dissapointed with plucking and acell any advice going forward ?

[ej]

Had acell and hair ` plucking ` 13 months ago little dissapointed with the results , has anyone been in the same position ? any advice would be greatly appreciated as dont know what to do at the moment

 

thanks guys

 

ej

Edited August 15, 2012 by ej

[Spanker]

I don't have any advice but I would like to know why such a severe scar and how many FUT's you have had. Is there anyone willing to try to get some fue's. What about bht?

[Baldtom]

Who was your doctor?

 

I hope you can let us know?

 

Thanks

[ej]

It was Dr Cooley ,

 

Cheers

Ej

[Baldtom]

Thank you EJ!!

 

Is he going to correct your scars?

 

I had a consult with him about 9 mnths ago ...

 

Please keep us updated on your progress!!

 

Tom

[vethair1964]

That scares the hell out of me!! When was your procedure and was acell used on scars??

[ej]

procedure Dec 09 , yes acell was used on donor scars

 

Ej

[lorenzo]

Thank you EJ for posting your pictures. Let me start off by saying I am appalled by your scar situation. After hearing about the pluck and acell I was interested to see how it worked. Its hard to tell by the pictures but it appears to me that very little grew. I understand this is some sort of experimental procedure so this is in no way an insult to Dr. Cooley who in my opinion is a great doctor.

Who many grafts were plugged and planted? How many grew in your opinion. Any grafts growing in scar tissue is not easy due to blood circulation. Are you happy with the scar revision? Have you seen any cases of plucking into non scar tissue?

 

Thanks again for posting your picture.

[RodG]

Hi EJ,

 

I was wondering how you feel about the results from your HT? The donor area appears to have been scarred quite a bit.

 

What has Doctor Cooley been able to offer you to fix the problem? Is he a recommended HT surgeon on this forum?

 

I hope you get the results you deserve and have this problem fixed.

 

Kind Regards

 

Rod

Edited January 29, 2011 by RodG

[TakingThePlunge]

ej,

 

Can you give us a little more background on your procedure? How many hair transplant surgeries have you had? Was this primarily a scar revision? Have you discussed your concerns with Dr. Cooley?

 

All the best,

[ej]

To Clarify :

 

I have had 5 prior strip procedures .

 

December 09 I had the most recent whereby 2000 grafts were taken from 3 strips and grafted to the frontal third of my head .

 

The donor area where the strips were taken from was treated with acell, to aid healing , there was NO scar revision . the donor area was sutured not stapled .

 

600 Beard Hairs were plucked from my chin and placed in and around the PRE -EXISTING scar shown in the 3 before pictures . None grew even though they were treated with acell .

 

The photos show 3 prior, 3 at one week and 3 at 12 months , with 2 added of the lower scar .

 

Although I am a repair patient , I was told this acell treatment is beneficial to repair patients

 

The lower scar is approx 10 cms x 2 cms , this is unlike scar tissue as its smooth and flat however to me it is non hair - bare-ing scalp , the picture at 12 months shows hair above and below this donor strip , there was no prior scarring in this area .

 

The 2 nd scar above my left ear is similar , however a lot wider in parts

 

The 3rd scar above my right ear appears to have healed a lot better than the other 2.

 

I expected the donor area to be improved , not made worse , Im devastated about the results of the donor area, in particular where the 2 strips ( pictured ) were taken from which have clearly widened .

 

In my opinion I had one large scar to address when I embarked on my last surgery whereas I now have another 2 .

 

 

If anyone has been in a similar situation it would be interesting to see how you moved forward , revision , fue ,etc

 

I have on many occassions spoken with my Dr and yes , I have been offered a free revision , however i dont think that is an option for me at this moment in time .

 

 

Thanks in advance for any advice

 

 

Ej

[RodG]

Hi EJ,

 

I'm really sorry for your situation and I recommend that you work with Doctor Cooley to resolve this issue. Is he a recommended Doctor on this forum?

