Guest Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 I had my first HT 5 weeks ago and no one knows about it besides the medical staff that preformed the surgery and the 20 million people reading this post. I do not want anyone to know I've had the procedure and I'm curious if this is a common feeling of others who've had hair transplants? I'm also getting real nervous (especially with my shock loss) about the result of the surgery... when can I expect a notable improvement in my hair (or lack of it)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 I had my first HT 5 weeks ago and no one knows about it besides the medical staff that preformed the surgery and the 20 million people reading this post. I do not want anyone to know I've had the procedure and I'm curious if this is a common feeling of others who've had hair transplants? I'm also getting real nervous (especially with my shock loss) about the result of the surgery... when can I expect a notable improvement in my hair (or lack of it)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Mr T Posted August 24, 2003 Senior Member Share Posted August 24, 2003 Varsity, My opinion is you can expect noticable results in about four months. You'll see things happening before then, but not enough to really make a difference. The difference is enough that I've stopped wearing a baseball cap as much as I did prior to my surgery which was four months and a week ago. Mr. T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Joecifus Posted August 25, 2003 Regular Member Share Posted August 25, 2003 In my second procedure, I lost almost all (thousands) of the new hairs, but only about 10 or so existing due to shock loss. I'm pretty sure of this # cause I rubbed my scalp every day for weeks over the sink in order to get a good feeling of this number. So, I wouldn't freak out over it. It's up to you about who notices. After reading this forum for a long time - I've concluded that the only people who care - At all- are the hair recipients, not anyone else they meet at any time. So, it's up to you. My Pix and Hair Mentor page with advice on Choosing a Doc, anti-swelling and healing advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 Varsity. If you read the board long enough you'll see that many people get jittery within a short time after surgery. It's not unusual to worry about whether your old hair and your grafts will grow in. The grafts will grow and all but any hair that you were about to lose anyway will grow back. Many people have shock loss and some have redness and discoloration. It does take four to six months to see some growth of the new grafts and discoloration can linger for several months. I'm in month 8 post-op and my hair is still thickening rapidly. After my previous surgery I had improvement up until about 1 year. If you click on my photos to enlarge them, you can see the progress from day 8, to month 4, to month 8. Day 8 would have been very scarey to me if I hadn't had surgery before. Since I knew what to expect, it wasn't so bad. If you are determined to conceal your surgery, products like Toppik and Dermamatch are popular coverups. Several people on the board have also said that they've had success covering scalp discoloration by using self-tanning products. It can require some effort to conceal your surgery, but often it can be done. For a great example of someone who chose not to hide his surgery, check Jotronic's posts. He decided to be very public about his surgeries and I think it was a great decision for him. My surgery with Dr. Sharon Keene: http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/paul148148/lst?&.dir=/Transplant+Photos&.src=ph&.view=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 Even after researching and deciding the surgery was a worthy risk, I'm still not convinced. Perhaps I have a deep-rooted fear of deadly vanity... but I doubt it. I just can't muster the confidence I need in the science of hair transplants (vs. cardiology or orthodepic surgery for example). My concern is not that my hair situation is worse, but that it will not improve. My pessimistic side often gets the better of me... and I hope I prove myself wrong in 4 months or so. I read and am told that additional hair transplants can be performed after four months (I am not considering additional procedures at this time). Would anyone suggest additional surgeries before 100% results from prior surgery? I can't place that much faith in a doctor or in my bodies ability to accept the transplants and grow new hairs. Just curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member NC30 Posted August 26, 2003 Senior Member Share Posted August 26, 2003 4 months is a very bad idea. I think you have to first judge what the final growth is on an HT before you consider moving forward with another. Especially if you are considering adding more grafts to the area which has just been implanted. Just like the previous posts on thread....give it some time. I'm just over 5 months post-op and I believe my growth may have started a little late. It's hard to tell the start of growth in my circumstance, but regardless, I understand that it's going to be at least a year before I know the final results. Focus on the future, because once the hair comes in, people arent going to remember these couple lean months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 26, 2003 Share Posted August 26, 2003 Hang in there kiddo! You're having post-op regrets and paranoia like we all get! I have had 4 surgeries and everytime post op I stand in the mirror and say "There is no way i got what I payed for" and "This doesn't look like 1500 fu's!" Than it begins to grow thicker and thicked and you start to settle down. Relax, who did your surgery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 26, 2003 Share Posted August 26, 2003 Dr. Pomerantz of Chicago Hair Institute. Chicago Hair Institute Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 26, 2003 Share Posted August 26, 2003 Varsity, My first surgery was with Dr. Pomerantz. How many grafts did you receive and in what area(s)of your scalp? My surgery with Dr. Sharon Keene: http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/paul148148/lst?&.dir=/Transplant+Photos&.src=ph&.view=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 26, 2003 Share Posted August 26, 2003 I am currently at 7 weeks post-op and I too, am extremely worried about the result. I know how you feel...the waiting period seems endless. I would think a second proceedure is a good idea, however, wait at least about a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 27, 2003 Share Posted August 27, 2003 I had surgery with Marc Pomerantz in October 2001. How many grafts did you receive and where were they placed? Are the grafts still growing? Paul My surgery with Dr. Sharon Keene: http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/paul148148/lst?