Hey, I'm thinking about an HT and would like some feedback...

[diamonddee]

A little background info...I'm 28 yrs old and have family history of baldness. I started to notice about 4 yrs ago and its been falling out ever since.

 

Recently, I went to see Dr. Rahal and this is what I came away with. I was hoping for a 5000 graft one-time session but that was not recommended since I have diffused thinning. Dr. Rahal advised me to start with a 3500 graft session to cover the front part and then 1 yr later and a 2000 graft session to the crown area. I was just wondering what you guys think and if I could get some info on how my hair will look with the 5500 grafts.

 

I have a few pics so if someone could tell me how to upload them in one post, I will.

 

Thank you

[jagdish]

Diamonddee,

Your hair has good charecteristics. Curly and thick. You will get good coverage once your HT hair grows. With the experience watching the results of other patients in this forum I can say Hasson & Wang can do everything done in a single big session for you.

 

-Jagdish

[the B spot]

Dee- First off, I believe Dr. Rahal to be a good surgeon, so if he believes you should approach your hairloss in this manner you should probably carefully consider it. What you have to remember is that you will most likely lose some of the native hair during and after your HT. 3500 will provide you with a GREAT base in the frontal half, and after it grows in, you can really approach #2 should you still even want another one. Even though you still have hair up top, it would be best to approach you like you are going to eventually be a NW5 or 6, and plan accordingly. Did Dr. Rahal mention what type of donor density or scalp laxity you possess?

Anyway, don't be so quick to burn up your donor supply right away, and plan this out as we only get about 3 shots at getting this stuff right.

I hope this helps you out!

[diamonddee]

Dr. Rahal said that my donor density was average. I don't recall talking about laxity. I defintely want to get the 2nd procedure done. I have no doubt about that. According to Dr. Rahal I have about 7500 grafts and that would leave me with about 2000 grafts for future hair loss.

 

I'm starting Propecia soon and was wondering what kind of effect it will have. My understanding is that it primarily works on the crown. True?

[hairbank]

Diamond-

 

I agree with B and have heard good things about Dr. Rahal and believe, should you choose him and his plan for you, that you'll be in good hands.

 

Given that you appear to have diffused thinning all over on top, and that you may suffer severe shock loss after the HT...............I'd opt for getting 5000-5500 in one sitting if I were you. The only reason that would cause me to hesitate would be if you happen to be a good responder to Propecia and gain some native hair in the crown without a HT. For this reason, you may want to start Propecia well in advance (6months to 1 year) of your HT to see how productive it is for you, and to strengthen your native hair and possibly stave off shock loss after the HT.

 

Again, I think Dr. Rahal is solid. I just wonder why you would be advised to get 3500 grafts, then wait 1 year, then go ahead and get another 2000 versus just getting the whole 5500 in one shabang?? Unless, the goal is to do the 3500 to see what it does for you and IF you need another 2000 then you can. If you definitely need 5500............go to H&W and get them all at once, why wait? Otherwise, get the 3500, try Propecia and see if you need the xtra grafts.

 

Having the wavy hair is a bonus for you and will assist in providing the appearance of density versus those of us with fairly straight hair.

[the B spot]

Bank, I agree with you to some extent, but I think with Dee's pattern, and potential for additional loss, why not do a large session of 3500 in order to gauge what density he will want or be able to achieve? I agree with doing larger sessions, but only if it is someone like myself, (a guy with an already smooth playing field!!!)

 

Where I disagree, (after some thought) is only doing 2000 for #2. I would probably push for another 3000 on that one.

I guess it is subjective, and you are right in your assessment Bank, but I wonder if Dee's laxity is a little tight? Maybe that is the reason for the treatment program?

[hairbank]

B- Laxity could definitely be the issue. Diamond stated in his post that Dr. Rahal did not recommend the larger session size due to having diffused thinning so maybe he's concerned with shock loss?? After looking at the pics again I thought so, but then the post says the 3500 would be on the "front part" only which would mean dense packing and likely some shock loss. My thought is.....if he's going to dense pack anyway, why not see if you can go all the way back to the crown since the thinning appears to be consistent all over the top?? A bit of a quandry, eh B? In the end, Dr. Rahal is the expert, not I, and I'm sure he has his reasons for the advice he has given. Maybe Diamond can ask him to detail the explanation a little further??

 

Diamond- If I remember correctly, Qwert (an occasional poster here) was similar to you in loss and hair type. This link will take you to his 5 month update. You may want to search a little further and find his original pre-op/post-op pics for reference. I believe he received around 6500 grafts in one pass but it looks like he didn't have quite the amount of diffused thinning toward the crown that you do. You may want to consider trying Propecia to see how well you respond before having a HT. If you go with 3500 in the frontal 1/3-1/2 maybe Propecia will help you enough in the crown to avoid another HT.

