Slick 2091 Grafts by Dr. Paul Shapiro 1 year update

[slick old]

Final results from 1st ht

 

 

 

[slick old]

previous thread: http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/showthread.php?t=143681

[slick old]

4 month update. Have seen a few new sprouts but nothing major yet. Had pretty bad folliculitis at 3.5 months which I was given antibotics for. Everything seems to have cleared up pretty quickly but I do still feel a few ingrown hairs across my scalp. The hair on top is about 2, 2.5 inches long which I haven't cut since surgery. I did get the sides and back cleaned up a few weeks ago. Hair is about an inch long on the sides and the scar is no longer an issue. It's still pink and slightly raised in spots but it seems to be getting better. I'm trying to not pay too much attention to my hair which is tough but I think it's looking better than my pre-propecia pics for sure. Here's to a hairy next couple months!

[troy]

Slick, this is the fun part when you get around the 4 month stage. You could really tell a difference between your 7 months pics from propecia, thanks for sharing that. I learned from my hair that about a number 5 on the sides and a little longer on top and my hair looks a lot thicker, I was cutting it to a number 8 on top. Your recovery looks perfect, totally undetectable. My hairloss was about like yours and I had similair size procedure from the same clinic, it will be fun to watch you progress, thanks for sharing

[Pat - Community Publisher]

Slick,

 

Thanks for taking the time to share in detail your results from both Propecia and surgery. The next few months should be exciting. If you can get your hair counts by graft from SMG and add them to your posts that would be excellent.

 

Feel free to also create a weblog journal at www.hairlossweblogs.com to document your process.

 

Best wishes for a bumper crop of new hair. Pat

[slick old]

Thanks for the comments Troy and Pat. I called SMG and spoke with Janna to get more details about my surgery. The donor strip was 1.4 cm x 17 cm long and was removed in 3 sections. Total grafts were 2094 3 more than I thought. Hopefully I'll get a lot more coverage out of these 3 "bonus" grafts :-) Graft breakdown is as follows:

 

1s 364

2s 1086

3s 536

4s 109

 

2095 total, looks like I got another "bonus" graft in there somewhere! Recipient area was approx 100cm2. Total hairs 4580. Average 2.2 hairs per graft. I hope I'm doing the math right. I do remember at the end of my surgery they had to split some of my 2s up to go into the hairline. I do agree with the idea that we should be counting hairs as well as grafts for the full picture.

[slick old]

Hey guys 5 month update time! I'm happy to report that I can no longer see back into the crown from my hairline anymore. I've been noticing some growth in the midscalp and the temples are starting to fill in but I'm hoping there is alot more to come. I'm going to get a cut in a few days but wanted to get some pics of my hair as it looks now so I have something to compare with. It seems that having longer hair on top helps quite a bit with coverage. I'm just hoping my density will be enough that I can wear my hair a shorter style. Anyone else get nervous when going to the barber? :-)

[slick old]

A few days shy of 6 months. Got a hair cut yesterday and here are the follow up pics as promised. I gotta say guys I'm starting to feel like I'm talking to myself here! 2 comments in the last 3 months, not very impressed! Oh well I'm mostly posting updates for my own benefit but comments are appreciated.

 

I hadn't noticed how much improvement my hair has made until I got this cut. My hair is about an inch long on top and it looks fairly full at this length. Last time I cut it this short pre-transplant I got a lot of long stares and some comments on how thin my hair was looking. I go into work yesterday and all the girls are commenting on how much they love the new look! :-) The corners are still a little high for me so I'm hoping for some more thickening but this may be something I will have to learn to live with. During my consult dr. Ron made a comment that after the ht I will still have a higher hairline but it will be much more full. I think I'm starting to realize what he was getting at. I will try to get a better picture of the temple angles on my next update. If it's true that by 6 months I only have 50-60% growth I am excited for the next few months! I'll keep updating you guys but come on give me some comments here, good, bad, indifferent! Thanks :-)

[tkerr22]

Hey slick!

 

I think it is looking really good, even wet and spiked it doesn't look bad at all. Most guys you see with spiked hair with gel you can see their scalp, but I wouldn't think you were looking too thin at all, especially with the blond hair. Congrats and it looks really good laying flat. I would be happy if I was in your shoes!