&.dir=/Transplant+Photos&.src=ph&.view=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 27, 2003 Share Posted August 27, 2003 Paul, Dr. Pomerantz gave me 1200 grafts... front and crown. I really don't know if they are growing (5 wks. post-op). He claimed they were growing at my 2wk. follow-up. The "bristle" feeling is not as pronounced when I run my hand across my head now. How did your surgery with Pomerantz turn-out? What do you think of him. He comes across as a wierd dude, but he's been very professional and knowledgable when I ask questions. I still haven't formed an opinion of him, but hopefully it will be a good one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 27, 2003 Share Posted August 27, 2003 Varsity: My procedure with Dr. Pomerantz was definitely not "stand alone." I needed a second surgery because the results did not look totally natural after the first surgery. Because Dr. P uses a punch for the recipient sites, the hairs in the hairline can't be placed close enough together to achieve a really natural looking hairline in one session. Dr. Pomerantz told me, and he has told others, that the use of a punch for recipient sites reduces the risk of cobblestoning and also yields better coverage because the punch removes scalp tissue. First, the better surgeons don't have a problem with cobblestoning. Second, I'm not at all sold on the idea that the punch provided better coverage by simply reducing scalp tissue. Although it was not obvious to others, close inspection of my scalp showed considerable scar tissue left by the punch. My second surgeon, Dr. Keene, confirmed that I had quite a bit of scar tissue. I was also disatisfied with Dr. Pomerantz's selection of follicular units for the hairline. He included some 2 hair units and he did not seem to carefully select finer hairs to create a soft look in the hairline. Another problem with Dr. Pomerantz is that his staff did not use high powered microscopes for dissection of the grafts. I know two other people who had 2 procedures each with Pomerantz, and their final results looked pretty good after all was said and done. However, I think my result after surgery with Dr. Keene is considerably better than the Pomerantz patients I know. I want to give you a realistic assessment of my own experience, but I don't want to unduly alarm you either. Dr. Pomerantz is not producing the disaters that many on this site have experienced. Nor should you consider the work done so far to be a waste. You've got something to start with and a second surgery with a good surgeon will easily bring you up to a great result. Finally, although he's reduced his prices, Pomerantz was charging an arm and a leg compared to much better surgeons the last time I checked. Considering that he is not using the latest techniques, he has a small staff and minimal advertising, I find his prices very hard to swallow in retrospect. For the same price I paid to him, I received 50% more grafts from Dr. Keene, in a much better facility with a surgeon who does fantastic work. She is very hands on and highly skilled. I noticed a difference almost immediately as she began to make recipient incisions. She had an incredibly light, precise touch and stamina that just blew me away. Dr. Keene also had a larger staff, working with high powered microscopes. I also found the ambience of Arizona more pleasant than Ogden Avenue. And, yes, Dr. P is an unusual character. My surgery with Dr. Sharon Keene: http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/paul148148/lst?&.dir=/Transplant+Photos&.src=ph&.view=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 28, 2003 Share Posted August 28, 2003 Joe, you're right about the wait time after surgery (and the suggestion that there are only a few great surgeons). I didn't mention it, but even Pomerantz said that six months was the minimum wait time for another surgery. In my case, full recovery from shock loss took about a year. Personally, I would wait at least that amount of time between surgeries so that the surgeon won't damage follicles that have not yet begun to regrow hair after the first surgery. Of course, if there has been little shock fallout or if surgery was performed on a very bald scalp, the wait could be reduced. My surgery with Dr. Sharon Keene: http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/paul148148/lst?&.dir=/Transplant+Photos&.src=ph&.view=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 29, 2003 Share Posted August 29, 2003 Paul, Thanks for your opinion. I spent a year researching and seeing doctors before deciding on Pomerantz. With hind sight being 20-20, my "research" seems to be much more effective after the fact. I have no reason to distrust Dr. P's methods or my procedure right now. I am leary of the entire practice of hair transplants and can't help but view it as "witch craft." It does not have the respect or number of experienced practioners of many other medical practices. Nonetheless, I've placed a large amount of stock in what I consider a gamble, and that is very out of character for me. I was most concerned with Pomerantz's use of punches, but eventually decided his method seemed valid even if not cutting edge technology. I began noticing hair loss about two years ago (I'm 26 now) and it became noticeable to others in the last 6 months or so. I am a Norwood 3 Vertex... the pattern is apparent, but hair loss would probably be considered minimal compared to others in this class. My hairline has stayed almost completely intact since my hair loss began. I saw 4 doctors, and discarding the opinion of the car salesman from MHR they all seem to think I will experience "thinning" and probably not "balding" over the course of my hair loss. Given that I have plenty of existing hair to cover the grafts, and vast majority believes I will retain much of this original hair (although I have my own doubts), do you think Pomernatz's methods will return suitable results? I get the impression that you feel Dr. P does a decent job of "roughing it in" but someone else would be more suitable for finish work. If I retain as much hair as various doctors think I might, I'm not going to worry too much. If I lose significant amounts of hair in the future I don't think I would consider Pomerantz again based on the knowledge I have now. No doubt my hair will thin with age and I'll accept that... my concern is being mid twenties (through the next 15 or 20 years) with very obvious hair loss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 29, 2003 Share Posted August 29, 2003 Varsity, You did exactly what I did. I don't have any regrets, although my education after the first surgery was also much more fruitful than what I managed to learn prior to that surgery. If I were starting again from scratch, I would have skipped the experience with Pomerantz and gone with a larger procedure with someone else. But, as you say, hindsight is 20/20. I hadn't thought of the carpentry analogy, but it works pretty well in this case. I'm sure you'll be fine, and if like me, you need a little more work, it won't be difficult to find an excellent surgeon to do the "finish" work. Paul My surgery with Dr. Sharon Keene: http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/paul148148/lst?&.dir=/Transplant+Photos&.src=ph&.view=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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