transplant help

[sapcote]

hi everybody, i hope i can get some good advice here, i've posted on a few other forums and they've been a good help. I'm 34 and started losing my hair about 11 years ago. I need to do something about my hair loss as these last few years it's been draining me of all energy.

 

I had a consultation with dr. Prathomavich (sp?) in bangkok last february and he said i had good donor density. The assistant mentioned i might be able to get between 4-5000 grafts in one session. I don't think my donor area has changed much since february, the bald patch or strip at the back of my head has remained unchanged, at least i think unchanged, for years. but i think my hair has thinned quite a bit on the top of my head since then.

 

I posted my pics on some other hairloss forums; most posters said i looked to have good donor density but a couple of posters said it looked merely ok and said i might not be a good candidate at present for a transplant as my hair loss looked to be unstable. a few other mentioned that i should get at least 5 consulations and have the donor density measured rather than just looked at by the doctor. It was also suggested that i get on propecia for at least 6 months before any transplant. I started propecia 2 weeks ago and started getting testicle pain almost immediately. I stopped propecia for 2 days and the pain stopped. Today I took a half dose of propecia. I don't know if i should keep taking a half a dose, or give up with propecia. I fear i just can't take the drug. I was on propecia for a few months about 8 years ago but i had to stop due to testicle pain.

 

Please advise me on what you think I should do, i know my photos aren't great, sorry!. Due to my work situation, i can either get a transplant around feb-april of next yr, or else wait til the following winter. should i wait for a year, and have 5 or 6 consultations, have my head 'mapped' for future loss, donor density measured etc, or else try and do it with dr prath in bankgkok this coming feb-april. i chose dr prath as I live in asia and because of his reputation. Emotionally i can't move on with my life at all until i get a transplant. I know dr prath is highly regarded. I don't think i can be on propecia due to the reasons mentioned. any thoughts on having it done without the use of propecia? let's say I were able to get about 4,000 grafts......what could I expect realistically to look like after the hair has grown? enough for decent enough coverage, maybe with the expectation of getting another smaller transplant on the top of the head a few years down the line??

 

sorry for such a long message!.......thanks again for any comments/advice

[AnthonySC]

Personally I would just go for the transplant if you can find the right the doctor. I guess it depends what your goals are though. Stabilize? I suppose because you could recede along the sides and back more it's never a bad idea, but are you going to really see that in the mirror?

 

I care really only about the front half...never going to see the crown in pictures of your face. Your frontal hair line is pretty much gone...so there is virtually no risk of shock loss. IMO prioritize the front and if you have good donor density like you say you can always fill in the crown later if it bothers you.

Edited November 26, 2011 by AnthonySC

[Tao]

Take a look at my pics (link below). I was in a similar place as you. Lost all my hairline and even more than you going back to my crown. I had two procedures done a year apart. The first put 2800 grafts up in my hairline. It made a huge and dramatic improvement as AnthonySC is correct. People see your face and hairline. When your face is framed again, man, what a difference. After my first HT, I still had a some density issues up front and of course an entirely bald crown that I desperately wanted at least partially covered. My second HT (2300 grafts) added a few hundred grafts up front to shore up density and the rest went to my crown. I'd love to get one more to add a little more coverage and density to my crown but I'm over the moon with what I have now so anything else is just hair greed.

 

You could do one megasession of 4-5000 grafts, but I'd recommend doing two sessions of smaller amounts. I think you get better yield in the long run (less transection risk and more blood supply going to transplanted grafts) and have the flexibility of adding grafts in specifics areas of your choosing on the second pass (ie. adding density to areas more important to you). Whatever you choose, I wish you all the best. Hairloss sucks and I've been extremely fortunate to go through it and come out the other side grateful and satisfied. I hope the same for you.

[folliclehero]

You might want to check out the hair transplant journals and look at guys who received 4000+ grafts. That should give you a good idea of what you can expect.

 

Hair Restoration Sites

 

This link will show the patient journal entries of one top doc in the US. You can check out other top doc patient results too.

[sapcote]

thanx for all your advice. Tao, your hair looked really good after that first transplant, i'll have to speak to the doc about the idea of doing one megasession vs. two smaller sesssions. I've emailed the doc i'll be doing it with, we'll see what he says in the next few days. still debating on doing it in the next few months or waiting the year. waiting would be good for the money of course, but it feels right to do something now. I can't take the three hours every morning combing and brushing and spraying before i can manage to leave my apt, and shaving won't work for me........decisions decisions