Transplanting hair to entire scalp?

[aman123]

I'm 22, and I've been steadily losing a lot of hair on my entire scalp. It's pretty much everywhere, and it looks awful/is ruining my self-esteem.

 

Its very patchy on the top. Some areas have very little hair where you can see the scalp very clearly (in fact, most of the scalp is like this) but other areas have somewhat thicker hair where you can still make out the scalp, but not entirely.

 

I went to see a doctor for a consult, and he said that, basically, since I'm young, I might need two. One now, one in the future.

 

I was wondering though (and I forgot to ask him this): can't the doctor just transplant a whole bunch of grafts/hair to the scalp, even in areas where there still is enough hair left, in order to knock two birds with one stone? Basically, transplanting it EVERYWHERE on the scalp so that I won't have to come back again for a second?

 

My parents are from India, and the doctor said that its typical for people from India to have very thick, full hair on the sides and back of the head, which is great for transplants. In other words, I'm a real good candidate due to how thick my hair is everywhere BUT the stupid scalp

 

Anyone know how to answer this? Thanks

[aman123]

Here is what it looks like, and I've been losing it since I was 16 really. It started out slow, and its been steady like this for a few years now. For what its worth, mothers side has very little/no balding, and fathers side has a lot of it. My older brother, who is 33, has most of his hair but its somewhat patchy (less so than mine), and its been like that since he was 25/ish.

[1978matt]

 

I was wondering though (and I forgot to ask him this): can't the doctor just transplant a whole bunch of grafts/hair to the scalp, even in areas where there still is enough hair left, in order to knock two birds with one stone? Basically, transplanting it EVERYWHERE on the scalp so that I won't have to come back again for a second?

 

Unfortunately the Dr can only really get enough hair to densely cover an area about the size of your 4 fingers so trying to spread it around won't work. Even if he could get many thousands, what happens when the hair around the transplanted hair falls out?

 

You appear to be heading towards a slick Norwood 6 at the very least. The best thing you can do for now is to get on Finasteride and Minoxidil ASAP. Hopefully the Dr mentioned this at your consultation.

[Dr. Glenn Charles]

Unfortunately, the hair loss process does not happen to patients in one day and you can to restore the hair in one day either. Since you are so young you should only consider hair restoration in the frontal part of your scalp leaving a conservative hairline.

[Blake Bloxham]

Aman,

 

I think the first step is to see a hair loss expert and determine what is causing your hair loss. If it is androgenic alopecia ("male pattern baldness"), then you may want to discuss preventive measures like minoxidil (Rogaine) and finasteride (Propecia) with the physician. If he/she agrees with this treatment regimen, you may be able to retain your current hair, stabilize your hair loss, and reverse some of the thinning. After you've stabilized your hair loss, hair transplant surgery may become an option down the road. However, you're likely still a bit too young for hair transplant surgery at this point in time, and it does sound like you may benefit from some preventive medications before attempting surgery as well.

 

Feel free to ask any additional questions. Good luck!