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My 4,000 Graft FUE With Dr. Sanusi Umar – April 7, 2015


Tav1

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Thanks Tav for the detailed response, I also noticed that he answered my e-mail directly, that's so rare with physicians nowadays, I'm definitely going to set up a consult and see what he says, your results look very good at 7 months so no doubt he's skilled at FUE.


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Good for you. Dr. Umar has an interesting personality, but as David said, he is caring, he's seen pretty much everything HT-wise, and he's pretty direct at outlining his suggestions. Good luck and please let us know how it goes. Best to get on his books if a HT is warranted a few months in advance, as he is always pretty booked between HT patients and his derm practice.

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Hi

 

Thank you for sharing your experience. I followed Dr Umar works for sometimes, and I'm really skeptical about his result. He claims he done 10000 graft and that is like 10000*2.5= 25000 hair, and based on degree of hair lost the result should be much better than he achieved. Either he is exaggerate about amount of graft he transplant or the graft die after surgery and never grow. The reason I came up to such conclusion is I checked many doctors result ( Legit doctor who are collation members ), and their result with less amount of graft is by far better than Dr Umar. Could you please tell me more about your result. Are you happy? and how is the density?

 

Thanks

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Good to see the clinic looked after you when you had issues. Your case proves the fact that the after care of a clinic is just as important as the procedure itself.

 

Certainly in my situation the geographic proximity of the clinic, as well as the alternate speciality of the Doc (dermatology) proved invaluable. And yes, I could not have asked for more responsive post-op care, particularly once the area of necrotic tissue presented itself.

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  • 2 months later...
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Any updates Tav?


I’m a paid admin for Hair Transplant Network. I do not receive any compensation from any clinic. My comments are not medical advice.

Check out my final hair transplant and topical dutasteride journey

View my thread

Topical dutasteride journey 

Melvin- Managing Publisher and Forum Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q&A Blog.

Follow our Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and YouTube.

 

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Sure - looks like I skipped the eight month update. Tomorrow will be nine months since my original FUE procedure and approximately three months since my 180 graft repair to the necrotic area. Things are progressive just fine, and the graft repair is now now starting to sprout, which is a little early for me (versus my timeline of growth from the original procedure).

 

The growth and maturation of the new hair over the past several months now allows me to "slick back" the hair a bit, which offers a more professional look for certain office situations. Although the 180 graft repair seems small, it was implanted just behind the hairline, so when this hair grows out, it can only help from an appearance standpoint.

 

The picture below is before, at seven months, and today (nine months, wet). Although the crown is not shown in the pic, that area grew quite well and is now completely devoid of scalp showing.

5b32ea47b86c8_before_7_9months.thumb.jpg.3726f1b0516749f6b9c521c09530447e.jpg

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It looks really good tav, do you mind posting a crown shot when you can, want to go to Dr. Umar for my crown this year, I got the hairline now just need the crown and maybe some thickening in the midscalp.


I’m a paid admin for Hair Transplant Network. I do not receive any compensation from any clinic. My comments are not medical advice.

Check out my final hair transplant and topical dutasteride journey

View my thread

Topical dutasteride journey 

Melvin- Managing Publisher and Forum Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q&A Blog.

Follow our Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and YouTube.

 

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This is an awesome result. You look phenomenal. We focus a lot of attention on the hairline results on younger guys because they're so "wow," but transformations like this are just incredible.

 

Thanks Jon86. @win200 - you just had to remind me I'm turning the big 5-0 in a few months. Damn bro - that cuts deep - Lol.

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Looks awesome Tav! I like the slicked back look. When do you think you saw the most improvement? Looked like a really big change from 4 to 5 months, but it seemed to continue to improve pretty steadily every month afterwards especially with the hair maturing, getting darker and thicker.

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Hey farmcat - I've have to say that (in the back of my mind) I was pretty unsure that the result would in any way be satisfactory until I took a pic at seven months and really compared versus my starting point. As I've stated before, I knew I was a somewhat slow grower, and the first setback with the necrotic area didn't help, nor did the second setback which was caused a bit I of shock loss to surrounding hair from the repair to the necrotic area.

 

As well, I really could not get the Rogaine cooking until just a few months ago. I tried (and certainly did successfully with the crown, which I know helped speed growth in that area) but at the front, avoiding hitting the healing necrotic area with Rogaine for the first few months, then again avoiding that same area right after it was repaired, retarded what could have been faster growth.

 

If you add it all up, I really had to wait until Nov 1 of 2015 to really be able to slather Rogaine around at will on the frontal grafts.

 

Having said all of that, in the two months since I felt "satisfied" a few things have happened. All of the "wiry" hair that came out initially - particularly at the hairline, flattened out and became more consistent, taking on the texture of my existing hair. The frontal portion "thickened" in that the hair shafts matured and got fatter. The new hairs of course grew to a length that allowed them to be styled. I expect this maturing of the shafts trend to continue, and if some new hairs pop up, great. If not, I'm good.

 

With three months to go before the ol' year mark and another eleven to the "full result" at 18 months, I fully expect improvement, albeit subtle, to my head, based on the history of other results and my growth thus far. If I ever wanted to sprinkle another 800-1000 or so near the front for a fuller look, it isn't something I'd recommend I think until at least month twelve. Although subtle, there are changes that occur after the six, seven, and eight month mark, and I expect the trend to continue, so waiting the full twelve just seems logical. At that point, I can fully access and also do an unshaven FUE with what I would expect to be minimal downtime or cosmetic impact immediately post-op.

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Does Dr Umar use the same uGraft punch for head extraction and BHT? I'd imagine uGraft would have to be practically scarless if it's used to extract beard hair from the face. Do you know what punch size he used on you?

