LaserCap

This was the belief 5 or so many years ago. Now-a-days, given advanced techniques, for lack of a better phrase, doctors are truly getting full density looking type work with only one procedure. 45-55 as Melvin indicates seems to be the norm. 2000 grafts concentrated on the hairline is not uncommon. It all depends on the goal of the patient and the experience of the doctor. To do a front and top with decent density would require far more grafts.

I wish all pills, (proscar and finasteride), would come pre-scored. The problem of splitting is the fact it is never 1/4. Some days you get more and some less.....resulting in exactly the same issue we're discussing. Mind you, perhaps this is insignificant. I think this has more to do with amount of the main ingredient.

Well, that will depend. If the existing hairline is intact, with absolutely no loss, I could see why the doctor would be hesitant to do it. Typically, however, this is not the case. if there is loss in the temporal areas, there will also be loss through out the area. In most, if not all cases, grafts should be blended to avoid the "horn" effect. If the loss continues, which is normally the case, all would be connected.

There could be something to this. When the patent expired, the medication became readily available - worldwide. It's been documented in some shipments the main ingredient was missing. So the question is, what are they putting in there? Perhaps the reverse is also true, the new pills you received contained a higher percentage of the medication. Did you purchase these at the pharmacy? If so, how do you know these came from another source? Was it the packaging? Or, the pharmacist gave you a bottle worth of pills and they looked different this time around? Call the pharmacist and explain. Perhaps they can get the ones you prefer consistently. I am curious if these will help you with retention. Call the doctor and ask if you can split them. Perhaps this will help until you figure it out.

Interesting. Did you consult with a doctor before switching? If so, ask him if the mechanism of action is the same or slightly different. For long term users of Fin, it does take a full year to get it totally off your system. So, if you've been consistent, a week or two off the med would have little to no affect. Just resume the use. So, consult with the doc and so what you must. The key is to continue medical therapy. You may even want to add another modality to the mix. How about PRP or Laser, (or both).

Industry wise, most believe 100 hairs a day is normal. There are factors outside the norm, that can also have an effect on shedding. Stress is one of them. If this is atypical to what you've experienced so far, go to the doctor and do a full exam. I would also start looking at the hair in your temporal areas and see if you have strands with lesser caliber thickness. If so, I would start considering some type of medical therapy. Personal hygiene and how you decide to wash has nothing to do with shedding. Shedding will happen randomly to all the hair in your head. The follicle gets tired of producing and will go into a resting phase. That hair will typically return 3-4 months later.

Perhaps it is accidental. This is a subject worth covering. It benefits the industry overall. Photos are the initial marketing tool the clinic has to promote the work of the doctor. Before and after photos, using the same angles and same color are essential. A backdrop and even professional lighting is a great investment. The key is consistency. Start getting signed approvals from post op visits and take photos of everything you can imagine. Scars, dark hair vs lighter hair, results of 1000, 2000, 3000 grafts. Patients are interested.

Quite the change. Continue meds and stay the course.

Hair Max is labor intensive. You have to leave it in an area for 4 seconds, move an inch, do the same, until you do the whole head. I once held a LaserBand and fell accidentally. The thing broke to pieces. I thought of it more as a toy than anything else. I actually use LaserCap. It is by prescription only. There are studies on the cap and it carries a lifetime guarantee. Call Dr. Arocha or Dr. Alexander. They are providers.

Some patients decided not to take the medication any more. Some got off the med for 2 weeks and resumed. The effect returned and they stopped altogether. Some took the med every other day and others took 1/2 the dose. And while the effect was minimized, there was a lot of hesitation. It was evident to me, once this happens, it will linger in the mind of the patient. This unnecessary stress can also lead to more shedding. Perhaps it's best to get on a combo of the other modalities available until something else comes along. You may even want to discuss dutesteride with your doctor and see how you react.

I've observed this in a number of patients. I would consult your doctor before assuming or making your own decisions.

