Do all new hairs grow and thicken?

[Megatron]

Do you guys think all new transplanted hairs lengthen and thicken properly? I'm not talking about yield. I'm referring to the hairs that successfully sprout, but that are initially very fine and almost invisible.

[TakingThePlunge]

Megatron,

 

Based on my experience, I don't believe that all new hairs will eventually lengthen and thicken.

 

One year past my first HT and after experiencing less than optimal growth, Dr. Alexander examined my recipient area and mentioned that there were still many fine, light hairs that had not matured. He recommended that I wait four more months before scheduling my second procedure to see if any of those hairs would mature.

 

I did get some more maturation during that time but not all of them became darker and thicker.

 

I think the rule with hair transplant surgery is that there are no rules. Each patient's experience seems to be unique.

[azn_guy]

with that said, what about on the hairline? what happens when some are thick, some are fine, it would create an inconsistency. Most people that have a full head of hair, you'll notice that the hairline all the hairs are thick, not fine (obviously as it gradually goes to the temples, it does thin out by design)

 

How does a HT Doctor ensure he places the correct grafts in the correct location so there is consistency?

[TakingThePlunge]

azn_guy,

 

I'm not sure if I follow you. All the hairs in a given follicular unit should have similar characteristics up until the point that they are transplanted and then shed. When the grafts begin producing new hairs, those hairs will first be light in color and fine in texture until they mature.

 

The question here, as I understand it, is whether or not all of the new hairs will eventually become darker and thicker.

 

This is something that can't be predicted or planned for in advance by the hair transplant surgeon since the result is not based on the characteristics of the original hair follicle but rather its individual response to transplantation.

[hero85]

how long does it take from you see them the first time (small and fine)

until they are thick and have color? 1 month, 2 months?....

[Megatron]

azn_guy - I actually think one of the issues w/ some transplanted hairlines can be when every single hair is thick and dark which may look a little unnatural if the rest of the scalp has naturally occurring miniturization of hairs.

 

taking the plunge - I think what you're saying makes sense in that each individual has a different response to tranplanted hairs. that said, I wonder if it's safe to say that "mostly all" should get dark & thicken in all probability.

 

hero - I think the first baby hairs I got took about 2 months to darken and thicken to a respectable level where it was still thin, but at least I could easily see it. that said, I have a lot of baby thin, transparent hairs that sprouted not so long ago so I'm routing for them.

[getitoverwith]

azn_guy,

 

your 4 months pics look pretty good.. good luck further down the road...

[TheEmperor]

No, in my experience, hairs are not guaranteed to grow in with the original thickness. I feel that there is some % that technically grow, but do not thicken enough to become cosmetically significant, and probably die at some point down the road.

[hairlosscursed]

I totally agree with the emperor and all the above statements BUT....i have to make a good question to all of us...Why we all have to pay thousands of $$$ to a science that is totally unreliable and with many doupts...i mean yield doupts growing doupts and don t get me wrong...tons of doupts...since this hair loss industry is FULL of doupts why we pay EXTREMELY large amounts of $$$?just for some improvement???if yes i would agree if the prices would at 1/3 of the present prices maybe less...all i mean that we pay A LOT OF MONEY and stress for something unsure...WHY???ok i don t need anyone to tell me that it s a free country...i already know that...all i m asking you is if these HUGE costs of HT s you think really deserve all these????maybe for 10% of the cases i ve seen YES...all the others is just some little improvement or disaster...there are many many factors affecting an ht that i m sure that science is STILL make experiments on our heads our lives and our souls....until they find the final solution which will prohibited for us.i mean extremely expensive...i m tired of discovering something new about the hair loss science EVERY DAY in different forums....i m sorry im not a doctor...i m a patient.i m paying some money and lot of my life to have some services not to be one more experimental animal for future solutions...finally i tell you this..THE BATTLE OF HAIRLOSS is already lost...not now but many many years ago...since man is trying to cure this curse magicians were take advantage of this selling anything you can imagine to people like us...guess who are the losers...all of us except some 10% exceptions with really good results and addicted to propecia and minoxidil for the rest of their lifes.guess who is the winner???hairloss industry...ht doctors medicine companies forums tv commercials etc...thank you

Edited June 20, 2010 by hairlosscursed

[aaron1234]

But all of those pluggy, horrible jobs we see... a lot of the hair still looks healthy. Of course, this doesn't apply to every one of them. But men who got those crappy plugs in the 80's still deal with them now (or they have to get a repair job). So obviously, more than enough hair will stick around to make a difference, for better or worse.

