Day 7 Post-HT: Advice?

[Sparse]

Hi All,

 

I had my scheduled HT with Dr. Hasson last Tuesday: he managed to harvest 5500 grafts (thank God for laxity exercises), and the procedure lasted from 7:30am until nearly midnight! Since I'm a NW4-5 with pretty coarse hair, I'm hopeful that number of grafts should give a nice final result . . . time will tell.

 

Overall, it was an amazing experience - can't say enough great things about Dr. Hasson and his superb staff - and I'm grateful to have found my way to H&W, in part through the information provided on this forum. However, I've got a few post-HT questions today:

 

1) It looks like I've already started shedding the odd graft here and there - especially in the temple region. Is this within the realm of normal for Day 6-7? (I'm pretty sure the grafts have been shed - extruded - rather than irretrievably lost, since I've been told that damaged follicles usually bleed when they come out, and I haven't seen that.)

 

2) Since I've had temple work done, I was advised to sleep on my back (not sides) for 5 days to help protect those grafts from unnecessary friction. Would there be any advantage to staying on my back for a few more days just to be safe, or is it already completely safe to go back to sleeping on my side tonight?

 

3) Related question: by Day 6-7, are the transplanted grafts already so well established that they're more or less safe from harm (barring some sort of massive trauma . . .)?

 

4) I saw that Bill used Aloe vera gel on his scalp after his last HT . . . can anyone offer advice on that front (benefits, brand, application procedure, etc.)?

 

5) I'm starting to get lots of dry skin on my scalp today - in both donor and recipient area. Is there any benefit (or risk) to washing my hair twice a day? Anything else I might try to help?

 

Many thanks in advance for any help you can provide! (Please feel free to weigh in on any question above - no need to hit them all.)

 

Best wishes,

Sparse

[Sparse]

Hi All,

 

I had my scheduled HT with Dr. Hasson last Tuesday: he managed to harvest 5500 grafts (thank God for laxity exercises), and the procedure lasted from 7:30am until nearly midnight! Since I'm a NW4-5 with pretty coarse hair, I'm hopeful that number of grafts should give a nice final result . . . time will tell.

 

Overall, it was an amazing experience - can't say enough great things about Dr. Hasson and his superb staff - and I'm grateful to have found my way to H&W, in part through the information provided on this forum. However, I've got a few post-HT questions today:

 

1) It looks like I've already started shedding the odd graft here and there - especially in the temple region. Is this within the realm of normal for Day 6-7? (I'm pretty sure the grafts have been shed - extruded - rather than irretrievably lost, since I've been told that damaged follicles usually bleed when they come out, and I haven't seen that.)

 

2) Since I've had temple work done, I was advised to sleep on my back (not sides) for 5 days to help protect those grafts from unnecessary friction. Would there be any advantage to staying on my back for a few more days just to be safe, or is it already completely safe to go back to sleeping on my side tonight?

 

3) Related question: by Day 6-7, are the transplanted grafts already so well established that they're more or less safe from harm (barring some sort of massive trauma . . .)?

 

4) I saw that Bill used Aloe vera gel on his scalp after his last HT . . . can anyone offer advice on that front (benefits, brand, application procedure, etc.)?

 

5) I'm starting to get lots of dry skin on my scalp today - in both donor and recipient area. Is there any benefit (or risk) to washing my hair twice a day? Anything else I might try to help?

 

Many thanks in advance for any help you can provide! (Please feel free to weigh in on any question above - no need to hit them all.)

 

Best wishes,

Sparse

[Sparse]

Any thoughts?

[maxhair]

First, congrats!

 

to your questions.

 

1) Losing grafts starting at about a week is normal.

 

2) I've read many different accounts on this. My advice, be safe and wait 10 - 14 days. Even the most pessimistic doctors say grafts are secure by day 16. Most agree that day 7 - 10 is good enough.

 

3) Day 6 or 7 should be ok, but like I just said, some docs have said 2 weeks.

 

4) Pure Aloe if possible. My surgery was clean so I opted for nothing but the gentle pouring of high quality Nioxin Shampoo.

 

5) Use Neosporin with pain relief for the donor, and I personally would do nothing for the for the recipient area other than ONLY washing hair once a day with good quality shampoo. Nioxin is minty and cooling.

 

Your doc should have given you some post-op instructions that covered all of this. Mine did.

 

But you're ok. Just be patient and try not to disturb the recipient area for 2 weeks. That's my advice.

[maxhair]

I didn't mean losing grafts. I meant hair, not follicle.

[Sparse]

Thanks, Maxhair, for the thoughtful advice - very helpful.