Come right in....take a look at my hairloss

[sjd12]

So here's the deal. I've been losing my hair slowly (death by a thousand cuts) over the past 6 or 7 years and its finally started to get to the point where the loss is starting to bug me. I've been lurking on this and other sites for the past few years and am thisclose to taking the plunge. I've posted here a few times before but with little advice. I'm 32 almost 33 and have been on finasteride for almost 18 months and minxodil for the past 5 or so years. The finasteride seems to have stabilized the loss in the vertex and mid-scalp and actually seems to have thickened a bit. I can still see my hairline and temple area thinning, albeit slower. My father is 57 a NW5-6 with high sides, although I must say I have my mother's side of the family hair characteristics (thick and dense and of Southern European heritage). My question is this....I'm looking for advice on whether I'm a candidate for FUE, as I am still hesitant on having a long scar in the back of my head at this age in my life. Secondly, how many grafts would be ideal to get a nice NW2-3 hairline. I look forward to hearing everyone's comments.

 

 

 

[sjd12]

So here's the deal. I've been losing my hair slowly (death by a thousand cuts) over the past 6 or 7 years and its finally started to get to the point where the loss is starting to bug me. I've been lurking on this and other sites for the past few years and am thisclose to taking the plunge. I've posted here a few times before but with little advice. I'm 32 almost 33 and have been on finasteride for almost 18 months and minxodil for the past 5 or so years. The finasteride seems to have stabilized the loss in the vertex and mid-scalp and actually seems to have thickened a bit. I can still see my hairline and temple area thinning, albeit slower. My father is 57 a NW5-6 with high sides, although I must say I have my mother's side of the family hair characteristics (thick and dense and of Southern European heritage). My question is this....I'm looking for advice on whether I'm a candidate for FUE, as I am still hesitant on having a long scar in the back of my head at this age in my life. Secondly, how many grafts would be ideal to get a nice NW2-3 hairline. I look forward to hearing everyone's comments.

 

 

 

[HairIsThere]

Hey man..from what I can see you look like a really good candidate for either an FUE or FUT. You have pretty coarse hair it looks like and if it has really been 6 or 7 years since you have started losing your hair then IMO you are in pretty good shape!! It seems like you are losing hair very slowly. You have virtually zero loss in the mid-scalp and crown which is good because your transplant can be a little more aggressive in the frontal 1/3 of your scalp without the fear of progressive hairloss later on (that is if you stay on Propecia). I think you would get really good results after an HT because with your hair texture and thickness you could probably achieve a pretty good density with only 1 HT. I know you are hesistant about an FUT because of the scar, but it's really not that bad. I'm only about 3 and a half weeks out from my 1st HT and my scar looks great...I had a double layer suture though which is supposed to help out tremendously so I recommend that you request getting that. If you do that and follow the post-op instructions (like no heavy weightlifting for a while) then it should be essentially undetectable.

[TheEmperor]

YOu could dink around with FUE, get small numbers of grafts and have thin coverage. . .

 

Or, you could blast the area with 3500-4000 strip grafts and have close to original density.

 

Given that you may progress to a NW5-6, I would urge you to consider strip. I had a strip surgery and am unhappy with my scar, but because you have coarse hair, the scar would be well hidden.

 

Fue procedure is usually only recommended for those with mild loss as there is a higher rate of transection and generally lower yield.

[the B spot]

Hmmm --- Hi Sj--your right in that sort of middle ground--either FUE or strip would be fine, imho.

 

Your comment about worrying about the scar should lean you toward FUE, but again your really left with either choice.

 

It looks as if 1600-1800 grafts would do the trick---your pattern of loss dictates that we work around and enhance your forelock---then go back from the forelock into the thin middle section for some density.

 

It looks as if there is a little crown thinning so we would want to be a little careful with the grafts used. I know the temptation would be to do more, but you still have quite a bit of hair--we need to get those thin/bald sections filled--recreate a bit of the hairline/temples--then go back toward the crown right in the middle.

Touching the very front of the forelock would have to be determined in person--but would be no problem if the doctor felt it was necessary.

 

Obviously, this is just an estimate--you would need to send your pics in for Dr. Ron to have a look for his approach to meet your wants and needs.

 

Take Care,

Jason

[El Nino]

IMO, you would have no problem hiding a strip scar with your thick hair. I also agree with Emperor about the graft numbers.

[sjd12]

I appreciate all the advice and information. I'd be interested sending in additional higher quality photos for thoughts from the docs.

 

While I'd love to have my hair look the same as it did 10 years ago, I think I'd much rather err on the side caution. My biggest fear is I get too aggressive and then the rest of my hair ends up falling out in 5 years.

[FacelessMan]

sjd12,

 

With regard to your scar concerns: my own hair is much finer than yours, and, even within a few months after my last surgery, I had a haircut shorter than the one pictured in your photos (check out this photo and this photo from my blog), without any visible scar that I could detect.

 

Benjamin

[sjd12]

Spex,

 

I PM'd you additional photos to have Dr. Feller take a look at and get his thoughts.

 

Thanks.