throwawayht111

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I started balding at around 19 (23 now). As I’m sure a lot of you can sympathize, I panicked and started looking into ways to prevent it. At 20, I decided to consult a surgeon about a hair transplant and stumbled on Sharon Keene. Dr. Keene was local, and apparently one of the best surgeons in the area. After a couple months on finasteride, she assured me that I was done receding and would be an excellent candidate for a transplant. She had zero concerns about my age. I underwent the FUT procedure (1800 grafts), as she heavily advocated for it. The first few weeks after the surgery I experienced heavy shock-loss around the areas Dr. Keene operated. Up until this point, I did not know this was a potential side-effect of a hair transplant. Dr. Keene failed to mention the potential for shock loss at any point during our meetings. The possibility was only briefly referenced in the waver I had signed days before the surgery. Dr. Keene did not seem concerned when I brought this up and stated that permanent shock-loss was impossible. The placement of the grafts was also a concern. Prior to the surgery Dr. Keene outlined where grafts would be placed (primarily on the top of my head and parietal ridges, where I had receded). I’ve attached pictures of these outlines to this review. After the surgery, it was apparent that grafts were placed well beyond what I had agreed upon. About an extra inch of hair was added to my lower temples, making my hairline jut-out beyond its natural proportions. Dr. Keene assured me that it would look great, and I trusted her judgement. After about a year I noticed the transplant was not filling in as promised. The shock loss had not grown back. Transplanted hairs were unnaturally thicker than the other hairs around it and filled in at a much lower density than what would look normal. On one side of my head, the grafts grew in different directions than my natural hair. The “extra” hair placed near my temples ended up looking completely unnatural and did not blend in well. You could very easily see where I was receding, and it now looked like someone essentially glued a bunch of scraggly hairs to my temples. I was assured that this was normal for a first procedure. I was desperate for her to fix this, and got a second transplant. The second transplant (200 grafts) left an even larger linear scar due to my “scalp laxity" (again, something that I was not warned of before the procedure). It was now obvious that I had a scar on the back of my head. The new grafts were again poorly placed and looked terrible. More shock loss. About 12 months ago I went back to Dr. Keene for a third transplant. I figured it couldn’t get worse, and I couldn’t afford to go anywhere else (the clinic offers large discounts to repeat customers). I was assured that the last two operations were works in progress, and that I just needed another procedure to fill in the gaps. This transplant was another failure. I went in to have 1300 grafts done and to have the scar reduced. Instead, the scar was made about twice the original size and is now clearly visible with any haircut under 2.5 inches. She operated more extensively on the right side of my head, causing a disproportionate amount of shock loss in that area. As a result, one side of my head has a disproportionately patchy appearance, leaving the transplanted hair completely exposed. I recently confronted Dr. Keene about these concerns and my poor results. In her eyes, the scar was improved. Everything looked great. My expectations were too high. I explained that I was particularly concerned with the large gaps of scalp on the right side of my head. In her notes on our meeting Dr. Keene wrote the following: "Patient states "no change"... in reference to bare scalp. Notably this area is no longer visible. Efforts to point out and show my [positive] opinion were ineffective. Patient asserting that his poor results were not a matter of opinion—it was fact... concerned for state of mind as cosmetic results do not mirror self criticism." Apparently Dr. Keene would rather presume that I've lost my mind than recognize her own poor work. Clearly, the scar had expanded considerably and the gaps of scalp on the right side of my head have not vanished. It's fairly obvious that the transplanted hairs look abnormal. I have visited multiple other HT professionals and posted my results in several forums. Not a single person has seen these results as anything short of poor. Over the last three years I've spent over $10,000 on what is essentially a large scar on the back of my head. I have much less hair now than before the surgery, primarily due to shock loss. Grafts were placed poorly, and in areas not agreed upon. A couple months ago I formally requested a refund. This was flatly denied. Dr. Keene stated that she “complied with the standard of care”, and stood by her opinion that “permanent shock loss does not occur in hair transplant cases”. This is contrary to statements made by numerous clinics and AHLA/ IAHRS certified resources (some links provided). Permanent shock loss is less common, but can occur due to follicle transection during the procedure. Permanent shock loss can also occur in areas genetically pre-dispositioned to hair loss. The Chicago Hair Institute states that “this is the reason that hair restoration is performed when patients are older and have experienced most of the balding and hair thinning that they are likely to have as a result of the aging process”. In an online Q&A, Dr. Keene herself states “one thing that shock loss can do is accelerate a pattern that would have occurred anyway (without treatment), by putting the hair into its rest phase (telogen) in response to an inciting event (stress, surgery, etc)”. Still, Dr. Keene had no concerns with operating on a 20-year-old before it could be known that hair-loss had stabilized. Instead, her analysis on whether or not my hair loss had stagnated consisted of a quick look at my dad’s hairline and guessing that we would have the same pattern. As explained to me by Dr. Keene, my ongoing treatment with finasteride and Minoxidil should have been enough to prevent this “accelerated” (permanent, HT-associated) hair-loss. Apparently this was not the case. None of my shock-loss has grown back at this point. Dr. Keene's explanation is a Catch 22: Permanent shock loss is impossible, but if its not, you were going to lose that hair anyways. I’ve recently consulted with several other surgeons to determine whether the damage caused by these initial hair transplants can be repaired. It will cost me thousands of dollars and several surgeries involving scar excision, FUE placement, and MP tattooing to repair the scar alone. I plan on buzzing my hair once the scar is reduced. IMGUR link to pics Links regarding permanent shock-loss http://www.regrowhair.com/hair-transplant-surgery/what-is-shock-loss-from-hair-transplant-surgery/ https://www.hairtransplantmentor.com/shock-loss/ http://www.hairtransplant.org/shock-loss-after-hair-replacement/ https://www.rahalhairtransplant.com/how-to-prevent-hair-transplant-shock-loss/ https://drtyngtansg.wordpress.com/2013/07/26/serious-shock-loss-after-hair-transplant-how-long/ http://www.spexhair.com/post-operative-course-what-to-do-what-to-expect-by-spencer-stevenson/ https://www.iahrs.org/q-a/female-hair-transplant-shock-loss https://www.chicagohairinstitute.com/blog/2015/10/16/understanding-the-risk-of-shock-163737