Scabs & FU Hair Retention

[Guest]

I had a procedure done in the crown area. I am 10 days post-op and noticed that the scabs are coming off. As best as I can see with a mirror it appears as though the transplanted hair has come off with the scabs.

 

It is not the "FU graft" itself that has come out, but the little short hair stubble that was visible right after the surgery, is not visible where the scabs have come off.

 

Is that anything to be alarmed over? Does that mean a possible poor regrowth?

[Guest]

I had a procedure done in the crown area. I am 10 days post-op and noticed that the scabs are coming off. As best as I can see with a mirror it appears as though the transplanted hair has come off with the scabs.

 

It is not the "FU graft" itself that has come out, but the little short hair stubble that was visible right after the surgery, is not visible where the scabs have come off.

 

Is that anything to be alarmed over? Does that mean a possible poor regrowth?

[Guest]

Cutlass -

I see you've entered the "post-surgery worrying phase". Next comes the "will they ever actually grow?" phase, which is actually worse because it usually lasts about 3 months!

After 10 days, the follicle itself is totally healed and established in it's new location, and the fact that the hair shaft sheds with the scab makes little difference. For most people, most of the hairs will shed in the 2-6 weeks after surgery anyway. After my first surgery a year ago, most of mine had shed by 6 weeks, but I had a few percent that didn't shed at all. This surprized me a little as I expected them all to shed with the scabs. I had my second surgery on 7/3 so we'll see how that one goes.

[Guest]

Thanks for the info Gary. I was somewhat worried that the hair fell out sooner than normal & might cause poor growth later. Some people keep their transplanted hair for weeks. I wonder if that plays a role in faster growth.

 

For instance, if someone's transplanted hair starts falling out after 10 days compared to someone's hair falling out in 3 weeks. Does the 3 week subject have quicker or better growth compared to the 10 day subject?

[Guest]

Yes, that's a good question. After my first surgery, mine seemed to grow a little before they shed, then started coming back at about 10 weeks, but not all at the same time. Would they start growing sooner, or later, if they had shed with the scabs? Maybe, but in any case I doubt if it affects the quality of regrowth or the survival rate at all. This regrowth time seems to vary greatly by individual (and even between surgeries in the same person) and it's probably genetic.