid scalp has experienced significant growth but extremely patchy. Obviously 5 months in is still pretty new and i should get a lot more growth for the next 4 months or so, but i'm concerned with how much hair has gone to certain spots and almost nothing in others . I've read growth can be uneven coming in at different rates everywhere, but this is weird how much difference there is. Should i be concerned at this stage?

Put it out of your mind completely and before you know it, you'll be at 3-4 months and start to see the new sprouts popping out...that excitement more than makes up for the initial struggles and it lasts for months on end!

That's the plan and i can't wait to start experiencing that!

I did extensive research so i know what to expect, but you start questioning when haven't been through it before. so nice to get some reassurance.

Around the 3-5 day mark i was very happy with results, but now at the 2 week mark i look only slightly better than before the surgery. I realize that shedding is a natural part of the process but this being my first procedure there's a lot of questions in my head. I'm worried that this shedding happened too quickly? Or is that pretty standard?

Hey "Symphony.." I have chronicled my entire event with dialogue and pictures during the first 30 days after surgery and beyond....to the 3 year mark with plenty of before and afters. It should provide a good example of what to expect. You can see it at.. MyFUEhairtransplant.com Best of luck and keep posting to this forum with updates.

Thanks, I'll check it out

Right now also have a ton of black dots without hair coming out. i'd assume this means hair has already fallen out and will eventually grow in these areas?

Great question.. I was going to pose the same question but you beat me to it!

 

My theory is that the first week after surgery is roughly a preview of the final results, assuming a low transection rate that is typical of work performed by top surgeons, such as Dr. Mohebi (my doc). FYI- My implanted hairs stayed in up to day 10 and then started falling out.

 

When I talked to Dr. Mohebi he mentioned that generally FUT has 1-2% transection rates and FUE has 5-10% transection rates, which varies from surgeon to surgeon. That being said, the first week after surgery may show a little better than final results, in case a very small percent (1-10%) of the follicles do not regrow hair.

 

it has been almost 4 years so I apologize if I can't remember in more detail regarding how I looked right after and in comparison to 9-12months after surgery. I am up for my second HT procedure in 11 days and am so excited. I just hope Dr. Mohebi does as awesome a job for me as he did the first time. I will keep you posted.. and I will try to update about my case of comparing the first week after to the final results.

Interesting. I'm on day 8 after and it seems to be getting better every day which doesn't make sense

A week after 2k graphs and i'm nearly all healed up and a lot of new hair i didn't have before. The question i have is if what i see now the final result? then i will have shock loss and regain that again? or is the final product a year from now much better than a week after?

It is early days for me - have only been using it for around 1 month. I'm not expecting miracles but one surgeon that I felt I did trust encouraged me to give it a try. Lots of users online indicate it could be a gimmick but some respected surgeons promote it. The surgeon I saw made no profit out of it - I ordered it online. Fingers crossed I guess....

That's encouraging that he recommended it without profiting on it. I'm skeptical of it but if it makes even a 25 percent improvement it would be worth every penny. And obviously not much of a commitment usage wise

I purchased a Capillus 272 a month ago. I had a consult with a surgeon who uses the Sunetic's laser in his clinic - he showed me photo's of people who had responded really well to that - he told me if I purchase my own cap to go with an approved FDA product & he agreed the Capillus 272 is the best.

 

It has to be used as directed, half an hour every 2nd day. If overused it can actually induce a negative affect, so be careful with that!

 

If you are hoping to regrow hair i think the only way that can be done is with transplantation. If you want to improve what you have then the Capillus is worth a try.

I have a hair transplant in 3 weeks. My hope for this is just preventing the hair i have now from falling out if that's what is going to happen, Or at least delay that by an significant amount. Also just improve overall hair quality/ thickness.

Whats the General consensus on laser treatments for hair loss prevention and increasing quality of hair? This seems to be the best on the market. I've talked to a few hair transplant doctors that claim it's extremely effective. It's $3k which is expensive but a drop in the bucket if it is actually every effective .