 

Regards

 

Rod

[RCWest]

EJ, is that scar stretch or shock loss in those areas? Not only is Dr. Cooley is a recommended physician but he is also a Coalition Physician. That means he is of the highest caliber and up to date in all areas of transplantation. He seems to be one of the most ethical doctors I've read about and I'm sure he will go out of his way to help you.

[ulko]

Why did you use beard hair? This was probably before much testing had been done with acell, but I believe Cooley has stated that scalp hair has a higher yield. Why not give it a go again with the plucking if Cooley can offer it for free? Can't hurt and I reckon that he probably has improved his technique by now. Don't give up ej!

[lorenzo]

Thanks for explaining your story. I feel for you.

[EpilepticSceptic]

Another fine example IMO of how easily the "top doc of today can become the hack/quack of tomorrow". We have seen it before and we will certainly see it again on this forum and others! That's why if you are a newbie and you think simply because your chosen doc is on the recommended list of the HTN then -- THINK AGAIN !!!!!

 

No offense intended EJ, but I think you were a modern day lab rat for this new procedure. And to hear that Cooley offered you a "touch up" simply does not cut the mustard in this case! He owes you much more than this IMO !!

[Blake Bloxham]

Hey guys,

 

I just wanted to add my thoughts on the situation and inform everyone that Dr. Cooley will be contacted and asked to explain the situation from his point of view. Before we take sides, let's remember that transparency with respect to both patients AND physicians is the main goal of our community, and both EJ and Dr. Cooley should be granted a fair opportunity to explain the situation (which will hopefully lead to an acceptable solution for all parties). Furthermore, I don't think we should condemn either party while we're waiting for a full explanation.

 

Having said that, I wanted to assure you EJ that I am sorry the results didn't turn out as planned. I know we're all very optimistic and excited to see what ACell can do, and it's unfortunate that you didn't get the results you were hoping for. However, I do think there are a few variables to consider here: first, the ACell treated grafts were transplanted into some what appears to be some significantly thick scar tissue. ACell could be a miracle cure, but if the ability of the graft to communicate with the rest of the body (where ACell would allegedly induce/grow the rest/unplucked portion of the follicle) is blocked due to thick, avascular scar tissue, then the chances of growth may have been compromised from the beginning.

 

Second, it's my understanding that ACell was initially tested (the plucking aspect of the treatment) using beard hairs and then Dr. Hirtzig and Cooley eventually moved on to scalp hairs. Since EJ underwent the procedure 13 months ago, this could have been during the beard hair portion of the clinical trials.

 

Regardless, I think the most important aspect of the situation, right now, is figuring out what you would like to do from here EJ? I apologize if you mentioned this before, but are you considering another procedure? Are you interested in scar revision surgery? Would you like to consult with another hair restoration physician? If there is anything I can do to help you out or any questions I can answer, please don't hesitate to reply on this thread or send a private message. I really hope you find resolution as soon as possible, and hopefully you take some comfort knowing that we're all here to help.

 

Good luck, and I hope to hear from you soon!

Edited January 29, 2011 by Future_HT_Doc

[lorenzo]

EpilepticSceptic let me start off by saying your hair transplant looks fantastic. I agree with somethings to say other I dont. It sounded to me like you speak from experience but looking at your blog I realize this is not the case.

There are two sides to ever story although I empathize with EJ and dont wish that upon everyone.

 

Once again great transplant!

[vethair1964]

O.K. folks I have sat Idle long enough, I feel for EJ, he put his trust in a recommended Doc and has nothing to show for it but more scar tissue, the guy was lead to believe that he was in good hands, by checking this site and traveled across country to have this done and is in worse shape now than before. Granted he had scars before but by no means did his situation get better he is now a full blown repair patient!! I know there is no guarantee with this and everyone is different but this is screwing up people's lives. What would all of you do if this was your head??? P.S. " I've been there done that" a 16 year hair transplant veteran.

