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Another Hair Transplant question


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  • Senior Member

Hi everyone, I have read about a lot of guys who are in their early 20's and the doctor saying they are too young to do a transplant. I understand that if your hair is recieding naturally you will want to wait and see what happens to your hair for a bout a year or so before getting a transplant

My situation is different though. Before last august I had experienced no hair loss whatsoever. I had a thick head of hair like it had allways been. I then made a mistake and went on a Testosterone and Trenbalone cycle (Steroids) at a pretty high dosage. For the 3 months i was on that ate my hairline badly.I was shocked at how fast my hair had receded. After I wnent off i have experienced NO hair loos whatso ever. I am on shampoos and propecia now and i will never ever go on Juice again, that was amistake. Would a transplant be an option for me since i did not really lose my hair naturally?

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  • Senior Member

Hi everyone, I have read about a lot of guys who are in their early 20's and the doctor saying they are too young to do a transplant. I understand that if your hair is recieding naturally you will want to wait and see what happens to your hair for a bout a year or so before getting a transplant

My situation is different though. Before last august I had experienced no hair loss whatsoever. I had a thick head of hair like it had allways been. I then made a mistake and went on a Testosterone and Trenbalone cycle (Steroids) at a pretty high dosage. For the 3 months i was on that ate my hairline badly.I was shocked at how fast my hair had receded. After I wnent off i have experienced NO hair loos whatso ever. I am on shampoos and propecia now and i will never ever go on Juice again, that was amistake. Would a transplant be an option for me since i did not really lose my hair naturally?

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  • Senior Member

Bleachcola12-

 

Welcome to HTN. It sounds like your loss may have been due to the Steroids but there's really no way to tell for sure. How long have you been using Finasteride since then? If not at least for 6 months to one year i'd wait it out to see what happens.

 

As for someone in their early 20's getting a HT I'd advise against it. There may be exceptions to this in a few cases but in a normal situation 20-23 yrs old is pretty young to guess at what your eventual loss pattern will be.

 

You may want to see a dermatologist about your condition as there could be more going on than just Male-Pattern-Baldness.

Hairbank

 

1st HT 1-18-05 - 1200 FUT's

2nd HT 2-15-06 - 3886 FUT's Dr. Wong

3rd HT 4-24-08 - 2415 FUT's Dr. Wong

 

GRAND TOTAL: 7501 GRAFTS

 

current regimen: 1.25mg finasteride every other day

 

My Hair Loss Weblog

 

Disclaimer: I'm not a Doctor (and have never played one on TV ;) ) and have no medical training. Any information I share here is in an effort to help those who don't like hair loss.

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  • Senior Member

Hi

 

Steroids increase Test levels which enhance male characteristics. Acne, agressiveness and hairloss are some of them ( yes, strength too). However, I believe they will speed up hairloss or male pattern baldness but won't cause it.. . If not it will grow back but I know a lot of guys who did juice & it did not grow back

JOBI

 

1417 FUT - Dr. True

1476 FUT - Dr. True

2124 FUT - Dr. True

604 FUE - Dr. True

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My views are based on my personal experiences, research and objective observations. I am not a doctor.

 

Total - 5621 FU's uncut!

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  • Senior Member

yeah juicing was a bad idea. I know Test and Tren can EAT UP ur hairline badly. Thats what it did to mine. My hair was perfect before that. Ive been on propecia for 4 months and i talked to a surgeon and he said to wait another couple months before thinking about a transplant

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Bleach,

 

Glad to hear you won't be going back on the "juice" again...definiately bad news. As you know, steroids increases testoserome and ultimately could have sped up the process of losing some hair early.

 

The problem is this: remember that steroids in itself does NOT make you lose hair. Look at Arnold Swartzeneger (spelling)....still has a full head of hair, and he was on steroids for years. Only hairs genetically predisposed to DHT will ultimately be lost...so the fact that you lost hair means these hairs were genetically predisposed. DHT levels were probably increased and therefore sent these hairs to an early grave.

 

Though I cannot predict the future for you...we can conclude that at least some of the hairs on your head are genetically predisposed to DHT causing hairloss. Therefore it's not advisable to get an HT at this point. If you were suffering from Alopecia, however, the advice might be different.

 

Your best course of action is the medication for now and see how it works for you. Re-evaluate your situation in a couple years.

 

Cheers,

 

Bill

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  • Senior Member

well, I understand your advice on waiting. But ive experienced no hair loss. I know that guys that are not meant to be bald will not be bald no matter how many steroids they take. Look up jay cutler, dude has a full head of hair. The bodybuilder not the football player. Ive been on propecia and minoxidil and i see no problem with the transplant. Im waiting for another 2 or 3 months to see whats up, if i feel that no hairloss has happened than why wouldnt it be ok?

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  • Senior Member
I know that guys that are not meant to be bald will not be bald no matter how many steroids they take.

 

That's exactly the point, unfortunately.