[Megatron]

I totally agree with the emperor and all the above statements BUT....i have to make a good question to all of us...Why we all have to pay thousands of $$$ to a science that is totally unreliable and with many doupts...i mean yield doupts growing doupts and don t get me wrong...tons of doupts...since this hair loss industry is FULL of doupts why we pay EXTREMELY large amounts of $$$?just for some improvement???if yes i would agree if the prices would at 1/3 of the present prices maybe less...all i mean that we pay A LOT OF MONEY and stress for something unsure...WHY???ok i don t need anyone to tell me that it s a free country...i already know that...all i m asking you is if these HUGE costs of HT s you think really deserve all these????maybe for 10% of the cases i ve seen YES...all the others is just some little improvement or disaster...there are many many factors affecting an ht that i m sure that science is STILL make experiments on our heads our lives and our souls....until they find the final solution which will prohibited for us.i mean extremely expensive...i m tired of discovering something new about the hair loss science EVERY DAY in different forums....i m sorry im not a doctor...i m a patient.i m paying some money and lot of my life to have some services not to be one more experimental animal for future solutions...finally i tell you this..THE BATTLE OF HAIRLOSS is already lost...not now but many many years ago...since man is trying to cure this curse magicians were take advantage of this selling anything you can imagine to people like us...guess who are the losers...all of us except some 10% exceptions with really good results and addicted to propecia and minoxidil for the rest of their lifes.guess who is the winner???hairloss industry...ht doctors medicine companies forums tv commercials etc...thank you

 

I feel your frustration man. I think you make raise some very valid and important points. However, I do want to say that not all HT doctors are bad guys. Some of them really do explain the pros & cons and do their best to achieve a good result for their patients.

 

Note, if you google this forum you'll see that the title says, "Hair Transplant? Be Careful! Hair transplants can be great, if you ...." so I think forums like this are extremely useful and productive in spreading important information about HTs. Heck, if it wasn't for this forum I might have ended up under Dr. Armani's knife

 

With regards to the $$$. That's a tough call. One may say that if there are people willing to pay it, then you can't fault the doctors for the prices they charge (i.e. supply & demand). While, others like you may claim that some doctors prey on the insecurities and vulnerability of desparate, unknowledgeable guys. I think it's a combination of the two. There definitely are unscrupulous doctors out there that will happily overcharge you for their services and pretend to be something they're not (i.e., like Dr. Armani's $21 per graft VIP package!!!). But, you also have to realize that this is a labour intensive surgery with significant cost. If you do your homework you'll find that there are some pretty reasonably priced HT docs out there. Unfortunately, their not in all major cities so for some it requires major travel and inconvenience.

 

In summary, I think you're being a little harsh, but I understand and empathize with your message.

[TheEmperor]

But all of those pluggy, horrible jobs we see... a lot of the hair still looks healthy. Of course, this doesn't apply to every one of them. But men who got those crappy plugs in the 80's still deal with them now (or they have to get a repair job). So obviously, more than enough hair will stick around to make a difference, for better or worse.

 

The plug jobs were transplanted with all the supporting tissue around them. I think hypercutting of modern FU surgery has something to do with poor yield and possible early death of follicles.

 

Basically the smaller the grafts, the lower the yield. (See Beehner study chubby vs skinny) I presume that skinny grafts will give up the ghost more than chubby ones. Doubt study tracked them long term.

[TheEmperor]

I feel your frustration man. I think you make raise some very valid and important points. However, I do want to say that not all HT doctors are bad guys. Some of them really do explain the pros & cons and do their best to achieve a good result for their patients.

.

 

Yes, the doctors try to achieve the best result for their patients, but it is a HUGE sales job. I specifically asked if removing a strip would make the bald spot larger. I noted that pulling down the skin on the back of you head causes your whole scalp to move backwards. But I was told that strip surgery does not make the bald spot larger. Thats what I wanted to hear, despite logic telling me it wasnt true. (Incidentally, Hasson has a patient on HLH titled "Strip Scar Too High", and I honestly believe that guy is an evolution in strip. The way his strip was taken should leave much less scalp to stretch and because it is higher up, more scalp underneath will pull upwards.. It is much easier to camoflage a thin scar should the hair reced downward, than raise the whole rim up 2cm. Wish I had done something like that or maybe FUE.)

 

I know that before the procedure, Joe was saying things like "Dr. Wong saw your pictures and he is excited to work on you." and "You are in the driver's seat" and "we expect very good things for you". At the in person consult, Wong said he expected my results would be better than Joe's.

