Shaving hair before surgery (recipient)

[Johnson]

Ok I'm going to have another FUT and this time I have the option to get the front recipient hair shaved or not. My doc told me the yield goes up slightly (3%?) if I get it shaved. The main problem is I really do not want to be seen looking really strange for MONTHS after the surgery. Kinda defeats the whole purpose even if it is temporary since everyone will know I had something big done. I don't see how I could possibly explain it away.

 

So basically I am still struggling with what to do. I would like a good yield but I cannot imagine looking "freakish" at work for a long time especially since I work with the public. I cannot wear a hat either. Did anyone else choose not to shave and still come up with good results? Or is the result really that much better to make the humiliation worth it?

 

Also if you shaved your head for the surgery, how on earth did you explain it?

[Thehairupthere]

Shaving does not cause the yield to improve it simply allows the doctors see better. An experienced surgeon should be able to give you the same yield with or without shaving.

[RodG]

Hi,

 

I've always wondered whether shaving makes it faster for the doctor to transplant the grafts?

 

Regards rod

[aaron1234]

Ok I'm going to have another FUT and this time I have the option to get the front recipient hair shaved or not. My doc told me the yield goes up slightly (3%?) if I get it shaved. The main problem is I really do not want to be seen looking really strange for MONTHS after the surgery. Kinda defeats the whole purpose even if it is temporary since everyone will know I had something big done. I don't see how I could possibly explain it away.

 

So basically I am still struggling with what to do. I would like a good yield but I cannot imagine looking "freakish" at work for a long time especially since I work with the public. I cannot wear a hat either. Did anyone else choose not to shave and still come up with good results? Or is the result really that much better to make the humiliation worth it?

 

Also if you shaved your head for the surgery, how on earth did you explain it?

 

I think shaving is totally worth it. It certainly sucks for about two months afterwards. But I really believe it makes life easier on the doc and techs which can only benefit you in the long run. Even docs who don't require your head shaved prefer that it would be. Think long term with this procedure.

 

As for explaining the shave, I told everyone that I was cutting my own hair and had an accident so I just shaved it all off. They bought it both times! Suckers.

[Johnson]

As for explaining the shave, I told everyone that I was cutting my own hair and had an accident so I just shaved it all off. They bought it both times! Suckers.

 

You shaved all of it off including the donor area? What about the scar? Were you able to conceal it?

[Johnson]

Shaving does not cause the yield to improve it simply allows the doctors see better. An experienced surgeon should be able to give you the same yield with or without shaving.

 

 

I don't see why it would matter whether the doctor can see better if the end result is the same. The doc charges more not to shave so I would be compensating him for the loss in extra surgery time (I guess that is the reason for the increased cost?). Is there some reason why shaving would even matter then or is it just to make the doc's life easier (and mine way more difficult)?

[aaron1234]

Well, shaved down to about a three guard. I used dermmatch to hide the scar.

 

As for shaving, read a post by Dr. Hasson on the topic. Very persuasive.

[aaron1234]

Here it is: http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/155543-cutting-hair-short-recipient-areas.html

[Sean]

I had my head shaved prior to my transplant at my own will. It made things a lot easier for me as well, especially when it came to post op instructions. I really wanted to take care of the donor area, by leaving hair longer, it would have made it impossible. I can see an experienced surgeon not having issue with shave or no shave, but I think it makes it a lot easier, since, there is a possibility of shock loss when working near native hairs. It helps any doctor see the area better, and it's better not to take any chances when you are paying a lot of money for a transplant. So, I'd say shave and not take the risk. It's better not to take any chances on this. Helps you keep the area a lot cleaner. That is really important. Here, check out my pictures both at Preop and then when I had it shaved for the procedure. http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/162401-my-fue-dr-rahal-3000-grafts-large-procedure.html

 

Go to the "My Hair Loss Website link" at the bottom of my post to see the pics and also check out page 5 of my thread for larger post op photos.

[Thehairupthere]

Doctors usually don't charge extra not to shave, at least not the ones that normally don't require it. Leaving the hair longer allows the doctor to see the lay of the hair and can give him or her a better idea of how to design the transplant. This is obviously also what the doctor feels comfortable with, but your results would turn out the same, without making a drastic change to your look.

[jessie1]

I have had three HTs, two not shaved in the recipient area and one shaved.

 

Unfortunately as there were so many variables it is difficult to make a true comparison as to which is best.

 

I always understood it to be better to shave so that the doc had better vision and less risk of damaging neighbouring hairs.

 

Hairupthere,

 

Your comments are interesting and very logical.

 

Quick question, how would a Doc be able to accurately determine the direction of hair growth once the area was completely shaved down. Would this be a reason for the doctor not to shave?

 

Jessie

[aaron1234]

With the hair shaved the doctor is better able to see the angles in which native hairs exit the scalp. With the hair long it can be combed in many different ways which can obscure the direction in which the native hairs grow.

[ShiningDome]

I think the posters need to be more specific when discussing shaving of the hair.

