Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 20, 2014 Regular Member Share Posted December 20, 2014 (edited) Hello everyone, I am nearing 4 months post op and have had a total of 2200 grafts removed from my donor. I am very concerned because certain areas of my donor appear to be half as dense as the rest of my hair. I am looking for your honest opinion. Is it possible that I am still experiencing shock loss nearly 4 months out or am I stuck with this density for good? It seems odd that my donor would look this exhausted with only 2200 grafts used. Edited December 20, 2014 by RyanVodka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 20, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted December 20, 2014 I guess its just wishful thinking at this point, I have a feeling it is here to stay and that the removal of my grafts were not spread out enough throughout the donor zone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member AB2000 Posted December 23, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 23, 2014 When you did your consultation for your hair transplant did you indicate to your surgeon that you intended to have follow-up procedures in the future? If that were the case, he would be continuing on where he left off after this transplant. My Hair Loss Website Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Blake Bloxham Posted December 23, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 23, 2014 Ryan, It could still be shock loss. Depending on when the shock loss occurred, it can last for 4-5 months (some experts say 6) after the procedure. 2,200 grafts should not have depleted your donor area. Permanent shock loss in the donor would not be common either. This likely could be temporary shock loss. Hope this helps! "Doc" Blake Bloxham - formerly "Future_HT_Doc" Forum Co-Moderator and Editorial Assistant for the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center, the Hair Loss Q&A Blog, and the Hair Restoration Forum All opinions are my own and my advice does not constitute as medical advice. All medical questions and concerns should be addressed by a personal physician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 26, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted December 26, 2014 (edited) thanks for the responses. I am honestly not sure when or if shock loss has occured. I didnt even notice the terrible lack in density until I cut my hair recently. I guess I am a bit shocked because this what my donor looked like prior to my recent 1000 fue procedure. It seems odd that i would lose so much density from only 1000 more grafts. On the other hand it may just be because the graft removals were not spread out as well as they could have been, which is what i am worried about. Notice the sides and lower part of the donor area that were left untouched. AB2000, I think it was pretty much assumed by my surgeon that I would have future procedures given my age (30). The only thing that is really giving me hope that it is temporary shock loss is that fact that there are sections of the donor that are a dense as I would expect it to be after 2000 grafts, notice the area I circled in the final picture. Edited December 26, 2014 by RyanVodka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member mikeey Posted December 26, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 26, 2014 sometimes looking at all the parameters , I think FUE is just a waste of time and Money , Not saying of the shockloss here , But I have observed several results and almost every time FUT beats FUE in density , Look , Texture and Yields ..... No wonder it is still the Gold Standard of HT ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Blake Bloxham Posted December 27, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 27, 2014 Ryan, Fullness when the hair is grown out and a thinner appearance when cropped closely could mean some over harvesting. However, it doesn't look like you were "over harvested" in the immediate post-operate images. Unfortunately, this may be a bit of a "wait and see" game. Not knowing when the loss initially occurred make the time line more difficult as well. Let me know if I can help. "Doc" Blake Bloxham - formerly "Future_HT_Doc" Forum Co-Moderator and Editorial Assistant for the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center, the Hair Loss Q&A Blog, and the Hair Restoration Forum All opinions are my own and my advice does not constitute as medical advice. All medical questions and concerns should be addressed by a personal physician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 29, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted December 29, 2014 Thanks Blake, I'll admit I am very concerned that this is here to stay, however I have begun applying minox on the donor area and plan to update in the next month or two. I still have faith that my surgeon knew exactly what he was doing and that I'll come out looking just fine. The good news though is that today is exactly 4 months from the procedure and 6 months since I started propecia and I have to say the recipient looks incredible. Here is the difference 2200 grafts and 6 months of propecia has made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member KO Posted December 29, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 29, 2014 What on earth made you think you needed an HT??? 3382 FUE Lupanzula http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/185463-3382-grafts-lupanzula.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member zyzz Posted December 29, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 29, 2014 What punch size for donor? Was it done w/ manual or motor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 29, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted December 29, 2014 I believe the punch size was between .8 and .9 depending on graft size and it was motor. I considered going to europe to have a manual punch procedure done but just couldnt stomach traveling that far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member voxman Posted December 29, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 29, 2014 Your hair looks good and a little length in the back suits you too - just stop that razor madness! I'm starting a movement ! Just Say NO to blades!! I'm serious. Just look at my face. My Hair Regimen: Lather, Rinse, Repeat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 30, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted December 30, 2014 thank you voxman, much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Sean Posted December 30, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 30, 2014 That is shockloss. Keep an eye on it. In 10 months if you do a fade with a clip one or two and see a rectangular hue of where grafts were taken, then that could mean overharvesting in one area of scalp and extractions were not dispersed adequately. Hopefully it all grows back for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted December 30, 2014 Author Regular Member Share Posted December 30, 2014 Thanks for the input sean! