21 years old, very bad hairline, Hair transplant possible in few months?

[ali1991]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is it possible for me to get frontal/mid scalp work done, my thinning is definitely not that of a usual 21 year old, it's much worse, hairloss really hurts my confidence to the point I'm not social able any more, I'm saving up right now, and looking to get work done in about 6 months from now.

 

I made a thread awhile back but you guys said don't go for a HT, but now I understand I should not get crown work done, Dr.Charles has also agreed to give me a transplant but without crown.

 

Can I please get your guy's opinions?

[greatjob]

I will say I was probably worse off than you are at 21, trust me I know how much it sucks. Are you on finasteride? If not, and your loss has not stabilized I would say you definitely should not get a hair transplant. If you are committed to taking fin long term and have experienced stabilization then I would say that you might be a candidate for a very conservative hair transplant. But I would advise you to find out how many grafts you have available over your lifetime. You seem to be destined for a high norwood level and you need to determine if you have enough donor to keep up with your loss.

[ali1991]

Thanks, but bro I had another surgery last year and I was prescribed a pill that had one of the ingredients of Propecia/Fins and I honestly did not respond well to it, I'll just say that "It wouldn't go up".

 

So I honestly don't want to go anywhere near Fin, and I'm sure you know where I'm coming from.

 

How would I determine how many grafts I have available in my lifetime?

[greatjob]

who was the doctor that worked on you before? He should probably have his license revoked. You are very young and no doubt destined for severe loss. I don't consider anyone that is young with a good amount of hair to conserve that is unwilling or unable to take fin a viable candidate for a hair transplant. I'm sure Dr. Charles is willing to work on you because you have already had work done and you can't turn back now.

 

I am curious as to what drug you took that had one of the same ingredients as fin was exactly.

 

When I talk about how many grafts you have available in your lifetime, it is an estimate from a reputable doctor. It will not be absolute, but if you ask any reputable doctor they should be able to give you a rough estimate of the total number of grafts your donor could yield

[ali1991]

I should of worded that better, by saying I had another surgery is I meant I had a surgery that wasn't for hair loss, it was a gynecomastia surgery, totally different, I haven't had any hair work done with any doctor.

 

and i cant quite remember the ingredient that pill had but i had been stressed about it because a erection was not possible and I just want to avoid Fin for that.

[Nick153452]

I don't think that any doctor would work on your, unless they found that your donor and laxity allowed you for around 8000 or more grafts and that you knew that you had a few hair transplants in the future as well. Truth be told, you are destined for being a high NW patient. I can already see your sides dropping and advanced diffuse thinning. It's all going to go. There are doctors that can bring high NW patients back from the brink in both strip and FUE now. However, not everybody can be saved. If you were able to take finasteride, things may be different. However, the availability for supplementary treatments out there is lacking at this point. There is some great research being done into future treatments and preventions of baldness, but that is in the years to come.

[ali1991]

I don't think that any doctor would work on your, unless they found that your donor and laxity allowed you for around 8000 or more grafts and that you knew that you had a few hair transplants in the future as well. Truth be told, you are destined for being a high NW patient. I can already see your sides dropping and advanced diffuse thinning. It's all going to go. There are doctors that can bring high NW patients back from the brink in both strip and FUE now. However, not everybody can be saved. If you were able to take finasteride, things may be different. However, the availability for supplementary treatments out there is lacking at this point. There is some great research being done into future treatments and preventions of baldness, but that is in the years to come.

 

Thanks for the advice, but I sent these same pictures to Dr.Charles of Medical Group and Dr.Bhatti in India, and both have agreed to transplant on me, however Dr.Charles suggested I only get front and mid scalp work done and also mentioned that I do have good donor hair.

[Nick153452]

Do they know that you're unable to be on propecia? That is very often a deciding factor in young patients such as ourselves. Of course Dr. Charles will be able to operate, but he may think it's a bad idea given the circumstances. If it's something that you really want, go ahead and do it, but you maybe end up chasing hair loss for awhile and eventually be left with no donor left to transplant. Just something to think about before you fork over 15k$ for a surgery.

[ali1991]

Thanks again guys, amazing advice.

 

Also gave a consulation to Dr.Rahal and he is also ready to transplant on me, and the two above doctors and Dr.Rahal, none of them mentioned anything to me about Propecia/Fin.

 

and MBP4545, since your hair when you had the transplant is pretty much the same as me right now, only that I'm about 2 years younger than you, you think I can still get the same procedure as you, even if shock loss occurs than I could always get more work done like you did right, also money isn't an issue, I just want happiness, I know you're telling me to avoid it but under these circumstances that I just mentioned, what do you think?

 

Also I'm not worried too much about crown right now because I know there's a high possibility I might receed further down back in that area, I'm just focused on front/mid scalp right now, if that information is any helpful.

 

Thanks again guys.

[agenteye]

Also I'm not worried too much about crown right now because I know there's a high possibility I might receed further down back in that area, I'm just focused on front/mid scalp right now, if that information is any helpful.

 

Thanks again guys.

