maltesefalcon

14 hours ago, ahmedabad_guy said:

 I thought for bald patients results are more important then the name of the business.

I think it's bizarre that a business would choose a name that is pronounced as "eugenics".

If you don't know what eugenics refers to, see here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics

I don't think you should have stopped finasteride full-stop - once the medicine it stopped, the natural hair loss process resumes. The fact that you re-started finasteride will serve to trigger more loss in the short-term until the body becomes re-accustomed to it again to halt further loss. 

I don't know which is true - the left angle or the right-hand side. Just took the right-hand one now and the left one 3 days ago - one looks empty, the other looks slightly more full-ish. 

I'm thinking perhaps vellus hair might be part of the illusion on the right-hand photo, not sure though. 

Even still though, you can see a wideish gap just above the middle of the hairline in the right-hand photo. 

I don't want to sound off-topic, but isn't "Eugenix" an incredibly stupid name to give a business? 

That aside, hope you have good progress in the days and weeks to come. Keep us updated. 

15 hours ago, jj51702 said:

I see little sprouts although sparse. I think the growth is kicking in very soon. 11 weeks is nothing, you gotta be patient. Did u look into the tsal shampoo I mentioned before? Clear it by ur doctor first if u want to use it and start out with once a week.

I experimented with some different shampoos that were available in my local, and things have cleared up considerably. I guess in time the problem will resolve.

In terms of growth, I'm aware 11 weeks is nothing. Just when you compare Kraistoff - who went to ASMED - who also had his temples filled in, you find that he has 50x more growth at this stage than me. So it becomes natural to ask whether I should be having more than I am at this point. 

See his comparative progress here: 

6 hours ago, CosmoKramer said:

Grafts are very likely still in the rest phase, I wouldn’t jump to a conclusion that your scalp wasn’t suited or the grafts rejected....now If it was your 9th month then I would probably agree.

Hopefully!!!! :))

On 9/2/2019 at 3:04 PM, WAAPAK said:

Just Commenting for updates.

Not much by way of update.

As you can see below, I'm at Week 11 now and there hasn't really been much progress. I think if you compare my stage at week 11 versus every other person here, my progress seems far, far behind.

Perhaps my scalp isn't suited to surgery and rejected a lot of grafts? I'm not sure...we'll see how it progresses though! Temples are not as filled as I expected at this stage, given that 2,500 were planted in the front and 1,200 or so planted in the back/crown. I find it hard to believe the hairline, as in my first post, will be as filled as the first post would suggest. If you see the photos below, you'll sort of see why. Again, when I compare my Week 11 versus others, that's where I've come up with the conclusion. 

I still have a dandruff issue. Not as bad as before, but still not sure how to eliminate it. 

Now at Week 10, so almost at the 3-month mark.

As you can see, there hasn't really been that much progress. Hoping it picks up in the weeks ahead.

Still having some slight dandruff issues, not sure why as I'm being more rigorous with my anti-dandruff shampoo etc.

13 minutes ago, Guy73 said:

Actually I think I posted that comment on the wrong post! I think your fine for the timeframe you are in. 

Ahh okay!

I think perhaps I'm getting a bit impatient. It's easy to check your hair 10x a day etc.   hoping to see a massive spurt in growth at some stage. But I guess it's like growing older, you don't see the aging process on a day-to-day basis, only over the long-term. 

2 minutes ago, Guy73 said:

It is possible that he placed the grafts too close together which causes a competition with blood flow. Although a alternative method is to spread out the grafts more on your first pass and likely need a second. This way 90% of your grafts will hopefully grow. Now everyone is different and sometimes people scalp act different to trauma that’s why the approach I mentioned works for most people.  

I see.

Hmm, do you think then that I should have had greater progress by now? 

15 hours ago, Helios said:

 

Yes I have a small thread on here and a big thread on bald truth transplant section. Just look for the name Helios. It’s quite a big thread 

I think there's a glitch on the site over the past day or so, as I can't seem to complete registration.

Any chance you could post a few photos here? 

On 8/5/2019 at 9:22 PM, Helios said:

Like others have said, don’t worry about the shedding phase. I lost almost all my transplanted hair during that stage and looked worse off than before the surgery

Did you create a thread to follow?

I'd be interested to see how things worked out during the various phases of shed/growth.

Week 9 is just a day away, so thought I'd post some photos now whilst I have some time.

Do let me know what you think. I hope that everything is going as well as it should be at this stage!

Regarding the dandruff issue above, I realized that I wasn't washing my hair aggressive enough over the past 2 weeks or so, meaning that dandruff had accumulated. I've been a bit more rigorous and now the problem has more or less resolved.