I'm 99 percent set on doing SMP, but it's frustrating with all the contradictory info i'm finding on the artist. I went to a local Scalp Aesthetics artist who i was very impressed with during the consultation. he's been practicing for 6 years and works for HIS hair also. But then i've read people saying Scalp Aesthetics sucks and His Hair techniques only last for a couple years. other people that HIs hair artists are some of the best. So i'm really confused. I want the best of the best only and willing to pay extra for proper work. I'm in Northern California but will travel for the best.

Symphony,

 

Welcome!

 

Bill provided an excellent analysis of some of the points relating to FUT, FUE, and scarring.

 

I think it's important to understand that any type of procedure in the scalp will leave scars. Many times, patients think that FUE is truly a "scarless" procedure. This is not the case. While the scars from FUE -- especially in those with lighter hair and lighter skin tones -- can be excellent, there will always be scarring. And this scarring becomes visible when one truly "shaves their head." I don't say this to try and push one hair transplant technique above another; I say it because I've personally seen numerous patients disappointed after shaving their head post-FUE because they were told the procedure would be "scarless." Are the scars necessarily a "give away" that you had something done? No, but just know there will be some evidence of surgery if you ever want to really shave your head post-transplant.

 

Having said all that, maybe you could share some images of your hair loss? This may provide a better idea of what you're looking at and the best way to proceed forward.

 

Hope this helps.

I just hate the idea of scaring not know how much balding i'm potentially facing in the future . Worse case id get a FUT and have hair looking good for the next few years but the rest of my hair falls out and i run out of donor hair. then i can't shave my head because of really bad scaring.

regarding the pictures. Right now i have my head shaved. not razor level but a 0 on normal buzzer. whats strange is when it's that short i my hair on top looks as good as on the sides. But when i grow it out for a month or so it just looks thin under most lighting. most the time it looks fine but under very bright artificial light it looks noticeable.

At your age, go see a reputable surgeon and get a consultation regarding expectations, donor area density, etc. I've had over 7,000 grafts moved over the past three years and when my head was shaved for my second surgery you couldn't see any discernible scarring from a few feet away. A 0.8 mm punch was used with both of my surgeries and it does create a very faint white dot but you have to look closely to see any. With my skin color tones they are really not noticeable at all. I'm sure no one would even notice if they weren't aware of the surgeries. I'm including a picture of my donor area after at least 1,700 grafts were removed two years prior. You can see many more pictures on my personal blog site at.... MyFUEhairtransplant.com Best of luck to you. Hope the pictures help.

 

your results are very impressive. Thanks for the link, i'll have to check out your page

In my opinion, you should consider medical therapy first. Since you only have mild thinning on top of your scalp, Propecia might help you maintain what you have and even possibly thicken the existing thinning hair. For a synergistic effect, I would also consider adding minoxidil. Applying Rogaine foam Weiss a day in addition to Propecia might really help thicken your existing hair and stop the progression of hair loss in its tracks.

 

In a year or two you can then decide whether or not you want to proceed with surgery.

 

Also, I know that FUE is the buzz around here however, in order to maximize the number of available donor hairs, it is actually better to start with strip/FUT and once you are out of donor hair, finish off with FUE. The only real benefit to FUE is that it doesn't produce a linear scar on the sides and back of your head. But, strip surgery typically only produces a minimal scar that is hidden quite well by your hair. And if you are that concerned about scarring, you can always use FUE to place more hair into the scar to help conceal it more.

 

Those are just my two cents. I hope it helps.

 

Bill

My concern with FUT is if i eventually run out of donor hear and have very thin hair then i'm forced to keep a balding hair style. i wouldn't want to shave my head bald with the scarring i've seen with FUT

I'm also considering the propecia route. though the potential side effects make be hesitant

I'm confused about donor site recovering? I thought once the hair follicles were removed from donor site they never grew back?

I'm nearly 30 years old with very mild hair thinning all over the top of my head. If this was the worst it was ever going to get i wouldn't be very concerned about it. But being at my age it seems like it will only get worse over the next 10 years. I recently started researching Fue treatments and there's a few concerns i have. My biggest concern without being able to predict the future is that'll i'll eventually be 100 percent bald and not have enough donor hair available. in this situation i'd want to just shave my head completely instead of walking around with thinning hair that can't be fixed. But I hear there's scaring involved with FUE. I googled it but it looks like its just little spots where hair doesn't grow? but if head was shaved completely would it be noticeable?