[Bill - Seemiller]

Guys,

 

While I certainly feel for EJ and hope that he can get the best possible results including an improved scar, let's remember a couple of things. The use of ACell in wound healing and the hair duplication (formerly known as "autocloning") technique is still highly experimental and comes with no guarantees. Additionally, using ACell does nothing to prevent the possibility of scar stretching, which is a risk associated with scar repair procedures. All ACell might do is make a scar appear or "feel" smoother. In fact, studies showed an improved feel of scars, but not necessarily an improved appearance. For more information on Dr. Cooley's use of ACell in wound healing and the experimental hair duplication (autocloning) technique, visit "Dr. Jerry Cooley's Presentation on ACell and Hair Duplication (formerly known as Autocloning) as it relates to Hair Restoration".

 

Ej, if you haven't already, I strongly encourage you to contact Dr. Cooley and discuss your concerns. I'm sure he will do what he can to help and make things right for you. Blake did send an email to Dr. Cooley late last night so I trust that he will respond to the topic as soon as possible.

 

In the meantime, I do encourage members not to make assumptions and to reserve any premature judgements which unfortunately, I see far too many times when patients report their dissatisfaction.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[The count Of Baldecristo]

EJ i think its very important for all of us who have high hopes for this procedure by Dr. Cooley to tell us some things.

 

did the doctor explain to you that this whole thing is experimental and it might not turn out good? If he did and you still agreed to the procedure we must know. Because its different when a doctor promises the moon and the stars and we fall for it and another thing if a doctor explains the risk and the experimental nature of the procedure and then we take the gamble only to come out after many months and just accuse him

 

I hope you will be truthfull with us because this doctor goes on a path different from other transplant doctors and he is working on something that many of us wait with excitement to succeed. If you tell us that you were fooled into this its gonna change our perception of this whole procedure.

 

Please be honest with us and good luck on your journey

[lorenzo]

Bald maybe I am wrong as far as I know ACell is to compliment surgery not to replace anything. Acell is used to help improve healing and scar but there is no guarantee. I dont believe using acell makes things worse.

Once again I am generalizing and not talking about the thread only acell.

[EpilepticSceptic]

EpilepticSceptic let me start off by saying your hair transplant looks fantastic. I agree with somethings to say other I dont. It sounded to me like you speak from experience but looking at your blog I realize this is not the case.

There are two sides to ever story although I empathize with EJ and dont wish that upon everyone.

 

Once again great transplant!

 

 

Lorenzo,

 

Thanks man, and your HT looks spectacular to me as well! I guess with Dr. Hasson it's hard to go wrong, eh ?

 

But really man, I didn't mean to start a witch hunt here. I'm sure Cooley is a great doc. It's just that these doctors make so much money that IMO when they have an obvious failure like this they should offer more than just a touch-up.

 

Patients should not have to PAY full price to be human lab rats for unproven, experimental procedures!:cool:

Edited January 30, 2011 by EpilepticSceptic

[azn_guy]

Hey Everyone, I just noticed this topic and wanted to share my experience with you all.

 

BTW, I am a patient of Dr. Cooley

 

I personally believe ACELL has nothing to do with the scar widening

 

When I had my HT back in February 2010, ACELL was being used, but also a "new and supposed to be better" suturing technique that was being recommended by many Doctors in the industry.

 

My Donor Scar stretched during this time period (check out my web-blog)

 

I went back to Dr Cooley back in December 2010 and had a scar revision done WITH ACELL. Dr Cooley also decided to go back to his tried and tested suturing technique as well.

 

It's only been 2 months, but everything looks 100% okay

 

EJ, please get in touch with Dr Cooley and I am curious to know if he used the same suturing technique on you that he had initially used on me. If so, then a quick scar revision may be all you need to fix this issue

 

Good Luck!

[lorenzo]

new and supposed to be better" suturing technique that was being recommended by many Doctors in the industry.

 

 

 

Do you have a list of doctors that are recommending ACELL? Just curious I know a few doctors are trying it but never realize they were recommending using it.