Any comments on the below are appreciated! I always compare my photos with others at Week 9 and notice they have more hair in the temple zones. I hope mine picks up pace in the coming weeks, though I appreciate things are still early.

12 hours ago, Der3k7 said:

I've been on tinder and bumble a very long time ever since 2012 and I've been single the entire time. They're all just kind cute you know not like beautiful and super hot women 

I'd have sworn from the images that you were gay!

Anyway, shows how deceptive images can be.

In any event, it seems you got a very good result from your surgery!! If I get anything close to that, I'll be pleased. We all have different expectations though.

Just now, jj51702 said:

At 3 months it’s kind of late to still be seeing the scabbing leftover from grafts unless u did no scrubbing at all of your scalp. I have a feeling this might be dandruff or dermatitis that is flared up. I recommend contacting your doctor with more clear pics.

 

in the meantime, try to soak your head under the shower for about 5 minutes to get it moist and softened. Apply shampoo and use the pads of your fingers and gently massage your scalp thoroughly. See if that helps remove some of it.

 

see what your doc says first but there is also a salicylic acid shampoo that specifically is used to remove buildup/scale called tsal by Neutrogena which can be used once a week to help exfoliate the scalp. Run this by ur doc too.

It's definitely not scabbing left over from the first 10 days. I definitely removed all scabs. This appears to be a more recent phenomenon, over the past 1-2 weeks perhaps but just when I combed through my hair today I realized the extent of it. Most of it is in the area from which I've already had hair, not necessarily all in transplanted zones. My temples for example do not have it. 

Thanks for those tips I'll keep them in mind and I've already contacted the doc. Just awaiting a reply now. Earlier I loosened up most of the area and removed as many as possible before washing my hair in lukewarm water with anti-dandruff shampoo. It appears to have helped but I'll know over the next few days in case the problem resurfaces. I just hope it won't affect the health of grafts. 

Just noticed a lot of dry scabby-type skin on my scalp, particularly the front section and the bridge behind but it's not limited to there.

Has anyone experienced this and does it mean the grafts may become blocked/damaged/dead by the presence of this layer of dead skin?

Not sure what to do to remove it. I'm already using anti-dandruff shampoo daily etc.

I picked off a few of the dried cells and you can see how the hairs attach. Does this mean I've lost grafts?

I think you developed good results. If you compare your pre-surgery photo with what you see at 2-years, that's quite a considerable improvement.

2 years ago, did you consider the surgery a success or it is only now? Most would consider their transplant complete at 12 to 18-month mark. Based on that, I think at 2-years it would be considered something close to a success, particularly given that the crown area is allegedly more difficult to support graft growth than other parts of the head. When covering a crown area as large as your original pre-op photo, you must have realistic expectations.

In addition, the fact that from Year 2 to Year 3, you have experienced further hair loss, even though you say you've taken medicines each day, suggests that perhaps it's the medicines that have not worked, and not the surgery.

That's just my two cents. I'm no expert, but that's the way it comes across to me at least. 

In addition, I find it difficult to believe that you would be communicated, by the surgery, that they had incompetent nurses on the day of your surgery. Whatever else we say on this threat, that statement simply cannot be true. 

You are best advised to talk to the surgery and ask for your post-operative photos. I went to the same surgery, so it's entirely possible for you to do this. 

I'm at the 8 week mark now. 

In the last 2 weeks I've noticed hair in the transplanted temple zones has lengthened quite a bit. Still, some considerable way to go to see what the full results will manifest like.

I've noticed one or two things which I didn't notice on other threads. For instance, sometimes I may feel some dead skin accumulate and I'd pick it off. It's not a scab, but just dead skin cells which tends to have 2-3 hairs attached. Has anyone had this experience? Maybe I'm playing with my scalp too much to find these little nuggets of cells. When I do, I pick them off.

The other day after my shower, I casually rubbed my recipient area with the towel and, a minute later or so, noticed a bit of bleeding from one follicle in the very front of my head. Wondering perhaps is it possible for follicles to become dislodged many weeks after surgery? I heard that after 10 days the grafts are completely implanted. Also, does anyone know if diet plays a factor in the growth of grafts or are grafts bound to eventuate hairs regardless of what you eat/drink?

The itch in the back of my head has completely resolved. Thankfully my hair growth has returned to a decent length and that may have helped things as the donor area heals entirely.

I'll post some photos in a few ways time as I approach Week 9.

On 8/2/2019 at 9:09 PM, Melvin-Moderator said:

Hi Forum Visitors and Members,

 

Today, I received a telephone call from Dr. Erdogan, and we had a lengthy conversation about certain things that have transpired within the last year or so. First and foremost, I want to thank all of those who participate on this forum and have the courage to share their genuine results and reviews. You guys are the backbone of this community and the reason why we started this community.