 

Shaving usually means removal of hair, by using a razor down to the level of the skin. From what I have noticed in the forums, many people refer to "buzzing" as "shaving", and this seems to cause some confusion.

 

Buzzing is a haircut in which the hair is sheared very closely to the scalp. When buzzed, the person performing the transplant (the Dr.) can view the angle of the hair, and avoid transection of hair follicles. When the hair is shaved, this is impossible.

Edited September 18, 2011 by ShiningDome
Typo

[aaron1234]

I think the posters need to be more specific when discussing shaving of the hair.

 

Shaving usually means removal of hair, by using a razor down to the level of the skin. From what I have noticed in the forums, many people refer to "buzzing" as "shaving", and this seems to cause some confusion.

 

Buzzing is a haircut in which the hair is sheared very closely to the scalp. When buzzed, the person performing the transplant (the Dr.) can view the angle of the hair, and avoid transection of hair follicles. When the hair is shaved, this is impossible.

 

Good point ShiningDome.

[orlhair1]

Good distinction. In my recipient areas the hair was cut short, but definitely not shaved. Also, by having the rest of your hair longer, depending on how much native hair you have, you can still cover the recipient areas after surgery to a certain degree.

[Capelli11]

This is an interesting thread as I am having surgery soon (FUT) and am nervous about buzzing down my frontal hair and how it will look...I know it is long term but I am still trying to figure out how i can accomplish this look without looking totally weird. So my question is does everyone let their hair grow out before surgery (recipient and donor)...then say the recipient area gets buzzed leaving the rest of your recipient and donor area long. Is it easy to clean/care for the hair when it is long (i.e. donor scar cleaning, etc)? Just trying to see what everyone does?

 

Aaron: when you buzz it down to a 3 guard how visible was the scar? did dermatch really hide it or would it hurt the healing process putting it on the scar?

[aaron1234]

Capelli11,

 

Here's a thread I started a couple weeks after my first transplant with Dr. Paul.

 

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/136508-concealer-donor-w-pics.html

 

As you can see, the indents and creases in the back of my head where the strip was taken were still apparent even after covering it with dermmatch. However, the shock loss and redness were greatly disguised. The dermmatch really didn't affect healing - I'm slow healer to begin with. I simply told people I was cutting my own hair and made a nasty mistake, thus the indents, creases, etc. But the dermmatch really really helped for the first 2-3 months when I started to grow my hair back.

 

Right now being 2 and 1/2 months post-op from my most recent surgery I have grown my hair out in the back so I don't really quite need the dermmatch like I did before. I will still occasionally apply it though.

Edited September 19, 2011 by aaron1234

[Capelli11]

Do you recommend having the donor hair long before surgery? The doctor told me to keep growing my hair so it will cover the scar post op. I would imagine it wouldn't be seen too much with the donor hair I have now...figure at about a 5 clip give or take...is it easier to clean/care for afterwards or would it be better to have it shorter?

[aaron1234]

Keep it long for now. You can always cut it after the surgery if you want to even it out with what have on top. But the shorter you go in the back the more obvious the scar will be.

[Capelli11]

True...thanks! I'm gonna keep growing my hair on top too...doubt it will be long enough to cover my front but once I have the procedure I'll see what it looks like. I guess people wait a few weeks then try to even everything out? Is this what you did?

[orlhair1]

I would definitely grow it long and then on surgery day they can cut what they need to to do the surgery. That way your hair will completely cover the donor area and at least blend with the recipient area. I got a my hair trimmed just a little bit 3 weeks after surgery and then 5 weeks latter surgery got a full haircut.

[aaron1234]

True...thanks! I'm gonna keep growing my hair on top too...doubt it will be long enough to cover my front but once I have the procedure I'll see what it looks like. I guess people wait a few weeks then try to even everything out? Is this what you did?

 

Yeah, for the first couple weeks when I was a hermit I had my donor hair long to cover it. Then after the staples were removed I buzzed it down to about a 5 guard. Still a bit longer than the top was but it evened things out a bit. Then a couple weeks after I buzzed the sides down to a 5 guard again. Of course, none of it really mattered since I wore a hat all the time.

[Johnson]

Well after starting this thread and researching more I am really leaning toward shaving especially since I didn't shave during my first 2 surgeries and I want to see if this improves the outcome at all. One problem is I can't "be a hermit" for a few weeks like some of you since I have to be back at work exactly 9 days after the surgery.

 

My current plan is to cut my hair at the 8 day mark to somewhat even things out. I'm hoping there will be enough hair to hide the redness somewhat since I am not transplanting into a bald area and just adding density. I'm sure there will still be some scabs though which seems unavoidable.

[wildflowerwildflower]

Can anyone post pictures of what it looks like after 2 weeks, and preferably also 1 month after being shaved in the recipient area? It'd be helpful to get a sense of how strange it will look for me from wearing my hair long to all of a sudden going bald and returning to work that way.

Thanks!