[maki8787]

i think it looks good,there is big difference between your first and last photos.

Scar... i dont know... its noticable......

BTW i have a question for u guys- is trico-closure supposed to be invisible? Is hair supposed to grow thru scar?

[John_in_NC]

Your hair looks great. Don't worry about being too thin, IMO you look much better given the characteristics. Plus, you have more hair in reserve so another surgery is always an option.

 

It sucks for the scar, but once you're done with the strip, I suggest you go for a few hundred FUEs in the scar to break it down.

 

good luck,

[irish homer]

looks good slick, ther is a huge improvement from start to now, I'm at a similar stage to you and have booked my second procedure for 2 months time, I,m with u about the lack of comments that are recieved but all the pictures are being looked at so at least they may be helping someone with their decision making.

[slick old]

Thanks for the replys fellas. I think the blonde hair is both a good & bad thing in my case. It's a close match to my skin tone which is also pretty pasty white but at the same time since my skin is so light I have redness that lasts for months if I get a deep cut or scrape. The redness on the scar line really stands out against pale skin and my light blonde hair. I was a little surprised when I saw the scar after the haircut but now looking at it a few days later under bathroom light it's mostly unnoticable. I definetly notice the scar getting better by touch and I'm hoping as time goes by the redness will fade more and then hopefully it won't be visable. I did get the trico closure and tried to take it pretty easy for a few months after surgery but I did have to do some heavy work after a few months out. So far nobody has said anything but I don't think I'll be able to shave the back to a #2 like I used to ever again. That really doesn't bother me that much as I think a little more length on the back looks better anyways. I'll be sure to continue posting scar pictures to judge if it gets any better or not. I'm a little jealous of some guys who's scars are totally unnoticable after 3 or 4 months. Looks like it will take some more time for me.

[the B spot]

Hey Slick!!!! Hang in there buddy!!!!!!

 

You will be fine!!!!! In your case, you seem to have very fair skin and very thin light hair, which will take a little more hair to get coverage and a little longer for your scar to fade. I think once you give it some time, you will be just fine!!!!!!!!!

 

This is yet another reminder as to how individual physiology contributes to healing, coverage, etc....

 

Chin Up and keep us posted.

[slick old]

Hey guys went into SMG the other day for my 6 month checkup and we snapped a few photos. There's nothing in my hair in these pics but I was having a serious case of hat head that day! It's really amazing how much progress I've made and without the pictures I'd never believe how far I've really come. The change is so gradual that I never noticed the improvement until I get the before & after pictures side by side. I'm not sure why my hair looks so dark in these pictures, it does change color with the seasons but I think these might exaggerate the color a bit. I had both the Shapiros examining my scar and they agree it's nice and thin but the redness will take a little longer to fade with my fair complexion. Dr Paul commented that he had seen my pictures on the forum and thought I may have had some shockloss. I hadn't noticed any but it's hard to tell as that was the fist time I shaved my head in several years. We're hoping the shocked hair will return and he says if it will come back it should begin to grow soon. *Fingers crossed*

 

B Spot- Thanks for the advice and kind words, sorry didn't see your comments until now. I was talking with Matt about how I've been trying to keep my mind off my hair and have been taking a break from the forums for a while to focus on other things. I think this has been a good thing for me and the time seems to go by alot quicker when I'm not searching hair sites all day every day :-) Keeping my chin up now just trying to find myself a lucky lady (or 2!) Cheers all, will update in a couple weeks for 7 months.

[nobuzz4me]

The change is so gradual that I never noticed the improvement until I get the before & after pictures side by side. I'm not sure why my hair looks so dark in these pictures, it does change color with the seasons but I think these might exaggerate the color a bit. I had both the Shapiros examining my scar and they agree it's nice and thin but the redness will take a little longer to fade with my fair complexion.

 

 

 

Slick, Great job by Shapiro and by you on the documenting the journey. I am sure the doctors are right in that more scar improvement will occur with time. It sux waiting I know.

 

The nice thing about your work is that it has been gradual and not drastic. You probably have not had anyone ask you if you had work done which is a great sign and proof of the naturalness of the doc's great work. Your next round will enhance this great work already done if you decide to go for more.

