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crickety, I gotcha; I think it is kind of like a diffuse pattern if I'm not mistakin; propecia should be effective for this pattern; propecia is more effective at the mid-scalp then the hairline anyway, so it should provide a benefit; it is still caused by DHT which propecia lowers; I would definitely try propecia for a year before getting a HT if you have that pattern; sometimes a HT can shock out a lot of native hair for diffuse type hair loss.

I don't understand what you are asking?

wylie, as thehairlosscure said, I would definitely contact your doc on post-op instructions; my post-op experience, I would wash my hair once a day and be extremely careful and not use shower pressure on the recipeint area--did that for the first 8 days or so; then after that I would be a little more aggressive when washing, using my finger tips (not finger nails); also I would try not to wear a hat unless I had to, for aiding in healing (allowing air to it); I've heard of some people using the spray method also. I would wait 2 weeks before applying minoxidil so the receipeint area doensn't get irratated.

diamondlight, I would not worry about it; as long as you went to a reputable clinic/doc, the techs are highly-skilled and the doctor will provide the guidance to make sure everything goes right; the doc monitors whats going on, and if there are issues he corrects the situation; that's why he get the big bucks; it is normal to question everything now because you are at the 1-3 month post-op period where nothing has "happened" yet.

giants, I've been on it for 6 years so it is hard to remember details; but for the most part, I felt that my receding "halted" once I began taking the drug; up to now, my hairline may have slipped a little, but it has for the most part stabalized my hair loss.

In my experience, propecia has not regrown hair at the hairline; however, I feel it has helped prevent my hairline from receeding further; it has basically halted loss at the hairline. I guess individual results can vary. I'm not sure what the extent of your loss is etc..If you are in the early stages of hairloss you may have a chance at regrowth. But as a general rule propecia is most effective at the crown/vertex area and somewhat effective at the mid-scalp area as far as possible regrowth. As far as 1 month your hairline "gone to crap" that sounds odd; usually it is a slow regression. I would definitely stay on propecia though.

morehair, Congratulations on moving forward with a HT; This link has pre and post op tips: http://www.regrowhair.com/page/8/ you've been on Propecia for a year, which is a recommended prerequisite to a HT; also at age 40 your hair loss pattern is predictable and probably stable--under good thing as a patient; Is the doc going to place the grafts in the frontal 1/3?; and maybe go for a 2nd session a year later? Did the doc give you a plan of attack? The only reason I am asking is that if you are approaching a NW5, 2600 will not give you full coverage everywhere; if the doc focuses in the front, 2600 should frame your face well; then a year later, you could do another session to fill in farther back and obtain more density; just some thoughts and comments; other posters may have other thoughts/comments

IMO, if you do have Male Patten Baldness, a certain diet or natural treatments will not be very effective long term; of course you want a well balanced diet to support healthy hair growth; but long term, finasteride (propecia/proscar) is your best bet to maintaining and possibly regrowing your hair. It has a track record of being safe, and the side effects are minimal;

I've been on propecia for just over 6 years; it has maintained, with a bit of regwowth in the vertex/crown area the first year.

charlieb, I'm confused on the breakdown #s; the percentages do not add up to 100%; did she give you exact hair breakdown #'s or just percentages; I do not think that the "Coronal vs Sagittal Incisions" is the issue or concern here; the actual grafts' placements (symetrical rows and spaced wide apart) I feel is more of the concern.

I would say at 6 months most of the hairs will have sprouted and it will look normal; you will not have the final results yet--they say at 6 months you are at 50% of the final results. IMO it will look normal and natural just not as thick as it will look at the 1 year mark.

diamondlight, if you do not mind and have some, post some pics;

everybody you good advice; get on the meds and as wanthairs said, there is a good chance you may have almost the same amount of hair when your 28. you definitely do not need a HT right now and IMO a doc would be very unethical to do so; I really don't even think you have any hairloss right now to be honest; with your hair short you are going to see some scalp; also proscar cut in 1/4's can save you money as opposed to propecia; enjoy your college years and do not worry about it

chris, listen to wanthairs; don't worry about it and remember it takes time to see results; Do not evaluate the results until the 1 year mark. Also, if you see no differance that is not a bad thing because the drugs are maintaining your existing hair. Maintaining native hairs is considered good results.

After 7 days the grafts are pretty much secure; you can start to be more agressive after 1 week; I wouldn't use your fingernails and pick at the scabs; but you can use your fingertips and start to gently rub the receipent area.

mphoenixaz, actually, you can wear a hat right after surgery; just make sure it is loose fitting and be careful when you take it on and off, so it doesn't rub against the grafts; after 8-10 days the grafts are secure and you would have to surgically remove them to get them out.

Well, the more total hairs is going to create more actual density theoretically; however there are so many factors to take into considersation; the smaller the area to work on the more density you will have; also hair characteristics (thick, thin, wavy, straight) and hair/skin contrast play a factor in the illusion of density; furthermore, aesthetics, plays a role; you want to use singles at the hairline to give it a soft, feathered look. Generally speaking 1500 grafts will not provide a lot of density unless it is for someone with minimal loss that wants to refine the hairline/temple area.

Daniel, Stay away from MHR; there results are not consistant. below is the link to the coalition members on this site that perform high quality work: http://www.hairlosslearningcenter.org/hair-loss-content...s/our_physicians.asp

after seeing the bottom picture under "2nd day" it shows you had grafts placed in the front and also the crown; this concerns me because 2300 grafts is covering a lot of area = less density; I hope some other posters give their thoughts and opinions; but I don't see a major cosmetic differance with such a large area to cover and few # of grafts.

your hairloss pattern looks just like another poster charlieb;

charlie, Did she say as you wrote in your post " (I) made a nice swirl on top" because looking at the pics. there is no swirl pattern of the grafts. You also go on to mention "densely packed and small sagitial slits" did she say that to you also? Furthermore, I'm not aware with currency exchange but looking at this post it appears you paid aroun 9$/graft which is about double what most docs charge.? The stuff you wrote in your post above doesn't appear consistent with the pictures you posted in your photo album;

navraj, frog gave you good advice; I have never heard of any corelation

I am wondering about the density that is going to be achieved with 1100 grafts in that area of the crown. I don't want to sound negative but I am not sure if the cosmetic improvement will be significant; also the patient is quite young, I think?

There is no reason to stop propecia before or after having a HT; if you miss a day because you forget, just resume on the next day; you will not feel any differant, sick etc; in the big picture, missing a dose infrequently is not goin to have any impact.

Time, traditionally, many people wait until the previous surgery has fully matured before the next surgery. As a general rule this is at least a year; everybody's situation is differant; for example, if you had area(s), such as the crown, that the doc didn't address in the previous surgery I feel you could probably have surgery a little sooner; there is another factor and that is the donor area; optimally, you want it to be healed and scalp laxity to return, before your next surgery. Also, you have shockloss; that can take some time also; you want the shockloss hair (recepient and donor areas) to be grown back so your native hair is back to "baseline." You said the grafts were going to be in the front where the first surgery was focused; at 7 months you may have another 30-40% before the surgery is at the final results--you have a lot of cosmetic improvement yet; I do not know your unique situation, but if the previous surgery was low density and for coverage, then I guess the doc wouldn't need to see it fully matured in order to do another surgery; these are just some of my thoughts;