[dhuge67]

Man, I really hope that Propecia has the kind of results that you guys seem to say is a possibility. Since I got on the stuff before I hit a NW-4, I feel like I have some hope...

[the B spot]

Yeah,this is a bit of a conundrum, to me anyway.

You know, perhaps this is simply a case of starting with a solid larger session, and then filling the gaps on #2. There is nothing wrong with that, and with only taking 3500, you minimize the risk of stretching, etc... What I think is happening, is a shift in philosophy that occurred over a few years ago where the craze was to harvest more and more and more grafts. I think what has evolved to this point is demonstrated here, with Diamond. I know for a fact that Dr. Rahal does larger than 3500 graft sessions, having seen some 4000+ sessions, so he must have a reason for prescribing this program. Getting back to what I was saying though-- let's say a patient comes in wanting 75 fu's a cm/2 in the front 3rd. Honestly, does this guy REALLY know what he wants, or is he just enamored with the number? What if a doctor said, let's get you to 45 to 55 fu's cm/2 FIRST, and then look to dense further--in the spots the patient wants/needs? So what we have is a guy one year later who looks at a density of 55 fu cm/2 and says I want a little more here or there, but let's focus on the crown and some temples. Because the patient is actually possessing his or her PERSONAL frame of reference, they can decide a course of action. Using the patient Jotronics posted, all of us recognized that 2500 to 3000 grafts less would have provided much the same "look" and those extra grafts could have addressed the crown. BUT-- this patient wanted TRUE density, and H&W identified that he most likely possesses 4000 additional grafts which will more than cover his back half should he desire. In Diamond's case, possessing 7500 grafts, perhaps his best bet is to do a large session of 3500 or so, and then revisit the situation a year later after his HT matures, so he himself can be the judge as well. If he shot 5000 at one time, he would not have any real options left with only 2500 grafts in the bank. I guess it boils down to a middle ground between patient wants/needs and the ability of the surgeon. This is the good information that people need to read before they simply rush out and ask for an enormous session, or understand what density numbers represent individually. I think this thread will help a lot of people, including Diamond!!!!

[jason_d]

Hasson & Wang

Looked at your pics, and you know what, I have heard of great things about Hasson & Wang, if they can do 5600 or more in one sitting why not go for it. I had 2 HT's, 1800 and 2576, with two different doctors. What I am saying is, going through a HT is not such a great thing. Why not get all you can out of your strip in one sitting than going through it twice or a 3rd time.

[diamonddee]

Amazing info here, thanks so much.

 

Shock loss is a major concern. Since my hair is thinning and is very weak, the Doc advised me that I could experience shock loss. I don't think there is anything I can do to stop that so I can't really worry about that too much. Unless there is something that will help to curb the shock loss. I'm hoping that Propecia will strengthen my hair and possibly help in controlling the loss after the HT.

 

The reasoning behind the 1 yr wait is to see how well I respond to the Propecia and then look at the situation again to decide if I want/need another HT to cover the crown area. I've heard great things about Dr. Rahal and I trust him and his plan. The concern is over my pattern and the potential of further loss. Although my father and uncle have the same pattern and have not lost anything but the top so I'm hoping it stays the way it is. I would definitely like to get more than the 2000 grafts for the crown area but the concern there is again the potential and I wouldn't want to be left with nothing and then keep losing and not be able to address that situation.

 

I've started Propecia and was thinking of getting HT #1 in about 3-4 months and then going back in 9-10 months for HT #2. The way I see it that way I will be on the pills for about a year and will be able to see the results. What do you guys think?

[troy]

diamonddee, welcome to this forum. one thing about getting into having a ht is it challenges you to be patient. I recently talked to dr Rose and he said wait a full year to figure out what step number 2 is, that way you will pretty much know what your results are going to look like. I think what b is saying sounds like good advise, as well as the doc, its just probally not what you want to hear as we all want our journey to be done fast, however I believe the following what has been advised to you is a great approach.

[Guest]

I have difused thinning as well and am considering going to Dr. Rahal. My only concern is the shock loss that you guys have been speaking about. Is this only temporary? I mean will the hair grow back if it does fall out due to shock. I don't want to lose the hair I already have. Also, I'm not a big fan of taking medication so I probably wouldn't use Propecia so would that make the possibilioty of suffering shock higher?

 

Thanks for all your help

[MrJobi]

Hi

 

Shock loss was a major concern for me as well. I did 1417 and 1476 and had no shockloss. A conservative approach is the way to go as your donor supply is limited. No sense in Dense packing from the start and then suffering future loss which would only ruin the cosmetic value in the end. It seems more and more people are urging everyone to do Mega sessions.. Dr. Rahal from what I heard is a good doc and knows his stuff. Take Propecia to stop the future loss and you will get some minor regrowth as well. A 3000 procedure will give you susstantial results. Very few people get 1 surgery and acheive their goal.