 

I think that's a really reasonable approach. A lot of us focus on the hairline and the mid-scalp and save the crown for a future date. Can'tDecide on here had a large procedure with Dr. Rahal a few years back, and is doing his crown as a second pass next week. I had my procedure with Dr. Rahal, and split my 4700+ grafts into my hairline and temples (2900) and the rest (1800+) into my crown. I fully plan to go back for a second procedure next year just to finish everything up nicely!

 

Congrats on your decision to have a transplant. You will be a very happy camper when it starts to grow, and do keep us posted along the way.

 

Best,

 

Mike

[ali1991]

Thanks Mike, so you think my age isnt too much of a problem if i want to just get fron/mid scalp work done?

[agenteye]

I certainly think 21 is young for a hair transplant, and if it were me.....personally I'd wait. But again, I feel as every situation is unique, and it depends on the physician's recommendation. If the surgeon thinks that your loss has stabilized and that you aren't going to progress further, and that you are on medication (and committed to taking it indefinitely)....then I guess it would be up to them and you.......if you are comfortable with it.

 

I think any ethical surgeon would be VERY conservative in their approach to operate on someone so young.....and I certainly wouldn't use any grafts in my crown if I were 21. But as I state again....I wouldn't want to personally have a procedure at 21, knowing what I do now about loss and the unpredictability of progressing rapidly and being stuck with not enough donor for subsequent procedures.

[nathaniel]

Ali, why don't you try finasteride/propecia first? I read quickly this thread, but it seemed like you took another medicine, not specifically finasteride/propecia?

 

The side effects of medicine are temporary, hair transplant is permanent. In my opinion, it really doesn't matter what age you are - 21 or 91 - try meds first!!!

 

I have seen some permanently horrible results from hair transplants. Why risk it when you can try meds first? Also, I have heard from one coalition doctor and one recommended doctor that it matters where you buy your meds and what dosage you buy because makers in some countries - such as china and india - have poor quality control. I believe a coalition doc told me that 1 mg finasteride tablets were made in India and were of poor and insufficient quality (I say I believe because I'm not sure if I remember the location of where it was made). Another doc told me not to buy from Walmart. As such, I buy my 5 mg finasteride tablets from CVS pharmacy.

[ali1991]

I'm afraid of the side effects, I know that it's a must for me to take Fin If I want to get a transplant, but I just don't want to go through even temporary side effects.

[Mickey85]

Any clear shots of your donor?

[ali1991]

Any clear shots of your donor?

 

I'll upload them in an hour or so, thanks.

[Mickey85]

Your donor is paramount to whether or not you will even be a good candidate for a procedure given your level of loss. If it is dense, you are safer to proceed.

[ali1991]

Ok so I'll take the pictures of the back of my head, a close up, should I keep flash on?

 

I have a 13 megapixel camera if that helps lol

[ali1991]

Mickey, I have family over so unfortunately can't take pics right now, but will upload them tomorrow evening.

 

Thanks bro.

[ali1991]

Here are my donor pics, note some of them are with flash and some without.

[Mickey85]

Going by your photos, your donor looks at least average but sadly I think your crown will thin further and lower judging by your photos. I'm not so sure your donor will provide an acceptable cosmetic appearance given you have alot of area to cover and diffuse thinning...

 

A transplant may look reasonable on you for a few years but when/if your native hair and crown start going you will either a) have to resort to body and beard hair as your donor will be depleted b) seek out more procedures to play catch up c) live with an unusual appearance of inadequate density/coverage.

 

I really don't think you should jump into a procedure right now. Your donor may be good but I don't think it is good enough to provide the amount needed for a solid result. Especially given the aggressive lose, age, refusal to take medications etc....

 

Of course this is going by photos alone, it may turn out your donor is above average.

[KO]

You said you had a bad reaction to a similar drug. What was it? I'm pretty skeptical that you "know" you're going to get side effects before actually trying the drug.

 

I think without medications, an HT is a no go, in my opinion. Try buzzing it down, or maybe if you want, you can start trying experimental treatments like RU 58841.

[1978matt]

Not sure if you have seen Dr Rahal in person but I note that you are in Canada. I think it is imperative that you have an in-person consultation before commiting to anything.

 

I know people don't like blowing 500 bucks on a plane ticket just to see a Dr but it is worth it.

[ali1991]

Thanks guys.

 

I have a hair transplant doctor in my city and booked for an appointment Aug 15th, there I'll get him to see how much donor hair/laxity I have, so that should be a good start right? His name is Dr.Gillespie btw and hes here in Calgary.

 

A transplant may look reasonable on you for a few years but when/if your native hair and crown start going you

 

Mickey, umm if i can confirm, what do you mean by my native hair going? I know what you mean, but bro I don't have any native hair left (yes exaggerating a bit), you can see my OP posts and I barely have any hair on top, If I decide to get work done on top/mid scalp, even if my native hair goes, will it be a major loss considering I have very few native hairs left to begin with.

Edited August 5, 2013 by ali1991

[Mickey85]

You might progress into a norwood 6, where right now you are a diffuse thinner. You will most probably need more than one session as future loss will likely occur. I'm not so sure your donor will be enough to provide good coverage at a decent density, especially if the crown-loss expands.