It is evident you are a great responder to medication. Only a small percentage of people actually get to enhance the hair. Please continue and take as prescribed. Propecia/Fiasteride is 1mg per day. There is a reason for that.Taking it once or twice a week means there are 3-4 days in which the med is not in your system. I should tell you, there is plenty of documented info regarding Rogaine. Seems to work for about 7 years and then loses some of its efficacy. Regardless, if you see more shedding than normal, just continue using it as you always did. You are young and seem to have a good head or your shoulders. Caution is always best, particularly when the meds have done their job. The reason why there is a preference to wait until the age of 25+ is for the doctor to determine the pattern. Identifying it is huge. It can help make decisions as to how to proceed. If a preliminary 6 pattern becomes evident, the doctor would not discuss working the crown, for example. His job would be to discuss medical therapy and to work the front, designing a conservative hairline, (conducive to a pattern appropriate result for a 6). Let me give you another example. A 19 year old arrives and is enjoying a very juvenile hairline. He is panicking as his hairline is starting to recede. The doctor agrees with him and puts grafts in the middle of the hairline. 10 years later the patient has a row of hair in the middle of the forehead but the native hair has receded 2 inches. (I've seen it, it happens). (It is worth mentioning. Typically the patient is always right. In hair restoration, however, this is not the case. You truly have to rely on the doctor to be ethical and really look out for your best interest). Most believe there is synergy when medical therapies are combined. Propecia, Rogaine, Laser and PRP are the modalities we typically discuss when dealing with this condition. Add laser, for example. Give it a year and post another set of photos. We can have this same discussion then.

It depends on what side you're on. Clinic wise, particularly in the old days, 4 months. The whole idea was to have both procedures growing at the same time to yield the biggest result in the shortest amount of time. The 4 months allowed for the first set of grafts to break the skin. The doctor could then see the result of the first procedure and have an idea where to put the second set. Now-a-days you don't see this any more. Best is to allow the area to heal and gain elasticity. 12 months seems to be the norm. There are exceptions to this. If the grafts are going to be harvested from a new area, or if FUE is going to be used as elasticity is not affected. I also agree it is best to exhaust FUT first. Ultimately a patient could put FUE grafts on the scar to break down and help camouflage.

There are so many misconceptions about medical therapy, it's worth visiting once more. Nothing out there regrows hair. Nothing. What it can do is to help you retain. So, of you look the same a year later, the medication did what it was intended to do. From time to time there can be enhancement. That's what gives the visual improvement. There are two types of loss. The one you see and the one you don't. The type you see, on the shower, the pillow, etc is shedding. The follicle gets tired of producing hair and it takes a vacation. That resting period typically lasts 3-4 months and then returns. This will happen randomly, to all the hair in your head. Hair loss is different. You don't see hair loss. To to the bathroom and turn on all lights. Look at the hair on your hairline, particular the temporal areas. Look at the hair caliber of each strand. You'll notice some are thicker than others. There are some so fine you can't hardly see them. We call this miniaturization. Eventually the hair withers, dissipates and disappears.The time to be on meds is before the hair is gone. Do you have to be on the meds forever? Yes, unless you don't care about hair any more. So say you get on the meds. 7 years later you decide to take it no more. All the hair you would have lost in that time period will be lost. This is a commitment you're making. Getting on and off is just a waste of time and money. It's been known MInoxidil will help for about 7 years and then it loses some of its efficacy. Just continue using as if you were starting on day 1. You may even decide to combine it with other modalities. Please post photos. I have another concern. I'm wondering if your case involves thinning of the donor.

Sounds like the money aspect of this is weighing on you. If that's the case, I would wait. You seem to be OK with your current situation but it would be nice if you could reinforce the hairline......What about the rest of your head? Sounds as if you're experiencing diffused thinning. My suggestion is to continue medical therapy. Propecia, Rogaine, PRP and Laser are the modalities we typically refer to when dealing with this condition. It's been documented there is synergism when used simultaneously. So I would encourage you to do as many as you can. Give it a good year and reassess.You may be able to accomplish what you set out to do without having to worry about traveling and all that. With regards to taking meds daily. Think of the millions of people with high blood pressure. If you don't control it it can kill you. I would think of it as the hair vitamin and start thinking it will have a positive effect. During that time put your pennies away. Is a doctor following your case? Do a couple of consultations and see what you're told. You may become aware of other alternatives you had not considered.

Finish your front. Add PRP at the time of the procedure. This can help bring in the results a lot sooner. It can also help reverse miniaturization and may help improve the crown. Once happy, go ahead and tackle the back. Do as many grafts as you can afford and keep in mind it might take 2-3 procedures to achieve density. Keep in mind this is the weakest point we all share so it does not have to be super full. It may then start looking like a hair piece.

You're crazy. Investigate PRP and laser combination. Some people would die to have the hair you have. Leave it alone. When you say "it is getting worse," what do you mean? Are you seeing a lot of hair in the tub, pillow?

You just had surgery! All of what you're experiencing is to be expected. My post experience was similar to yours. Wait until the sutures are removed, you'll feel better. I would encourage you, if possible, to return to the clinic for a wash. That will also help. Please avoid any weightlifting exercises that involve pulling on the neck for a good year. Push-ups are OK as well as leg presses. This can lead to a stretched scar.

