Considering FUE after FUT - not really happy

[johntaylorny]

I am 13 months post-op from a 4,500 graft FUT with very reputable/famous hair replacement doctor. While I'm somewhat happy I'm not 100% happy and still wear a hat on my head daily. Let me explain...

 

There was enough grafts for an FUT just to do the top and front/hairline of my head, but I still have a 2" diameter circle bald as a baby's ass spot on my crown. This looks really stupid. It looks like a hole in my head.

 

Second issue is that the hairline is crooked! I need approx 1/8" of hairline from center to right temple to make the hairline even. When I comb my hair downward its not noticable but if I comb my hair back it sticks out like crazy crooked!

 

I spent $20,000 and flew 4,000 miles away to get this done and I'm still wearing a hat. I do have a small hair system I glue on but it's a nightmare just to cover that 2" area perfectly.

 

My question is with FUE... the doctor told me no donor skin left for FUT. But the hair on the sides and back of my head is so thick you need a weedwacker to get thru it. Does anything think it's possible to do FUE using this hair to fill in (at least partially) the 2" diameter bald spot on my crown and fit the crooked hairline?

 

Can anyone recomment FUE doctors near California USA?

[gillenator]

Do you have any pics that we can evaluate? Not sure how old you are but if you have that type of balding spot on your crown, it can get potentially larger as MPB progresses. This is where finasteride and minoxidil are the most efficient. As the crown loss continues to progress, it demands a very high amount of limited donor so you want to carefully manage any donor that you have left. Some guys are beginning to use beard donor as well.

 

And yes there is potential to harvest hair from the sides and parietal zone with FUE as long as it is first evaluated for any signs of miniaturization. In other words you want to be sure that hair is terminal, meaning, not receptive to DHT.

[Mickey85]

If you have sufficient donor for FUE, it should be quite easy for a good FUE surgeon to fill in the 2" diameter bald spot and refine and fill in your crooked hairline. In my honest opinion there are no great FUE surgeons in North America. That is my opinion and you will find that people will disagree, that is fine and expected. I would go to Turkey with either Hakan or Erdogan, they are FUE exclusive and are in the 2EURO per graft range. If you don't want to go to Turkey there is Dr Maras, Mwamba, Bisanga, Lorenzo and Feriduni who are all adept at FUE.

[StaggerLee123]

Filling in your crown with FUE should be no problem especially if your sides are good to go. Natural hairlines are very often slightly asymmetrical so that may not be as much as an issue as you think, the kind of thing that only you may be able to notice. Posting pics is the only way to get honest feedback.

[s2thoudriver]

2,000 FUE will be no problem if you have good density in the donor area.

 

You could also consider body hair transplantation and harvest grafts from there if needed, as BHTs are good for the crown area.

 

Rob

[gillenator]

Be very careful when considering BH. IMHO only beard and chest donor regions are viable and even then you want to be sure to first do small test sessions because BH is very hit and miss.

[Nick153452]

As long as the density on your hairline is uniform, it's not very unusual to have a crooked hairline. I see people whose hairline is crooked on a daily basis, even more than the 1/8" that you said that you have. maybe a photo would give us a better idea as to what you are experiencing? However, I don't really think that should be one of your concerns as you move forward (personal opinion).

 

I am a little confused as to your problem with your thickness of your hair. Are you claiming that the hair shaft diameter is too thick? or the density? In either case, that's a very good advantage for you.

 

Dr. Diep has some promising results that he has posted. And he is from California. If I were you, I would avoid Dr. Umar, as I don't feel like his results are consistent or even aesthetically pleasing. I agree with Mickey; if you want a great FUE result, it's best to head across the pond to Europe. Unlike Mickey, I would advise only a couple of the doctors that he listed due to personal preference and price. For the quality price ratio, I don't think there is any better doctor in the world than Erdogan or Doganay. There are some great FUE surgeons in Belgium; Mwamba, Feriduni, Bisanga; but they are significantly more expensive and I don't even believe they produce better results.

[Blake Bloxham]

John,

 

Any images? I'm curious about the "uneven" hairline. Hairlines are naturally asymmetrical, and one of the signs of a good transplant is recreating this natural irregularity. I'm wondering if the hairline may actually be natural/appropriate?

[SilverScreen]

I would absolutely recommend a consultation with Dr. John Diep in Los Gatos, CA.