Hair Transplant (new to forum)

[rayj8]

Hey everyone. I've been browsing around as guest for a while and finally created a profile here tonight (yes, on NYE) to post this topic. Thought I'd introduce myself, since I made the decision to start pursuing a HT and had some questions.

 

I've been losing my hairline since 19 years old, just turned 26 last week. It has been gradual but the speed has picked up this year, so I started Propecia 2 months ago. I know it will only get worse since it runs in my genes (my father's dad has male pattern baldness; my father has a full head of hair).

 

It's really affecting my social life (as you can see, I flaked out on three plans to go out on NYE), so I want to recover quickly with a hair transplant. I haven't lost all my hair, but my hair stylist purposely cuts my hair in a way to make it less noticeable. The temples are becoming more and more apparent, and recedes close to 3-4 inches from my eyebrow. The top is very thin and fragile although I think Propecia has slowed it down.

 

The Doctor I'm thinking of going with is Dr. Feller, since his results seem to be nothing but excellent and also he is in my hometown (a huge PLUS). I've yet to make an appointment.

 

The concern I'm having is that I haven't lost everything yet, but I know I will, and I want to have a HT now to replace what I've lost and WILL lose. Priority to me is the frontal hairline. What is the procedure for this? I.e. shave everything and transplant new grafts in place of current hair follicles?

 

Apologies for the long post!

[thanatopsis_awry]

O man, m8....beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but in the eyes of many and most you really don't have a terrible head of hair; yes, you have MPB, but your hair *truly* isn't something you should feel terribly shamed about as I can glean from that pic.

 

I really feel for you to be effected so as to turn down NYE plans on account of feeling so embarrassed by the state of your hair.

 

Nonetheless, for a frontal restoration you could be a very good candidate for a great restoration. Consult with several Coalition docs -- live or online. Dr. Feller in person would be a great start.

 

Just make sure you really have a good grasp for the result you will likely get with a given prognosis,and that you don't have expectations and desires that can't feasibly be met.

[rayj8]

Thanks Thana for your comments. You were actually the result that tipped me over into making the decision, it really looks great.

 

I posted another pic, the receding at the temples is almost half-way towards the back of my head. You're right though, I'm still happy that I have enough hair to cover the rest of my head. But I think if I were to go with a shorter style, it will be very different.

 

Planning on calling to make the appointment with Dr. Feller during the next week. I also emailed Spex to possibly get some of his advice.

[Atomic]

I think a new hairstyle/cut will go a long way.

If you can, try to hold out on the HT as long as possible.

I'd love to see some pics with a new doo.

[Time2DoSomeThing]

ur hair look gr8....do not even consider HT....be on medicine.....I guess u do not need HT for next 5-6 years atleast

[mattj]

If hairloss is effecting your self esteem as bad as that then a transplant might be a good choice, assuming that you're well aware of what is involved, the time it takes to grow in, the risks, etc.

 

Your hairloss seems to be progressing slowly and you're now on proscar so you might be a pretty good candidate. Just don't be too greedy. Regardless of what the really young MPB sufferers might say, a somewhat mature hairline does look good on a man.

[EpilepticSceptic]

I know you'd really like to believe that you can chase your hairloss with HTs and make it seem as though nothing ever happened, but the harsh truth IMO is that young patients (30 and under)who still have alot of hair remaining and whose hairloss pattern has not fully matured are not good cantidates at all. No doc (even the best) has a crystal ball to look into the future and see exactly where you will end up; and especially at your age, there is a substantial amount of time left for MPB to do it's dirty work. From age 25 to 30 is probably the most damaging time for a large percentage of guys who end up NW6. And you've just been on propecia for 2 months, so you can't be sure what the effectiveness of it will be or how bad the side effects will be. Some guys have severe erectile dysfunction after 6 months and have to get off it. Imagine if youv'e already had your HT and then this happens ? You'll be between a rock and a hard place, and you'll be on the cosmetic surgery treadmill of just trying to look like a normal person again. And this isn't even factoring in the financial hardship you could be setting up for yourself.

Another major problem in your situation is the issue of figuring out how many grafts to place in the frontal hairline area, because if and when everything else behind it goes where will you be then ? It will look completely unnatural and the idea of being bald suddenly will seem like a hallowed lost birthright by comparison. If you don't believe me then spend some more time on the "repair section" of various hairloss sites (HLH, Hairsite, etc.) and you'll get a quick dose of reality from guys who took the plunge in their mid 20s and looked good for a couple years, then found themselves on the HT treadmill. If the level of loss you have right now bothers you to the point where you'd rather stay inside for NYE, then the aforementioned scenario would probably make you a complete hermit who lived under a hat at all times cursing the day you ever sat in that top doc's chair.

 

This may be just my opinion, but I don't consider anyone under 40 who thinks he will have significant further loss to be a good HT cantidate. On the other hand, guys who are 25 and already a NW 6 and have great donor characterisitics I believe can be good cantidates. Not knowing to what level your hairloss will progress (and when) is a terrible position to be in for considering a HT. They'll have to plant grafts in between existing semi-healthy native hairs, and when those fall out you will be left with a very unnatural look. Why ? Because normal balding does not look like that, with healthy terminal hairs spaced too far apart exiting the scalp.

[mattj]

I think it's a mistake to speak of 30 as any sort of real threshold beyond which it is safe to get a transplant. Many men don't begin to lose hair until their thirties and some are older still. Male Pattern Baldness is, after all, something associated with older men. I've lost count of the number of men I've seen who had full heads of hair past the age of thirty and then ended up at the high end of the Norwood scale.

 

I understand that the issue is one of averages and diminishing risks, and you do mention 40 as a better age to get a transplant, but I sometimes think that thirty-somethings who read these forums might be getting the wrong idea that they've reached some sort of finish line.