Mistake

[hawk22]

I recently had a HT 1 month ago. I am now thinking I made a mistake. I have thinning hair at the hairline and front 1/3 of my head. After speaking with the Dr he convinced me to have 2 small sessions(the first was around 700, I have not had the second yet). His reasoning was so that in the second session he could then better see where he needed to add more density. I have read on this site that it is a mistake to have a HT of less than 1000 grafts. I knew this going in however the Dr was very convincing that the 2 sessions was the way to go. I think I might have made a mistake because now I am alot thinner because I have lost some of the hair I originally had and wish I had never gone through with the procedure. I might feel different in 3 months when I start seeing growth but as of right now my advice on having a small procedure done would be to avoid it. I was just wondering if anyone else had positive experiences with having smaller sessions done?

[hawk22]

I recently had a HT 1 month ago. I am now thinking I made a mistake. I have thinning hair at the hairline and front 1/3 of my head. After speaking with the Dr he convinced me to have 2 small sessions(the first was around 700, I have not had the second yet). His reasoning was so that in the second session he could then better see where he needed to add more density. I have read on this site that it is a mistake to have a HT of less than 1000 grafts. I knew this going in however the Dr was very convincing that the 2 sessions was the way to go. I think I might have made a mistake because now I am alot thinner because I have lost some of the hair I originally had and wish I had never gone through with the procedure. I might feel different in 3 months when I start seeing growth but as of right now my advice on having a small procedure done would be to avoid it. I was just wondering if anyone else had positive experiences with having smaller sessions done?

[baldcasanova]

hawk,

 

i wouldnt be worried just yet. i'm not sure what the deal is with that doctor and such a low count the first go around.. maybe he was trying to get out early that day?

 

 

we on the forum stress not going in for less than 1000 because the less procedures you do the better. why put yourself through all of the rehab ?? and you never know how much hair you are still going to lose, so potentially you may need to get another procedure after that to finish up the project. you just dont want to keep going through that.

 

you can probably go back and get the rest of what you were planning to do in a month or so.

 

 

also, you'll lose a little hair after the procedure (called shock loss) but in most cases it grows back. takes a while, but it usually does.

 

gl,

cas

[Guest]

Yeah Hawk, I too had small sessions to start with, about 300 grafts a piece for the first 2 procedures. That is, because my first HT doctor would only perform small procedures. So it has taken me 4 HT's to achieve the results I wanted in the first place, which total about 3,300 grafts.

 

The consequence of having small procedures is that you need more of them to get the results you want unless you have a very minimal hairloss problem to start with.

 

Nowdays, it's possible to get 3,000 grafts or more in one session if you want. There are however some possible problems that come along with the "mega" sessions as well. The website's founder, Pat, talks about this subject in a post here:

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/showthread.php?t=144336

 

If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't have started with anything less than a procedure of 1500 grafts.

 

As far as your current conditon, you are going through the "less hair than befor" stage. I think all of us transplantees have gone through this this stage and it can make you feel like you made a mistake in having a procedure. But not to worry, when the grafts start to grow, you'll start looking better again.

 

Being that you had a small procedure though, and if you experienced "shock loss" of some of your existing hair, the result when you transplants grow in might just kind of put you back where you were. I know it stinks to think about that. But on the bright side, your transplanted hairs will be bigger and healthier than the hairs they are replacing. So they'll cover your scalp better.

[Gorpy]

Regarding the loss of some of your original hair (shock loss), I wouldn't worry too much about that. The same thing would have happened with a larger procedure.

[Guest sac95816]

Hawk

 

Thanks for contributing to the site. I actually posted a question regarding smaller procedures a few weeks ago. I'm scheduled to undergo a HT of 1200 grafts at the end of the month. I know I'll need another HT, too. Your post caught my eye because the Dr. I saw said the same thing to me; smaller procedures are better because he'd be better able to place the grafts in the second procedure to maximize density, higher yield, and less shockloss. I'm not convinced by any of these explanations, given how many people routinely undergo larger procedures.

 

The dr. I saw had been performing HTs for years and I think he hasn't gotten over the limitations of the past and embraced the current capabilities of HT. I'm curious to know more about the dr. who performed your surgery; it may be the same dr.

 

Thanks,

 

SAC

 

Are you in Northern Cal.?

[hawk22]

Thanks for all of your replies. Still not sure I made the right decision but I feel a little better. Sac, to answer your question I am in the Midwest. The Dr. I went to is very reputable, came highly recommended, and is mentioned on this site. The procedure itself went great. It was pretty much painless, and the Dr and staff were great. I guess now it's just a waiting game. Good Luck on your HT.

[Mahair]

Thats very little hair and only taking into account your present state of loss. Sounds a little "Quackey" to me. Hold off and do some more research .Any h/t Dr. not doing at least an area of 2,000 grafts wether in two sessions or not comes into that catagory especially if he/she is not allready projecting your future loss, additional surgeries and density at that time.P.S. Who is the doctor?

[Pat - Community Publisher]

Hawk,

 

Without knowing all the factors about your surgery or seeing your photos I will refrain from being an "arm chair surgeon".

 

However, I do agree that if you really need 1,400 grafts I'm not sure why this surgeon has suggested splitting your work into two session of 700.

 

Ultimately the proper session size in terms of grafts should be all about what is best and easist for the patient - not what is most conventient for the clinic. A truly state of the art clinic should have the capability to do very refined and densly packed sessions WHEN APPROPRIATE FOR A GIVE PATIENT.

 

Are you such a patient? I don't know. Perhaps you were not.

 

For example last week Dr. Ron Shapiro did 1,480 densly packed grafts in a patient's hairline area, click here to see photos. While such a surgery may not have been appropriate for a young man of 22, it was appropriate for this 45 year old patient whose hair loss pattern was well established.

 

So would a similar size session of 1,400 grafts been appropriate for you? That really depends on your individual situation.

[Robert_]

I have to echo the sentiments of most of the replies that you have seen here, Hawk. In hair restoration, everything is relative to the individual's own situation. Without knowing more, noone can really assess your situation and give a viable opinion.

 

If you would like, you can post some photos of your recipient and donor areas to recieve some more informed feedback. To do this, you can start a photo album (located under the "New" button). Just click the "Photo Album" option, enter text introduction to the photos (just like a regular post) and upload 9 photos at a time.

 

You can always add or delete photos at your own discretion. Feel free also to crop out your face to remain anonymous.

 

If you need help or have questions, feel free to ask.

 

Welcome to the forums.

 

-Robert

[finallyfree]

Originally posted by Mahair:

Thats very little hair and only taking into account your present state of loss. Sounds a little "Quackey" to me.

I agree with your sentiments.

Many doctors can not place the real numbers needed for a useful hair restoration.

They come up with these ideas of going in many stages.

Makes no sense to me.

[Smoothy]

Post op remorse will soon be replace by excitement when your hair starts to grow around 6 months and conitnue out to 12 month while your donor area heals. Be patient and things will work out.