JakeVig

Hi Slick, Did you find out if it is ok to use Dermmatch 3 weeks post op on the recipient area? Im curious because I will probably need to do the same. By the way your scar covers up nicely, no one will definately have a clue judging from those pics! Can I ask what your donor density was and did they say how much donor hair did you have left? Im just wondering if SMG is conservative in their estimates as they only quoted me 6k all up.

Hi Bal, Its good to see your making use of your investment again. I wish you all the best, I hope it works just as well for you again and speeds up the thickness of your newly transplanted hair. Let us know how you go with it. I will be a couple of weeks behind you, although Im not nearly prepared to spend the $$$ on the hairmax laser comb. Im opting for the much cheaper amazinglasercomb.com instead it uses the same lasers at the same frequency so I am confident it will be just as effective. I will keep everyone informed of my progress.

Other people don't pay nearly as much attention to your appearance as you do. I believe that most people wont even notice that you got 'more hair'. They may say you look younger, fitter or healthier but unless you've had a major cosmetic difference I doubt they will come to that conclusion. As a young guy it definately would bother me if someone found out that I had a HT. If people have noticed that I got more hair I would just make a passing comment saying that I started treating my hairloss a while ago (with drugs) and wasn't sure if it was working or not and thank them for the compliment. I am 100% confident that no one will question you further, as people who havent researched (i.e. not going bald themselves) do not know anything about how effective hairloss treatments are.

Hi All, Just want to know how long post op it is safe to use a concealer on the recipient area. Unfortunately Im due back to work in 2 weeks and I still have the worst haircut ever because they needed to shave me down to add density. Unfortunately being in a client facing role, I am unable to use a hat at work. Any ideas?

Hmmm, You did look at the website right? We'll its $49.95 for a 6 month prescription (just the prescription not the meds). Then for refills I think its only $75 for 12 months thereafter. I reckon if you get the first prescription and after 6 months tell your doctor that you've been on it and have no side effects hopefully he will start prescribing it for you.

I believe this is a duplicate thread, but just for the purposes of full disclosure about Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT). Here is a press release from www.ishrs.org themselves about the results of clinical trials on LLLT: http://www.ishrs.org/mediacenter/pr/pr5.htm Some statistics of importance are: # 100% of men had stabilization of hair loss in frontal and vertex (top of the head) areas; # 84.6% of men had hair regrowth (11% of more from baseline) in the frontal area; # 82.8% of men had hair regrowth (11% or more from baseline) in the vertex area; Although it doesnt specify how much, I do not believe hair regrowth is considerable (around 11%). I believe the trials do conclude that LLLT *may help* a patient over a long period of time. For a product that is so expensive I believe it lacks visual proof (i.e. before and after shots) that the laser comb can provide a cosmetic difference. I do not want to seem like Im *endorsing* LLLT, but there is a lot of scientific research on the benefits of LLLT (not just for hair loss), to claim it does nothing I believe is a little misleasing. What seperates it from other *snake oil* products may just be that because there is so much money in it they can afford to run clinical trials. But still the results of the trials show *some benefit*. So my conclusion remains that if the cost (and time) is not an issue - you may as well give it a go as it wont do any harm and it may help.

In the UK I get mine from www.hollandandbarrett.com If there is any cheaper let us know.

Your not going to see any results with Nioxin on its own. A lot of people here alternate between Nioxin and Nizoral as part of their hair care regime to keep a healthy and itch-free scalp. This should provide optimal conditions for your Minioxidil to be most effective.

Facelessman, Good to hear you had an overall good experience! It sounds a lot like mine. I can relate to your 'angry' bee stings - I laughed so hard reading about your experience I almost literally burst my stitches!!! Anyway 4200 grafts pack a powerfull punch, your going to be one happy (read: almost unrecognizeable) camper in a few months!!

Thanks hairbank, First of all thanks for your encouraging words in the days leading up to my HT it helped alleviate some nerves I had about it. The only thing Im worried about now is the haircut I have to have before work as to whether or not it will be obvious. I had to shave down in order to add density so it is extremely obvious right now. I've only got about 2 weeks left before I start work again so Im hoping for some decent growth of my native hair so my haircut is not too ridiculous. Yeah I've been on propecia for the last 2 years but unfortunately have not responded that well as I have had a lot of hair loss within that time. Which is the reason Im switching to Avodart. Im hoping that in combination of adding Nizoral, Nioxin and Minioxidil to the mix I can achieve some regrowth. Only time will tell. But apart from that Im looking forward to the future! I know that its going to be a long wait but at least the count down has already started!

Yeah if you already have it and can spare the time I would definately be using it. The laser itself is very weak (i.e. 'Low Level' or 'Cold Laser' as its sometimes called). The good thing about it is that there have never been any documented side effects. People are still debating its effects but I believe that there is enough evidence to support that it can be beneficial to some users at least. At 7 months post op it should not affect your grafts whatsoever. I am going to wait a couple of weeks post op before I start using it only because I don't want to 'brush' my recipient area, im not worried about the laser. As for regrowth I would not take the advice of sales people, I am only under the assumption that it can give your hair a thicker and healthier look and maybe provide a healthier scalp so that maybe your Finasteride or Minoxidil treatment can be more effective.