 

As far as your hair color, I am not sure your age but you look late 20's or early 30's. My hair at that age was lighter and of course thicker but with time most guys with your type hair will darken some naturally over time irregardless of the season. (How many men in thier 70's color their hair blonde? )

 

Good luck in your follicle future!

[hairbank]

Slick-

 

Looks like you're coming along. I took time to thoroughly view your pics start to finish. Comparing your 6.5 month top shot you've really improved in the last month or so. Can you tell whether or not your shocked hair came back? I could tell the difference with shocked versus HT hair because my shocked hair came in bristly like beard stubble.

 

Thanks for the update...........lookin' good!

[bayscholar]

Slick,

 

For how light and fine your hair appears to be, I think you are looking very good for 6months much improved from 2 months back. Personally I really like the results you have so far, credit to Dr.Shapiro thats a major improvement for only 2091 grafts.

 

Bay

[TooThin]

Slick:

 

I think your results are very natural. You seem to have good coverage over the top of your scalp. The hair now blocks the light from passing through to the scalp.

 

Your hairloss pattern is very similar to my own. We also both have fine, straight hair. I am in the process of setting up a procedure with SMG for the early Spring. Matt and I simply need to fix a date. I hope I can get similar results. I hope you continue to update your posts. I am interested to see your progress. TooThin

[sah1974]

Slick,

 

I agree with bayscholar as your hair appears to be fairly light and fine. I think your results look really good for 6.5 months, especially with 2,091 grafts. The picture you have before/after shows a substantial improvement for you. Congratulations to you, and definitely keep updating your posts.

[slick old]

Hey guys I will definitely keep the updates coming. I remember someone saying to approach this like a science project. Take lots of photos at regular intervals and let the results speak for themselves. I'm glad to have taken monthly pictures along the way because from 5 to 6 months I didn't notice any change but by looking back I can see there has been some definite improvement. I haven't had anyone come right out and ask about my hair but the "balding" comments have stopped. It's really interesting that no one notices! I wonder if any other thinning guys at work wonder if something's up? If asked I would probably say propecia and leave it at that. I haven't told anyone except my HTN buddies and not one person has said anything, even friends and family that have known me for years!

 

As far as my shocked hair returning it's hard to tell. I notice the front is thinner than the rest but I do feel some stubble and can see lots of shorter hairs there so the good news is hair is growing but I can't tell if it's transplanted or shocked hair coming back.

 

I have to say a lot of credit is probably to the finpecia I've been on for about a year and a half now. Comparing the pre propecia to now you can easily see how the quality of the hair has improved quite a bit. I'm just glad I did something when I did. I'm sure if I wasn't on the meds I would be looking pretty thin today. I still have some paranoia about my hair but mostly I'm at ease and it feels like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders not worrying about it every second, every gust of wind, every strong light, etc. I think the dollars spent for surgery were well spent, while other friends my age are spending it on new cars and other unnecessary things, I'll keep my paid off car and spend it on something more important that will give me way more satisfaction than a new car!

[slick old]

Hey guys thought I would post the 1 year update pictures from my recent visit at SMG. I met with Matt and Dr. Ron and we all agreed the progress looks very good. However I've still been using dermmatch to give a fuller look which I'd like to get away from. I have a meeting scheduled with Dr. Paul to discuss the possibility of a second session. I'd like to make another pass to the same area as the first surgery hopefully going into the front area of the crown this time. I'd also like to do some hairline work to close the temples and do some lowering to the left side hairline which is uneven with the right side and bothers me somewhat. I hope with another 2000-2500 I'll have a nice full look that will allow me to ditch the concealer and experiment with different hair styles. I now see what everybody means by "hair greed!"

[pushing 40]

That looks great. Quite the difference between 6 months and a year.

[Arrie]

Hey Slick,

Looks great with only 2,094 for practically your whole head. I recently had a procedure done with Dr. Ron Shapiro, I received 2,054 in the front third. I hope my results come in as good as yours, did you use anything to help the healing in the scar? Looks great bud....

[TheHairLossCure]

Slick,

 

Congrats on your results. This is natural and subtle work from Dr. Paul. Glad to see it, hope you are pleased!