The age is not the issue. There are many factors why you should wait until a few things happen. Let me get into it. Regardless of age, there are commonalities we all share. The most important to discuss, give your question, are the crown and the donor. The crown is the weakest point. Why, you might ask? Because there is a point from where the hair grows. The hair then grows away from the point and in a swirl. We refer to it as the whirl. So, get a piece of paper and draw a point. Draw lines through the point as to form a cross and think of this as the result of procedure one. Turn the paper to the left or the right only slightly and draw another cross intersecting the point. That represents procedure 2. The point is, it would take tons of grafts to fill in the crown. 1800 grafts is a drop in a bucket and you'll see little to no change. What a waste. The worse thing is, you just used a percentage of the donor which is lost and will never return. Now suppose you lose all the hair front and have no donor to fix it with? I wish we had a barrel full of grafts that we could just return to. Unfortunately we don't. The donor is limited and you should treat it like gold. So, the rule, in my view and that of many others, is to concentrate on the front until you're happy. It is important to recognize it is the front people see when you interact with them. It is also the area you see when looking in the mirror. Can you then do the back? Sure, but. If you've shown the propensity to lose, this will continue. Are you doing any type of medical therapy to help you with retention? Propecia, Rogaine, Laser and PRP are the modalities we typically discuss when dealing with this debilitating condition. And, when used together, there can be synergism. Get on them and wait a year to see what they can do. If a year later you look the same or better, then, (and you're happy with the front), you can tackle the crown. Keep in mind, once you start the meds stay on them, otherwise you'll just resume losing hair.

Could be coincidental. Go to your PCP and do a full panel.

How shallow. Sorry you had to go through that. Perhaps it intensified your "hair" stress level - which ended up causing more loss. Hopefully you started a medical regimen. How are you know?

As I read this particular post it reminds me of how complicated and involved this procedure truly is. It all starts with the initial consultation. "My first procedure turned out sparse and uneven." This tells me the doctor placed a small number of grafts in a large area. When everything grows in the result are very sparse. This means you'll never go completely bald, but it would leave a very unnatural look. Best is to concentrate grafts in one area so they make an impact. Hopefully he did not make the same mistake on the 2nd. Start taking photos and go to your scheduled visits. Give this a full year and then have a conversation with the doctor if need be.

After 7 procedures I can tell you - laxity will return. When did you have the procedure done? Tightness is always felt right the day after since the sutures are in. This feeling kind of goes away after the stitches are removed. With time things laxity improves. But this is a bit more serious, specially at the beginning. For a year... please, avoid any exercises involving the neck area.This will result in wider scars. Push-ups, if need be, are great and will not put pressure on the area. Do leg presses, etc. How did the first scar heal? Was the scar excised during the 2nd? Or was it an extension of the first? How do you typically heal? Wound physiology is mostly at play. Can you post some photos?

A couple things, If you've shown the propensity to lose, this will continue. Propecia, Rogaine, Laser and PRP are the modalities we typically discuss when dealing with this debilitating condition. Within a 4-6 weeks it is likely you'll experience retention. Enhancement, if you are going to have any, typically takes 1 year. The premise behind the meds, there is synergism when used simultaneously. Be mindful, people tend to be very visual creatures. If there is a visual difference, the meds work. If you see no change, the meds did nothing. This is incorrect. The medications are intended for you to keep what you have. So, if I year later you look the same or better, the meds did what they were supposed to do. Better? What does that mean. There can be enhancement of the hair as nothing out there regrows hair. There are two types of loss, the one you see and the one you don't. The follicle gets tired of producing hair and takes a vacation. The hair sheds and the follicle goes dormant for 3-4 months. That hair will then start going through the cycle again. This will happen at different intervals to all the hair in your head, throughout your life. We refer to this as shedding. Hair loss is different. Under a bright light look at the hair in your temporal areas. You'll notice the shafts of each strand. Some thick and some not so much so. Some are even so thin you can hardly see them. We refer to this as miniaturization. Eventually the follicle withers and disappears. The key is to get on meds before the follicle is lost. There is plenty of printed material with regards to Propecia. The recommended dose is 1 mg per day. Take it as suggested. This has to do with the time the med is in your system. Try to use more than one modality and stay on it. Getting on and off meds is just a waste of time and money. Take photos every 3-4 months to keep record of your achievements.

It works so I use it. It's contributed to the overall density. The key is to be consistent. 30 minutes every other day. My suggestion is to take photos every 3-4 months so you can remember otherwise you'll lose interest fast.