 

You DID start going bald on the steroids. Which means you've more than likely inherited some genetic susceptibility to MPB. Which means it's probably gonna be attacking your hair again, steroids or not, at some point in the future.

 

Best to wait a few years for the HT. It's aggravating to hear this, but a lot of other guys in their 20s (including me) are doing the same thing. It beats messing up your head/hair for life by acting too early.

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  • Senior Member

Bleach, the reason it wouldn't be ok is that if the hair you lost was accelerating MPB, the fact that you now stopped losing hair is only temporary. What everyone is saying is to wait a few years to make sure whether it's MPB or not.

 

What happens if you get a HT to re-establish the hairline you had 6 months ago, and start to lose hair due to MPB in 6 years? You will be faced with a hobson's choice of continuing to get HTs with a low density of hair or shaving your head so the now-unnatural strip of hair growing in the front, ahead of a bald spot, does not show.

 

The fact that you had no hairloss at all until now does not mean a thing. Nobody has hairloss until they do.

 

If I were you I'd follow this course of action:

 

- Meet with a dermatologist to see whether it's a skin condition causing it.

- If the dermatologist says it's not a skin condition, chances are good you're destined for MPB. Take finasteride for at least 6 months and see if you're not losing any more hair. If that's the case and you still opt for a HT, be sure to let the surgeon know that you're possibly destined for MPB so he knows to give you a mature hairline. That means one that's higher than then one you used to have. If you have no further hairloss by the time you're 35, you can always lower it icon_smile.gif

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  • Senior Member

Bleachcola12,

 

I'm not going to argue with any of the guys here because they know what they're talking about and really are just looking out for you. But, I'm 24 (I'll be 25 in a month) and had an ht about 6 months ago to correct my hairline which had matured. I have not experienced loss in any other areas, and had been on Propecia for about a year before I decided to go through with it. A maturing hairline is different from male pattern baldness, and seems to affect most men between the late teens to early thirties or something like that. Basically, the hairline rises a little, maybe an inch or so and about an inch and a half above the temples. Mine wasn't all that drastic, and had thinned off by the time I was like 22, and stopped there. This however doesn't mean that someone also won't experiece MPB. I didn't like my mature hairline, so I did something about it. But restoring a youthful hairline in general is a controversial topic, and one that raises ethical questions regarding hts. The thing that is weird is that you'll hear even coalition doctors say that they make exceptions and do this kind of procedure for men who rely directly on their appearence for income/livelihood, ie, models, actors, etc. So in that case it is "ethical", but for other good looking young men who are just as concerned about their appearence and whose jobs and livelihoods are also negatively affected because of thinning it is "unethical"? All I know is that at 6 months out, I feel great about it, and I am trying to plan for the future by remaining on finasteride for precaution. There are basically two different things that can happen to me:

 

1. My prediction based on family history (and precautionary measures involving medications and saving up in just in case of future loss) that I do not experience severe thinning/balding in other areas proves correct, and my hair reamins to look good.

 

2. It turns out that I am predestined to really thin or bald. I have fun for the next 5-10 years, but then Propecia stops working, I begin to thin, there are no advancements in hair restoration medications/procedures, 6000 more grafts taken from my donor area cannot makeup entirely for the loss, and I have to buzz my hair off.

 

The second scenario in my case doesn't seem that bad to me, because I only had 600 grafts, which will not create a super strong shadow effect in the hairline when compared to the rest of a buzzed head that is thinning. HOWEVER, some people will wind up getting a crap load of grafts in the front, then go bald everywhere else, resulting in an unnatural appearence that will bother them 10 times more than thinning hair. This is a huge risk that is up to the individual. Some people will argue that I made a mistake; however, if there was ever a "best" time to make a mistake in getting an early procedure, it is now. A guy who got butchered at 20 in 1987 when they performed barbaric pluggy procedures and wound up balding later is a lot different from a young man taking advantage of medications and seeking a ht in 2007. There was a thread here a couple weeks ago from a 20 year old who had a procedure done by a respectable coalition doc. I'm not telling you to do it, as it is a huge risk. But at least feel encouraged to speak to a coalition doc regarding your situation if it is really bothering you, as it seems like the times are a changin' along with attitudes about young hts. You might gain some some comfort and a little peace of mind even if they reject you right now but discuss a plan that you could possibly pursue in the next few years. I remember I saw my doc at the beginning of the summer. After assessing my situation and confirming that I was mature enough, he scheduled me for the Fall because he was booked until then (but said it was better to not have the summer heat and sun directly after the ht anyway). I wound up going in Nov. 2, 2006, 6 months later. During all that time in between, I was at peace because I knew I had done something about it. I'm not saying that being told to wait a few years is just as easy, but if it comes directly from a doc who you eventually want to work with, it might get you psyched. icon_wink.gif

-------

 

All opinions are my own and my advice should not constitute as medical advice.