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member gillenator Posted December 31, 2014 Senior Member Share Posted December 31, 2014 Ryan, It certainly appears to me from your photos that you did experience some shock loss in the donor and at this point in time, it makes more sense that it occurred. I agree with Blake that it should thicken up after enough time has passed and the shocked hair grows back in. Gillenator Independent Patient Advocate I am not a physician and not employed by any doctor/clinic. My opinions are not medical advice, but are my own views which you read at your own risk. Supporting Physicians: Dr. Robert Dorin: The Hairloss Doctors in New York, NY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted January 9, 2015 Author Regular Member Share Posted January 9, 2015 (edited) Well today is just one of those days, went outside and took a picture of my donor and it looks terrible to say the least. I am trying to stay optimistic but it is rather difficult. I am about 3 weeks away from the 5 month mark. I never thought it could possibly be this noticeable with a 1/2 inch of growth and only 2200 grafts extracted. I also dont understand why the inch of donor space below where my grafts were taken wasnt used. What has me really down is the fact that Im starting to realize that on most of the donors of similar sized procedures the hairs were taken from a lot larger area than mine were. It has me really worried that this is in fact an over harvested area and not late shock loss. Edited January 9, 2015 by RyanVodka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1966kph Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 Hello Ryan. Have you asked dr r his opinion on this situation? I personally think it is shock and I hope I'm right for your sake. Only time will tell so try and stay positive which I know must be hard. If you have not asked your doc about this if I were you I would think of any relevant questions then speak with him and hopefully he can reasure you and eleviate your anxiety. All the best and have a nice day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member gillenator Posted January 9, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted January 9, 2015 Ryan, It may be because there appears to be some retro-alopecia going on from the base of your neck going upward. So your surgeon may have decided to confine the extractions in the area where the hair was the strongest and the most DHT resistant in the occipital zone, meaning no signs of any miniaturization. You definitely want to ask your surgeon about that and may be why the extractions were not spread out more. Gillenator Independent Patient Advocate I am not a physician and not employed by any doctor/clinic. My opinions are not medical advice, but are my own views which you read at your own risk. Supporting Physicians: Dr. Robert Dorin: The Hairloss Doctors in New York, NY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted January 9, 2015 Author Regular Member Share Posted January 9, 2015 Thanks for your response, I am going to update them in about 2 months to show them where I am at and see if there is any improvement. It is really strange, I remember taking photos shortly after the procedure and not noticing anything out of the ordinary as far as donor depletion. Then after I got the haircut at like 4 months it seemed like it came out of nowhere. I wonder if its possible to slowly lose hair in the donor even months after the procedure. Can propecia cause you to shed in the donor area as well? Gillenator, that is definitely a valid point. I think just overall I have noticed Dr. R is a lot more conservative where he takes donor hair from in his patients. Ive looked at many donor images from surgeon in europe and they seem to be a lot more comfortable taking hair from areas that have a high chance of thinning as the patient ages. I must say I do wish they had been spread out more but then again maybe that would come back to bite me if those hairs eventually thinned down the line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member gillenator Posted January 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted January 15, 2015 More time will definitely help to see how much of this is shock related. One of the most challenging aspects of this is that we never know how things will develop over time as we get older. One of the best gauges to determine the level of permanency of our donor zones is to take a look at the older men in our families who have MPB. Do their donor zones appear dense and strong? Any of them showing thinning of that area? Gillenator Independent Patient Advocate I am not a physician and not employed by any doctor/clinic. My opinions are not medical advice, but are my own views which you read at your own risk. Supporting Physicians: Dr. Robert Dorin: The Hairloss Doctors in New York, NY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted March 13, 2015 Author Regular Member Share Posted March 13, 2015 Hey guys just thought Id update this thread. I am 2 weeks away from 7 months (just got a haircut) and I am pretty sure the donor has significantly improved recently. Its looking like it will end up being an acceptable density. I will update in 2 weeks with pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1966kph Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 Thats good news Ryan really glad for you I look forward to seeing the photos of the improvement. Have a good weekend. Hey guys just thought Id update this thread. I am 2 weeks away from 7 months (just got a haircut) and I am pretty sure the donor has significantly improved recently. Its looking like it will end up being an acceptable density. I will update in 2 weeks with pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member RyanVodka Posted March 18, 2015 Author Regular Member Share Posted March 18, 2015 donor update 10 days until 7 months. Length is 1/2 inch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1966kph Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Good to see this Ryan I'm really pleased for you and as many stated it would appear it was shock loss. Your looking good now you must be so relieved. Have a good day donor update 10 days until 7 months. Length is 1/2 inch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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