Hi BAL, Did you say that it gave your hair more volume? because I think thats all it is supposed to do, promote healthier fuller hair to give the appearance of more hair. It sounds like that if you have a lot of weak wispy hairs that LLLT can give them a healthier thicker appearance - so it looks like regrowth. The science behind it is called 'Low level laser therapy' (LLLT). A lot of info can be found on google, this article discusses a clinical study on it http://www.ishrs.org/mediacenter/pr/pr5.htm It operates at a different frequency to UV light so I wouldn't be worried about sunburn or 'discoloration'. The results from the studies indicate that "No side effects of low-level laser therapy have been observed". The only info I can find on wikipedia is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photobiomodulation. It seems to be apart of the very subjective 'alternative medicine' field (akin to herbal treatments). My own conclusion is that it may 'assist' with proven hair loss treatments by promoting a healthier scalp.

Jackisblack, The only problem of quitting rogaine after being on it for so long is that you will lose the hair that it helped you regrow or saved from being lost. Propecia and Rogaine work differently, the hair grown with Rogaine will not be kept with Propecia. If you havent noticed a considerable difference while being on it than chances are that you may not lose too much hair. Unfortunately though your mileage may vary.

Looking good actionradar!! Your going to look forward to a great cosmetic difference in 5-6 months time!

Hi bort, I think you are lucky to have dodged the Hair mills early on, you saved yourself from being disfigured for life. Yeah Armani's results look great but I believe he is too aggressive and too keen to give young men teenage hairlines which will use most of your donor hair at an early age. I personally would err on the conservative side and take the advice of Doctors who look out for your long term interests (i.e. anyone in the coalition). Having said that, at 32 I would assume that your hairloss has mostly stabalized what Norwood Classification are you? If you post some pictures we can tell you the number of grafts we would recommend at this time. Also if you tell us where you live we can recommend good surgeons near your area.

Rob2, Its unfortunate your GP doesnt understand that the active ingredient in Proscar/Propecia Finesterade has been well tested and has been in use for over 40 years. If you cant find another GP you can get a prescription online from www.medicalwellnesscenter.com - they also provide prescriptions for many other hair loss products aswell. Good Luck!

Thats a very good point Pat! I was also wondering why it costs so much, I always suspected that the high cost of the comb was artificially priced. I believe that the marketing message is that because it is so expensive it must be quality and must work. I am just suprised that their doesnt seem to be many other competitors on the market to undercut them. I have recently found amazinglasercomb.com which seems to sell a similar product for a lot less so I might give that a go to test whether laser therapy is effective.

Well if your only headed for type III than it doesnt sound like you will need to use all your donor hair, which was the only reason I decided not to go for FUE for my small no of grafts. Just leave your hair long as you will need it to hide the shaved area on your head required for FUE.

Sorry steve, I just have to ask Are you freaking serious?!!!! It is just ladded with marketing text and provides absolutely no before and after results. Do not waste your money or time with unproven products! Propecia and Rogaine are the only FDA approved treatments with hairloss, your hair loss treatment should be based around these treatments.

Proscar and Propecia are exactly the same thing i.e. they both contain the same active ingredient Finesterade, the only difference is in the dosage. Propecia has 1mg of Finesterade while Proscar has 5mg. Many people choose to buy Proscar and a $5 pill cutter and cut proscar into 1/4's this works out much cheaper as propecia and is just as effective.

Hi John, Many people here are going to recommend FUE for such a small number of grafts. I just had my HT done a few days ago and I only got 1344 grafts placed in my hairline. My reasons for choosing FUT is that I believe FUT still has a greater yield and since I only have a limited donor supply and I would like to use them in the most optimal way. I believe it depends on your age and progression of hairloss as well if you really think your going to need your entire donor supply in future I will opt for FUT otherwise I would go for FUE. Which ever way you decide, go to the best doctors.

Are you guys serious? Have people have had HT's where most of their transplanted hair still remains? does this mean you didnt have to wait the 3 months to start seeing results? Irish Homer can you keep us updated with what happens, sending pictures would be even better

For the purposes of relaying information: I have had a chance to quiz Ron about his thoughts on laser combs. Although he acknowledges that they are some studies to indicate that it has similar properties to propecia although as I understand it he personally does not believe it is as effective. His basic stance is that if cost is not an issue than you might as well try it as it will not cause any harm and may help. Either way they will be begin selling it at their office by next month.

I have had a chance to quiz Ron about his thoughts on laser combs. Although he acknowledges that they are some studies to indicate that it has similar properties to propecia although as I understand it he personally does not believe it is as effective. His basic stance is that if cost is not an issue than you might as well try it as it will not cause any harm and may help. Either way they will be begin selling it at their office by next month.

Ok I thought I would weigh a little more on this issue as I posed this same question to Dr Ron Shapiro while having my HT done. Firstly he does believe that the current techniques to achieve an illusion of density with an optimal number, combination and placement of grafts (i.e. best use of 1's, 2's etc) is excellent but he thinks they can still be improved. The idea is to get the best illusion of density under varying light conditions and viewing angles. I should note that contradictory to previous posts splitting grafts to get more 1's will definately does NOT provide a better illusion of density when placed on the top of the head. It seems that Ron uses mostly 1's for the hairline and 2's, 3's and 4's at the top of the scalp. Secondly one concern he had about FUE's was that the grafts extracted would not be as cleanly disected as they could be with FUT and using the microscopes to disect them. Lastly he mentioned that there was a new instrument in the future that would be able to extract the donor strip without damaging any grafts as part of the donor extraction process. P.S. I recalled this information while I was under sedation, hopefully I havent missed any details.