What's changed?

We flat-out asked Dr. Erdogan, what has changed in his clinic, that so many patients are reporting sub-par growth or are unhappy with their results. According to Dr. Erdogan, and we believe him nothing has really changed at his practice in terms of results. He has always had a few patients that are unhappy with their results. Naturally, every surgeon on the planet has patients with poor growth or are unhappy, but this past year we have seen a virtual campaign against this surgeon.

Now, we have recognized that there are in fact some patients who are unhappy and rightfully so, but we've been assured by Dr. Erdogan, that every single one of these patients have been contacted by their clinic, and have even been offered flight tickets to Istanbul. In my opinion, I do feel that this is standing by their work and the patient.

Best wishes,

Melvin and Patrick Hennessey

Onwards and Upwards

It's good that you reached out to him, but it's a little disconcerting that after a "lengthy phone call", the only question asked was "what's changed?" - with an entirely predictable answer, and an answer that was repeated many times previous on other threads.

Obviously, extortion and attempts to degrade a surgeon's reputation for financial purposes are always bad. I think we're all in agreement on that one. I personally didn't go to Dr. Erdogan, so I don't have any dog in this fight - but, based on what I've read from other "sub-par" results threads and experiences, people were looking for more specific answers to more specific questions other than the generic response delivered by the clinic above. 

I don't think anyone is saying all surgery's performed at the clinic are bad. I don't doubt that most are probably good.

I think what's happened is that the number of "sub-par" surgery's appears to have increased. Increased doesn't mean more than 50%, but more than was previously experienced. That enough is alone to alarm patients. Yes, it's true that no surgery is a guarantee, but when you see the number of "sub-par" results rising when compared to previous years, that should alarm patients far, far more and it begins to give birth to questions as to whether that statistic will rise in the months and years to come. 

Also, it's a bit convenient that when you warn of fake accounts, that one of those would perfectly match that description and dare to post on this thread!!!

50 minutes ago, jj51702 said:

Totally understand as I felt the same. Try not to look at your hair for the first 4 months. You’re at the worst part right now where you’ve shed everything, your native hair is short, scalp is still red, etc (hence why they call it the ugly duckling stage). It’s one heck of a crappy ride but you went to a great doc so just remain patient.

Yeah, I think I'll "put it to the back of my head", and just wait for progress in 10 weeks or so. 

2 minutes ago, Helios said:

Like others have said, don’t worry about the shedding phase. I lost almost all my transplanted hair during that stage and looked worse off than before the surgery

Ha, I know the experience! Also, when your head is shaved you really realize the extent of hair loss that was developing. 

1 minute ago, jj51702 said:

Usually the hair that gets “shocked” by the surgery goes into telogen and sheds (typically 2-4 weeks post op). If it does not shed, it should just continue growing. I’ve seen guys shed most of their hair and others (a tiny minority) keep half if not more and they continue to grow. At the end it shouldn’t impact final results. If the survival rate it high for the surgery by month 12-18 you should be enjoying great results.

Okay, that's a relief.

When you see the photos above and how sparse everything is between individual hairs, it can sometimes prove a little discouraging that perhaps things aren't going as well as one would like!

I don't know what impact the shedding has. For example - if you shed all your hair, is that better or just as good as someone who sheds just 75% or even 50% of their hair?

In other words, is the end-result the same regardless of the degree of shed people experience?

Just a curiosity. If anyone can "shed" light on an answer, that would be great!

54 minutes ago, Gasthoerer said:

How do you get to this #numbers?

All you need do is review the standard of work from ASMED on here for the past 12-18 months of transplant experiences.

I personally didn't opt for ASMED, I went with a different surgeon in Istanbul - but I did consider ASMED. Now I'm glad I didn't, after reading horror story after horror story on thread after thread in this forum.

True, there appears to be good results interspersed between, but it seems the negative results far outnumber the positive results. 

Great result!

But for every good result from ASMED lately, you find there are 10 bad / sub-par results that do not meet this standard. 

On 7/25/2019 at 6:22 PM, Melvin-Moderator said:

Well, we need to get answers, I’m asking you guys his patients in assisting us in asking him the questions that need answers.

People aren't looking for answers, they're looking for action.

No "answer" can satisfy the results we've seen over the past 1-2 years. Action would be nice, both from the admin side on this forum who are raking in the cash on the back of Erdogan, and from Erdogan himself who, in a reciprocal parasitic manner, is raking in even more cash from the advertising given here.

The result: damaged mental health, depleted bank balances from often people who've saved for years to do the procedure, and ongoing daily stress from having to see the botched work in the mirror day in, day out.