consequence

I came across this sentence on a Turkish surgeon's FUE site. Is there any scientific basis behind this claim? Like something that's been shown in humans on a larger scale? Or is this just folksy alternative medicine nonsense?

Terrifying infection. What's the worst about LPP is that in its milder form it just looks like AGA. A significant percentage of people who think they're just suffering from typical male pattern balding actually have a chronic fungus. Think about that next time you're at the gym and about to lay your head on that sweaty bench press.

You did really well with medications. People have different opinions on this, but I personally had good luck adding 2% keto to my oral dut/minox. I wouldn't hold your breath for the theoretical medications as those typically take too long to hit the market and most end up stalling in development. There have been many candidates over the years, RU 58841, CB-03-01, etc. now it's KX826, HMI 115 etc. There is zero long term safety data on any of these in humans. We don't even fully understand the effects of finasteride or minoxidil yet. I wouldn't hold my breath. I might consider FUE over FUT for you as there is a significant chance that your hair loss will progress to a complete NW7 even with therapy (if you want to have the option of shaving your head). If you could never imagine shaving, then FUT is fine but you never know how long the medication response you've had will last, as follicles become more sensitive to DHT and inflammation with aging.

It's not necessarily a red flag. As with most things in hair restoration surgery, the answer is "it depends". The no-shave technique is definitely a viable approach in the right hands. If I were to think about it theoretically, it might slow down the pace of graft implantation which wouldn't be good for a larger procedure, but if someone is very fast/experienced or the procedure is quite small this may be less of an issue. Do they have a track record of patient submitted cases online with their no shave technique?

When it works, it's more likely due to systemic absorption than local DHT inhibition. The majority still comes from your prostate. That means the side effects will be present in direct proportion to the effectiveness of hair loss prevention. Also this stuff is made in compounding pharmacies in the USA at least, so it has literally no federal oversight or regulatiion, so each batch can be different. Both of these are likely why studies on it have been so inconsistent. It's a nice idea in theory but not realistic at the current state of drug delivery. Wouldn't it be nice if people with high cholesterol and atherosclerosis could just rub a statin cream on their chest and neck or wherever they had diseased arteries?

Not where you want it to grow and at the cost of your kidneys.

No one remembers this plot from Arrested Development? In humans you would have to be on chronic immunosupressants to do this, which is about the stupidest thing imaginable.

For strip, Muresanu at Hattingen Hair -- excellent and extremely ethical husband and wife team from Romania that set up shop in Germany then moved to Switzerland. Though this isn't a "rule", having a woman involved for a female hair restoration is probably not a bad idea. For FUE, there are so so many options in Europe it's an embarrassment of riches. To use an odd analogy, think about why redwoods are so tall -- each one is trying to get past the other to reach the sun. Spain and Portugal are filled with giants of the industry, probably so good because they're competing with each other in a very intense internal market. That being said, Pinto is probably who I would go with for your specific case. He's conservative and the most consistent of the Iberian peninsula. Ximena Vila is a female surgeon who trained under Lorenzo and has good results as well. Again, not mandatory to have a female surgeon for a woman (just like you don't need a female doctor to deliver your baby) but there's probably more empathy and ease of communication. India is not a bad idea either if cost is an issue. Eugenix, despite their unfortunatly Nazi-esque name, is a decent husband-wife team that usually have decent results, though their hairline designs can be a bit wonky. They are not quite as consistent as the Spanish/Portuguese surgeons, but still quite good. People have different opinions about this, but I don't think Turkey is a good idea for most people. Too risky and lack of basic accountability, possibly because of their volatile political situation. I would definitely avoid Doganay and Erdogan. Maybe consider Keser if all of the other options mentioned above don't work, but I can't imagine you'd need to go much further down the list than the first few names I mentioned.

Edit: I see this question has been asked countless times already. It seems most people say 1 week for light exercise and 2-4 weeks for heavy. Within 1 week walking is okay, if it doesn't increase your heart rate/make you sweat.