 

After the procedure, the tenor changed to one of realism and downward expectations. A week after the procedure I had expressed excitement about the coming growth, and how tightly the grafts were packed, and Joe cautioned me that it was not going to look full when the scabs were gone. Its like he has different messages depending on where you are in the process. I doubt he can remember the nuances of the thousands of conversations he has, so he probably just dispenses generic advice. The pre-op message is VERY optimistic. Post op message is sobering realism and patience.

Edited June 21, 2010 by TheEmperor

[stamos]

Nice comments by TheEmperor.

 

Personally I am more interested in the original Megatron's question: Do all new hairs grow and thicken? Is it possible to get some more replies?

[Megatron]

^I too want more opinions on whether all new hairs grow, thicken and darken. Until then allow me to digress...

 

TheEmperor - what do you mean that strip makes the bald spot larger? do you mean that it pulls the hairline backward causing it to recess??

 

TheEmperor - I have no doubt that a lot of the HT industry is a big sales job with optimism at first and sober thoughts second, as you said. However, I do want to say that I don't think Dr. Simmons works like that. Honestly, I don't think he'd make a good salesman even if he tried I mean that in the most respectful way possible. I felt like our consultation was more about him trying to adjust my expectations downward (which he did) rather than trying to pitch me on getting a HT. The first thing he did was explain that a HT was all about creating an illusion and that achieved density wouldn't be the same as what nature first created. He also stated that he thought we should plan as if I were to need 3 procedures (front, crown and then top) to be on the safe side. I also know of a woman that he advised against a HT for the time being. So, that's why I said I don't think all HT docs are hard sellers.

[TakingThePlunge]

Megatron,

 

Yes, I think it's fair to say that the expectation is that most to all of the hairs will become darker and coarser but I always try to avoid speaking in certainties when it comes to hair transplantation.

[Megatron]

Megatron,

 

Yes, I think it's fair to say that the expectation is that most to all of the hairs will become darker and coarser but I always try to avoid speaking in certainties when it comes to hair transplantation.

 

understood, but at the same time talking in generality and never daring to take a stand is pretty useless. I think forum members are intelligent enough to take everyone's opinions with a grain of salt. but, if no one is offering their two cents than what's the point of a forum. so, thanks for your opinion...I promise not to hunt you down if mine don't turn dark and coarser

[TakingThePlunge]

Megatron,

 

Please don't misunderstand my intention. I'm not trying to sugar coat anything or avoid legal action by riding the fence. I simply answered the question based on my personal experience. Not all of my transplanted hairs matured so how could I answer any other way?

 

If I were asked if all the eggs in a dozen make it to market unbroken my answer would be the same. The expectation is that they will but sometimes they don't.

 

We've all spent enough time here to know that there are unpredictable and uncontrollable variables in hair restoration surgery. I simply attempted to provide the most honest answer I could.

[Megatron]

I'll be at the 12 month mark in a couple weeks now and I think it's safe to say all of my once wispy, thin hairs have thickened & darkened.

 

Most people seem to focus on yield and growth in the first, say 6 months. I agree that's the most important and telling phase where you have a very good indication of whether your HT is headed in the right direction or not.

 

However, I think too many people ignore the importance of hair maturation. I would have been very unhappy with if my 6 month results did not improve. As it stands almost 6 months later I'm delighted with what I see.

[TakingThePlunge]

Megatron,

 

I'm happy to hear your most recent report. Congratulations on a successful transformation! I checked out your most recent photos and you have come long way.

 

I'm thrilled for you!

[HARIRI]

Well, what i agree with the posted article from hairlosscursed, is the scam medicines, that has soooooooo many side effects that been hidden to the strong political influence that this comapany has such as propecia IMO. Many doctors stated crazy side effects can cause you that a hair doesnt worth it, one of them killing the libido of a person and making live with viagra, cialis or levitra in a young early age, the medicine will betray you once you stop it. Unlike minoxidil which its side effects are very minimal comparing to propecia which has a long term killing bullet.

 

However about HT transplants, they are the ONLY solution. I can say all doctors in this forum are good enough for me but lets say few of them are really OUTSTANDING and you can know them with the so many posting of their patients if you search them each individually, also you will notice their patients posting till the end of 1 year results, if they stop in the middle just draw a big question mark in your head, why?

 

About price, i believe the market price is $4-$6 for FUT, above that its not acceptable. like Armani who charges crazy rates and some other Doc, about FUE i have no idea but above $10 its a crime to me. About the growth, its the correct size of incisions and right handiling of the grafts which makes them grow. Some docs are good but their technitians are so unprofessional which they occur mistakes that the doctor cant do anything about it. So before you look for a doc and a branded name, check out his technicians.

Edited January 28, 2011 by HARIRI