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Forgive my ignorance, but I was always under the impression that the telogen phase of the hair growth cycle, is independent of any seasonal variations in any climate. Would someone please elaborate on this natural phenomenon, if such a thing really does exist? I am resident in the Tropics and also non-Caucasian. There are only two seasons here: wet and dry.

I believe Hydroxycut is used as a fat burner. In my country, some of the girls are using it to help get into shape for Carnival, (a pre-Lent Roman Catholic festival). You need to exercise when taking it or run the risk of heart palpitations. Whether Hydroxycut targets collagen in the torso, leg, buttock areas, or throughout the body, including the underlying fatty tissue beneath the scalp, I do not know. You should consult Dr. Keene.

I too was looking for such information. Another important question also, would be, does the laxity vary at different parts of the scalp?

thanatopsis_awry, So what are the "harsh realities" and is there sufficient growth of hair through the scar to call that a benefit? Please elaborate

Emperor, 4-5mm is very large for a surgical scar! Are you sure?

DAMN! But what about possibility of damage to the grafts themselves?

You WILL need to take finasteride FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. Even after HT transplant. And your right. There is not a lot of data about the long term use of finasteride.

TheBaldingModel, First of all, I am not sure by guarantee, if you mean that, will you be sure that the surgeon has guaranteed a transplant of 2200 grafts(which involves a count) or if the guarantee is that there will be a definite GROWTH of 2200 grafts. There is a difference. After excision of a donor strip during FUT the harvest might be actually larger than 2200 grafts. However, at Norwood 4A, you should receive 4000 grafts, total. Generally speaking, one multiplies the level of hairloss on the Norwood scale by a factor of 1000 to gain an approximation of the no. of grafts necessary to create the illusion of density. The 2200 grafts probably just accounts for the reconstruction of the hairline and the densification of the top half to two-thirds. Latinlotus is right. The survival rate of grafts is 70% to 90% and diminishes in subsequent HT surgeries. Hope this helps, and as always, I am open to criticism from the experts.

baldingboy123, We all feel for you and all the advice given is great. Get on medication and wait until hairloss has stabilised. I started to lose hair when I was 17 years too, but you have the added advantage of access to this wonderful forum. Back then there was nothing for me. I just thought it was "change in body chemistry" like getting pimples, and it was only after recession of my hairline and thinning on the top and crown that I realised this was really early onset of MPB, and I started to fight it, some years later. I know how hard it is to be this young and be afflicted with this, but don't worry....if you think things are tough being a teenager...wait til you get to being an adult like us.

Good questions Under Construction, though I don't think one should massage the recepient area. Perhaps the massaging of the scar should take place 10-12 days from the date of surgery; at this point the metal staples should be taken out by then.

It just occurred to me that I had not put boundaries on the scale, i.e. 0 = x type of surgery and 10 = y type of surgery. I guess sub-consciously, I naturally assumed a 10 would be heart surgery (which may not be necessarily so). Thanks for the comments.

How serious/complicated is Hair Transplant Surgery compared to other types of surgery, such as heart surgery, and so on? Can we use a scale of 1 to 10 and say that hair transplantation is rated as 2 or 3?

Bill and Eman are both right about the illusion of density. That is what you will have to settle for. You will never be 14 years old again. "Also is everyone on meds after surgery for the rest of their lives?" YES! Before and after. Hair restoration is a synergistic confluence of medication(and surgical intervention, for those who are so inclined). You will need to take medication for the rest of your life to prevent/halt the minituarization of atrophic hair follicles. And if you decide to take the surgical route, you may realize you need to keep having hair transplanted to maintain that illusion of density as MPB continues (and will continue despite surgical intervention and medication) Best wishes Dave.

I asked have this question already, and the response by the experienced ones was that time is the best healer. I have read some encouraging data about copper peptides in the treatment of damaged tissue (and I personally use folligen)and "underhat" you may consider that option if you so desire.

Mr. GQ, These are very good questions, but I wouldn't count on the doctors replying to the "secret" ingredient one....this might be considered proprietary. Interestingly, where did you read the piece on transection, dehydration and crushing. Perhaps you can refer us to the url or place the definitions in this thread.

Regardless of surgical intervention or not, emphatically YES! But, first determine if your hairloss is MPB related, if so start medication at once.

Cyprus...wow!

Genes may be dominant or recessive, and may manifest themselves differently with every suceeding generation. There is a genetic test located at www.hairdx.com that you can try to be certain about this.

"is it possible your thinning was disguised by it's wavey/curly nature and the straightening has made it more noticeable." "also,possibly the hair you lost was weak already(due to future mpb)and the pulling nature of the staighteners helped speed things up?" Balody is right on both of these suggestions. Take it from me Aqeelaa. I initially had thick wavy hair and now my hair is thinner and straighter due to MPB, so much so that people mistakenely mis-assign my ethnicity!

Very nicely put thanatopsis_awry.

lost my swagger, I think that your stretched scar can be corrected to a very fine pencil line by good surgeons. Do you have any idea why the scar stretched the way it did?

That's interesting. Since DHT is a more potent analog of testosterone, can we associate high fat diet and perhaps persons of heavier stature with stronger sexual drives?

Not sure I understand Mr. GQ's comment about it being a no brainer. There was another poster who made a comment a while aback about scalp exercises being a "no-brainer" and almost lead some people astray, if Jotronic had not stepped in. But, and not to hijack this thread, I was under the impression that only upon entering the body of a patient that a surgery can be considered invasive. But apparently, surgery CAN be MINIMALLY invasive as described here: "By definition, minimally invasive surgery utilizes small skin incisions, minimizes the damaging effects of large muscle retraction, and attempts to leave the body as naturally intact as it was prior to surgery. " Thank you for your corrections.

The important thing is that you understand what I am saying, which was the purpose of my comments. That is an english language definition, not a scientific definition.

The expirary date is a mean normal of statistical studies and defines a point in time up until the phamarcological effect and physiological manifestation thereof is effective. It is highly probable that the drug would remain effective for a short period after. How short is only know by the drug manufacturers. I.e. the potency diminishes over some exponential relationship with time. You can use out the old supply but get a new supply as soon as possible.