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My Consultation


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  • Regular Member

Well, I had a consultation with Dr. Paul Rose in Tampa yesterday. He seemed like a good man and was very upfront with my many questions. He did sort of depress me when he told me that I'm close to a NW4 and a NW3v like I thought.

 

Anyway, he answered all of my questions and I'm leaning towards getting an HT done in the next couple months(not sure on an actual date). He told me that I'd get about 1500 grafts done in my hairline(a mature hairline, since my family history indicates a future of NW6 or so) and it would cover the frontal area of my hair(hairline to bridge). He also told me that I have coarse hair(I knew that) and a smaller than normal head(I knew that too), both good things, but that my density is a little low and I have somewhere between 6000 and 8000 available grafts in my donor area.

 

My only concerns are the physical ramifications of the strip procedure(i.e. stretching of the scalp, a loss of sensation, the scar) and the potential for my hair loss to progress to the point where the implants look horrible. I'm not worried about normal loss like my family history, since we're not going incredibly dense(he said something like an average of 20/cm^2 with more density in the hairline and then tapered off as he worked back towards the bridge), but there's always the chance that I'll lose a ton and end up with an island of hair, something I definitely don't want. In fact, I probably wouldn't get an HT if I was older(I'm only 23), as hairloss in itself doesn't really bother me(at least most of the time), just the fact that it hit me so young. So, I wanted to let the board know that I'm likely to get an HT done since some of you guys have been very helpful either in actual discussion or just from what I've read. I need to contact some of Dr. Rose's patients and get their opinion, but barring anything strange I'll probably get one done(of course, I've felt this way before and had a quick change of heart, since I'm not one to rush into things).

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  • Regular Member

Well, I had a consultation with Dr. Paul Rose in Tampa yesterday. He seemed like a good man and was very upfront with my many questions. He did sort of depress me when he told me that I'm close to a NW4 and a NW3v like I thought.

 

Anyway, he answered all of my questions and I'm leaning towards getting an HT done in the next couple months(not sure on an actual date). He told me that I'd get about 1500 grafts done in my hairline(a mature hairline, since my family history indicates a future of NW6 or so) and it would cover the frontal area of my hair(hairline to bridge). He also told me that I have coarse hair(I knew that) and a smaller than normal head(I knew that too), both good things, but that my density is a little low and I have somewhere between 6000 and 8000 available grafts in my donor area.

 

My only concerns are the physical ramifications of the strip procedure(i.e. stretching of the scalp, a loss of sensation, the scar) and the potential for my hair loss to progress to the point where the implants look horrible. I'm not worried about normal loss like my family history, since we're not going incredibly dense(he said something like an average of 20/cm^2 with more density in the hairline and then tapered off as he worked back towards the bridge), but there's always the chance that I'll lose a ton and end up with an island of hair, something I definitely don't want. In fact, I probably wouldn't get an HT if I was older(I'm only 23), as hairloss in itself doesn't really bother me(at least most of the time), just the fact that it hit me so young. So, I wanted to let the board know that I'm likely to get an HT done since some of you guys have been very helpful either in actual discussion or just from what I've read. I need to contact some of Dr. Rose's patients and get their opinion, but barring anything strange I'll probably get one done(of course, I've felt this way before and had a quick change of heart, since I'm not one to rush into things).

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  • Senior Member

Ironman,

 

If I were you, I'd start on Propecia or Proscar right away (and also consider using minoxodil) and use them for at least six months to a year before getting a HT. If you really are progressing to a NW6, you'd be better served to let the medicines help to stabilize your hair loss first and better asses where you will be in the end.

 

The strip procedure is not the big deal some have made it out to be. I had my most recent HT two weeks ago yesterday. My scalp has loosened considerably since the staples came out and the scar is barely noticable even when you go looking for it. It is undetectable with my hair cut to 3/4 of an inch (#6 clipper). The area around the strip and top of my head are still slightly numb, but more sensation is coming back every day.

 

Having said all that, Dr. Rose is a top choice here and seems to have many happy patients.

 

Best wishes,

 

Mr. T

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I wouldn't be so quick dismissing FUE as an option. 1500 is a number easily accomplished in two FUE sessions 750 hairs each. I myself will have an HT performed in a few days using FUE only - I'm going for a total of 1000 grafts, in two sessions 500 each. I am almost your age (22 now), and although strip would be 3 times cheaper, I just don't want to worry about any scar issues that may come up. You don't want to regret 20 years down the road, that you didn't pay the extra $ to get around the scar problem.

 

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic''. Arthur C. Clarke

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I have been using Propecia for a year now, but consider it only a preventive measure. It would be unreasonable for me to expect that Propecia will square off my temples. There are some things drugs can do, and there are things only HT will accomplish.

 

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic''. Arthur C. Clarke

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • Regular Member

I'd rather have FUE than strip in some respects, but getting a strip done by an experienced doctor with a history of fine scars translates into it not being that big of a deal. I'm going to contact some people who've had a strip surgery done by Dr. Rose and see how short they can keep their hair and ask them if they've had any problems, but I suspect that they'll all be pretty happy.

 

If the quality of the transplant is the same, and one is much less expensive than the other in addition to taking up far less time, why not go with the more economical method, especially when I need such a large number of transplants(1500-2000 now and probably a similar number in a couple years)?

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