I think you might need to be a bit more pragmatic/bottom line about your approach and not get so lost in the weeds. If the doctor usually does his procedure with the help of techs (and you like his patient posted results) then that is the approach you should take. If he does most of the procedures solo (and you like his patient posted results) than you get it solo. If there is an established track record, stay in the middle of the pack don't go off on your own. To mix analogies, don't try to reinvent the wheel when the proof is in the pudding.

This is going to sound kind of stupid possibly but -- on the flight after surgery, how did you all deal with putting your luggage in the overhead compartment after surgery? We're not supposed to do any heavy lifting for the first two weeks after the procedure, correct?

That's really interesting, thank you. Did you keep it on all day and just reapply more when it came off? Also did you do this with saline? Also definitely keep us updated on how you're growing. 🙏

That's pretty interesting. Did everything work out with that yellowish area you posted earlier?

Why did your surgeon tell you to take prednisone? Did you have an unusual amount of inflammation or do you have some autoimmune issue?

Lorenzo has spoken about how it prevents excessive fibrin accumulation/scab formation, which is thought to help graft survival. I haven't been able to find studies specific to hair graft survival with different post operative care regimens.

It's not that expensive actually, particularly compared to the surgery. It just seems difficult/unrealistic to me that after being so wonked out from surgery all day that I will have the presence of mind to spray my head with saline every 2 hours.

Most women are more open to strip because of lack of concern about the scar and some theoretical concerns about yield. If you don't plan on shaving your head in the future, this may be an idea for you. The best in the world at strip, in my opinion, are Konior in the USA and Muresanu at Hattingen. The latter will likely be more reasonable as far as cost. You could have the procedure done for less outside of the United States, particularly the meccas like Spain/Portugal and Hattingen which seem to produce better results on average than clinics in the USA for FUE. Less reliable options are Turkey and India, though some have had very excellent results there as well. Perhaps not the safest to travel alone as a female in India as of late.

For those of you that flew somewhere distant, particularly out of country, for your transplant -- did you have anyone with you? I have heard some people say they have to spray saline every few hours after surgery etc. Would it be an idea to hire a nurse or medical assistant to stay with me the first day or two to make sure everything goes without a hitch?

You may have disappeared, but can I ask what medications you were taking? Did you do any PRP before/around the procedure?

Thank you for the update. Are you taking minoxidil and finasteride still and at what dose? Have you considered 2% ketoconazole?

You've been through a rollercoaster, glad it all worked out! Do you have any pics of your hairline before surgery and with the hairline design?

Your coming along right on track, patience is key. May I ask what was that gel he had you apply immediately after surgery? Was it petroleum jelly.

3653 1/4/21 front + 3188 to mid crown/scalp for 6841 total, right? Not a bad result, thank you for sharing. Are you still taking finasteride?

I looked through all of the peer reviewed medical literature to date and was underwhelmed by sample sizes and effect profiles. Topicals are a massive waste of time and the next in a long line of hair fads. They are inconsistent in preparation and effect. People are free to try what they wish but that is my opinion after careful review of the literature. Spend some time on Pubmed not just arguing in an echo chamber. I'm not going to get lost in the weeds with you as this thread is a total crap show already and you're clearly not open to reasonable discussion.

The data on topicals is very weak right now, still too new to know if it has effect. Plus, in the United States at least, you are relying on compounding pharmacies which have little to no federal oversight, so you don't know if the dose you're getting is consistent each time. Also the amount of testosterone converted to DHT in the liver and prostate vs locally in the skin varies massively, especially as an individual ages. It probably has some effect. Will it be as consistent or as effective as oral medication? Not with current shot in the dark approaches. Several decades of research will be needed before there's even a chance of that. Also the closer it gets to oral medication in effectiveness, the more that is probably being absorbed systemically to get to the prostate and liver, meaning the side effects will be the same. Generally a waste of time.