 

View my My Hair Loss Website

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  • Regular Member

Hey youngsuccess ,

 

Steroids do not cause baldness, however, they can speed the process up for those who are going to lose it anyway. Steroids convert largely into DHT, causing hair loss to quicken. I saw this phenomenon occur in a 20 year old cancer patient where after he received Chemo, lost his hair, It grew back as a freaking Class VI.

Anyway, I don't think you made a mistake going for the HT at your age. Based on your post you are very informed of the problems revolving around further potential loss and you realize that you may be committed for further procedures. It sounds like you were a Norwood Class II when you got your transplant so you may be back to a Class I. Now the Propecia may hold you forever or it may not. There are two other medications if you feel that you Propecia is waning. Of course you need to discuss these options with your doc. And no, Propecia is the most prescibed, time tested,and is a single receptor blocker. Avodart is a dual receptor blocker.

 

If all fails, and the loss is such that you can touch it up from time because it is gradual enough, then I would consider FUE or FIT. That way you won't cut too many strips out over a long period of time. If however your loss advances rapidly, then I would definitely try to move a one time large strip excision and then maybe follow up with some FUE/FIT into the scar if need be. Many surgeons are perfecting the closure technique better than they used to however no one can predict the outcome of any post operative scar.

 

Take Care

Thomas Ortiz

Thomas Ortiz, BS

Hair Technologist

James Harris, MD

 

Previous experience with Rose, MD Mwamba,MD, Devroye, MD, Bridges, MD, Cooley, MD, Bisanga, MD, (Bosley/MHR/PAI/Nuhart brief work to understand corporate hair restoration concepts), Cole, MD.

 

Experience in Procedure: FUT/FUE/Fi_T/Repair Cases/MUT.

I offer unbiased information. I am not compensated to post.

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Bleach,

 

As you can see, I'm not alone in my advice. AND, I am not the only one who warned you of the fact that steroids in itself did not cause your hairloss, your genetic predisposition did, most likely sped up by the steroids.

 

It's obviously your choice. But at your age and the unknown risk factor ahead, you don't know what's in store regarding future hairloss. There is no definite either way. It's just all about minimizing risk.

 

When you get a chance, read this message I posted and decide for yourself:

 

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/showthread.php?t=152790

 

Bill

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  • Senior Member

O guys, I just want to thank you all though for giving me advice. I really do appreciate it.

I have been on propecia for 5 months and have experienced no hair loss. I understand that if i did nothing i would eventually go bald. I know that steroids cause a huge acceleration of hair loss, and i do realize that i could take all thet steroids in the world and if im not prone to hair loss then i wouldnt get nay hair loss.

I did talk to a surgeon and he recommend i wait 2-3 months to see if there is any growth and that transplant might be an option

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  • Senior Member

Bleachcola12,

 

Glad to hear that you're taking the right steps.

 

Hairtech,

 

Thanks for the info and support.

 

Everyone else,

 

I don't want anyone to think that I'm challenging them on the advice that most people seeking hts at a young age should probably wait. I just try to offer my opinions and experience from my procedure, and try to present both sides of the argument. It might seem that I am in favor of the young guys jumping in and going for it by basically saying, "Well I did it", but I just want everyone to know that it isn't my intention.

-------

 

All opinions are my own and my advice should not constitute as medical advice.

 

View my My Hair Loss Website

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youngsuccess,

 

You are always allowed to have an opinion my friend...don't feel you have to apologize for it. When there is an "gray" issue, I often play both sides of the fence in order to create an argument that will end up in further education of all people. Nothing wrong with that.

 

Bill

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  • Regular Member

Kudos to Bill...

 

Posters usually develop their own personalities. After a while other posters know them so they usually don't worrying have to apologize for everything. Say what mean, Mean what you say. A good poster will be honest and defend is/herself without worring about stepping on someone else's feet.

Thomas Ortiz

Thomas Ortiz, BS

Hair Technologist

James Harris, MD

 

Previous experience with Rose, MD Mwamba,MD, Devroye, MD, Bridges, MD, Cooley, MD, Bisanga, MD, (Bosley/MHR/PAI/Nuhart brief work to understand corporate hair restoration concepts), Cole, MD.

 

Experience in Procedure: FUT/FUE/Fi_T/Repair Cases/MUT.

I offer unbiased information. I am not compensated to post.

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  • Regular Member

Ok finally... I passed your tests... whew!

 

Thanks...c you all later.

Thomas Ortiz

Thomas Ortiz, BS

Hair Technologist

James Harris, MD

 

Previous experience with Rose, MD Mwamba,MD, Devroye, MD, Bridges, MD, Cooley, MD, Bisanga, MD, (Bosley/MHR/PAI/Nuhart brief work to understand corporate hair restoration concepts), Cole, MD.

 

Experience in Procedure: FUT/FUE/Fi_T/Repair Cases/MUT.

I offer unbiased information. I am not compensated to post.

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