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Thanks for the answer Tav......really appreciate you taking the time to give specific details.....you should be thrilled with the results you have and like you said, it's only gonna get better.

 

Any time.

 

Does Dr Umar use the same uGraft punch for head extraction and BHT? I'd imagine uGraft would have to be practically scarless if it's used to extract beard hair from the face. Do you know what punch size he used on you?

 

I don't know the answer to the first question. Nor the second, but I see Dr. U again in two weeks and will ask. I can tell you that I've asked my hairdresser/barber to closely examine the donor and I see no reason why I couldn't go very, very short - there really isn't anything to see in the donor - very clean.

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Any updates on uGraft and scarring?

 

I was out of town and missed my last appt with Dr. Umar. It's really difficult to assess the donor as I don't shave down in the back, but my hairdresser certainly isn't able to see a bloody thing no matter how hard she looks.

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Update: It has now been one year since my original HT procedure with Dr. Umar and approximately 6 months since my repair to the previously mentioned necrotic area. I just returned from a visit with Dr. U, so a few things to report.

 

Dr. Umar and staff have recently moved to a brand new facility. It's close to where his office was before in Redondo Beach, CA, but with what appears to be much more space. Everything is sparkling clean, huge reception area with coffee, water, snacks, etc.; multiple patient rooms and what appears to be a large surgical area. All on one floor. Those of you that have been to his previous offices know that it used to be two somewhat disjointed suites, so it's great to see everything all on the same level.

 

His entire staff remains and they all seem to be doing great and everyone's very busy. His long-time techs are there, and of course, Dr. U does all extractions and site prep. I went for a review, we took some pics and shot some video. Overall, both Dr. U and I are very happy with my progress - frontal third, temple points, crown, etc..

 

But part of what was slightly impacted by the necrotic area was blood flow to the left frontal side. And now that all the other grafts have grown so well, we felt a small portion of the frontal left could use a little touchup (~150 grafts or so). So that little non-shave procedure was quickly scheduled for a few weeks from today.

 

I can't emphasize enough the quality of follow-up care from Dr. U's office and staff. From email reminders for visits to scheduling to his desire to make each patient completely satisfied - even people like me that have a little "hair greed" and want the left front to be perfect.

 

I'm a big fan of his younger look, his mild manner, and in my case as noted previously in this thread, the fact that he is also a Dermatologist. I mean, who better to examine any scalp issues that occur post-transplant?

 

Anyway, that's it for now. Progression pics and a larger one year pic attached. Feel free to ask any questions.

timeline1.thumb.jpg.19328da2858c324c1b06baae62a62de3.jpg

oneyearlarge1.thumb.jpg.08ea3fec2016a1db43a2cd79a59418dd.jpg

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  • 3 weeks later...
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Much appreciated chris.

 

Update: I returned today to Dr. Umar for approximately 150 grafts as a "touch up," as noted earlier in this thread. This was my second time at Dr. U's new offices, but the first time seeing the full facility.

 

Quite frankly, once I was there, while one of his techs was taking pre-surgery pics, I'm not sure either of us actually new for certain where the new hair would be placed. After all, I was 100% happy with my progress thus far.

 

But at the same time, Dr. U felt like the frontal left could use just a bit more density, due to some lack of growth most likely impacted by my previous necrotic issue. And I almost backed out of the procedure, as I was already very pleased and didn't want to think about the post-op care that must be undertaken. I almost had an "anti hair greed" moment, if that's possible.

 

Dr. U performed a flawless no-shave technique in a brand new, spotless new surgical suite. I was comfortable the entire time. Dr. Umar does all extractions with UGraft, and all site incisions. He has various techs running around at all times making certain everything is perfect, and he takes his time.

 

I ended up with 220 grafts (at no cost to me) and it took approximately 3 hours. Towards the end of the procedure, Dr. U came in again to make recipient sites for 10 more grafts. Just ten! That man wants it perfect.

 

So all in all, great experience once again. I was the only patient, three (or four) techs and Dr. U running around taking care of me, great surgical suite and another great experience. My only regret is that Dr. U wanted to sprinkle a few grafts on my frontal right side (in addition to the left), so I've got to sleep on my back for a few days. Damn you Dr. U!

 

Great aftercare packet with instructions, ointments, pillow covers and all the rest. As anyone who has read this thread realizes, I just spell it out how I see it. But I have to say, as someone who already was extremely pleased with my doctor, procedure and outcome, Dr. U, his staff and his facility are just getting better and better.

 

I don't think I've said this overtly in this before, but I would encourage anyone considering FUE for a new or repair case either on the West Coast or otherwise with the ability to get there, to give Dr. Umar a call for a consult.

 

Cases don't get more complicated than mine did (through no fault of Dr. Umar's practice), but the outcome has already been outstanding, with 220 more hairs to grow for perfect refinement. And as a fifty-year-old dude now (good lord), I could not have asked for a better outcome.

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Cases don't get more complicated than mine did (through no fault of Dr. Umar's practice), but the outcome has already been outstanding, with 220 more hairs to grow for perfect refinement. And as a fifty-year-old dude now (good lord), I could not have asked for a better outcome.

 

Trust me, cases get a lot more complicated than yours, have you seen some of the repairs Dr. Umar has pulled off? I mean, hideously disfigured patients have gone through multiple sessions using every available donor source (beard, chest, leg, arm, etc) and he has brought these grotesquely butchered patients back from the dead. Yours was a stroll thru the park.

 

Glad you are happy, Dr. Umar does outstanding hairline work, I love mine.

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