rival718 Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 I wish I could go back in time and never get hair transplants, but since that's not a viable option, I'm looking to getting my plugs removed. I'm sick, tired, and depressed about covering my bad transplants up with a hairpiece. At this point in my life, I can accept a bald head. My question is, how do I go about getting my transplants removed? I live in Brooklyn, NY, but would travel and pay whatever it takes to make my head look decent...without much scarring, etc. If anyone can point me in the right direction, I'd greatly appreciate it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Ronald Posted November 12, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted November 12, 2009 Since you live in NY, I would start your journey by booking a consult with the following doctors: Feller True Bernstein Dorin They all operate in NY city (Feller just outside), ask them for their advice on what to do. All except Bernstein will provide a free consult...... I have seen them all pull off some impressive repair work.....esp Bernstein but he is really expensive but is totally worth it for repairs in my opinion (normal ht, not even freaking close in my view, he charges double) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Shamrock Posted November 12, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted November 12, 2009 Rival718 its going to depend on what type of transplants you had and how many there are. If you are not interested in repair work, Ive read about some guys getting the older plugs and minigrafts punched out and sutured, but Im not sure about how much scarring there will be. There is also laser hair removal, which sounds like the best option to me. Best to call some of the top docs on here to get an opinion. Here is a recent topic discussing this. http://hair-restoration-info.c...66060861/m/500109634 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rival718 Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 Originally posted by Ronald:Since you live in NY, I would start your journey by booking a consult with the following doctors: Feller True Bernstein Dorin They all operate in NY city (Feller just outside), ask them for their advice on what to do. All except Bernstein will provide a free consult...... I have seen them all pull off some impressive repair work.....esp Bernstein but he is really expensive but is totally worth it for repairs in my opinion (normal ht, not even freaking close in my view, he charges double) Thank you so much for your advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rival718 Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 Originally posted by Shamrock:Rival718 its going to depend on what type of transplants you had and how many there are. If you are not interested in repair work, Ive read about some guys getting the older plugs and minigrafts punched out and sutured, but Im not sure about how much scarring there will be. There is also laser hair removal, which sounds like the best option to me. Best to call some of the top docs on here to get an opinion. Here is a recent topic discussing this. http://hair-restoration-info.c...66060861/m/500109634 Thanks, Shamrock! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Obie one Posted November 12, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted November 12, 2009 It also depends on where the punch grafts and mini grafts are on your head, at the hairline or further back.If they are further back from the hairline location, some docs may decide to transplant FUG around them and not remove the plugs at all. Of course, only a qualified HT doc will be able to answer this for you in person. As the other posters have said, your best bet is to go speak with a highly qualified and recommended HT doc. Since you are in NY, consider starting there. Much luck to ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Shamrock Posted November 12, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted November 12, 2009 Thanks for those pics Spex. What kind of scarring (if any) will this guy expect to have in the areas below the current hairline? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Sparky Posted November 12, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 12, 2009 This guy wont get any visible scarring, they looks like very clean extractions. My Hairloss Website http://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/blog/home-page.asp?WebID=2198 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member aska Posted November 13, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 13, 2009 I say he will get visible scarring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Blake Bloxham Posted November 13, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted November 13, 2009 Look at some of Dr Bernstein's plug repair work. He does some extraction and re-use of plugs with very, very little scarring and fantastic results. "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...
Senior Member EastCoast Posted December 2, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted December 2, 2009 Planting grafts around large plugs probally wont work. I tried camouflaging some pitted grafts to no avail. I wish to punch them out and spread them around but some docs say the area is too scarred. Are your plugs much darker than native hair. Mine stick out when I dont dye. I wish I had the courage to go bald. MY HT never looked natural from the beginning. I didn't get 1 good day out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Sparky Posted December 2, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted December 2, 2009 No, he wont get visible scarring. My Hairloss Website http://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/blog/home-page.asp?WebID=2198 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Waterloo Posted December 3, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted December 3, 2009 In this matter of old style plug/mini graft excision...do these folks have more of an option to back out of the transplant result than the folks who have had the modern megasession type procedure? If so, I'm sure that there are many men who were plugged/mimi grafted 15-30 years ago who are now NW 6-7, with possible senile alopecia developing in formally depleated donor areas who may have a choice. That choice being another transplant with lower volume donor yield, looking nothing like the fine pictures we see of NW 2-4 with apparent full heads of hair...and another, or a 1st, strip scar. Or, go the "I'm bald, I'm old and it's OK" route and get whatever is on your head excised....if the numbers are reasonable and the scalp is not horribly scarred. It would seem to me that if a guy could achieve a 70-80% near normal scalp, acceptable scarring, with the excision, it would be a viable choice. Additional cosmetic improvements could be achieved with laser and or dermabrasion if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Bachstrad Posted December 3, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted December 3, 2009 I too am looking to get rid of the plugs in the crown (to start) and it is amazingly difficult to find anyone that is affordable. Dr Bernstein $85 a plug and Dr Lindsey $100 a plug. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member omy Posted December 3, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted December 3, 2009 Bachstrad if you choose getting your crown plugs excised and sutured you may want to try a test of say 15-20 of them and see hou it heals over a year . The sutured plugs need to have space from eachother due to the tension from the stitching . There was a guy on the hlh site called plug I think . He had a case similar to yours and went to a overseas clinic to have them out .Some were sutured closed some were left open to heal . After healing he looked better and was considering some options to further smooth out the repair . You will still have marks there after the excision but it will be better than it is now . Dont try a tiny fue removal on your plugs they are too large and it will not reduce the circular shape of the skin at the base . I am not a doctor so consult with a doctor and start small . Check out Dr. Vogel . he is one of the original docs who started taking out big plugs . I wish you the best outcome in your repair . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 An interesting problem in Bachstrads particular case is that most of his plugs do not contain any viable hair follicles which means that no cosmetically signficant amount of hair can be harvested. So the value of removing them instantly becomes lower. However, I have no doubt that if they are removed and stiched closed the resulting overall apperance will be sginficantly improved. The added problem for him is that because the plugs are so close to each other removal of ALL plugs in one sitting could be dangerous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member stamos Posted December 4, 2009 Senior Member Share Posted December 4, 2009 You say that it is possible to remove the grafts, place them somewhere else and treat the pitting as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Waterloo Posted December 4, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted December 4, 2009 If Bachstrad has 150 plugs, and assuming they did have hair, say 15 hairs per plug. Given the vast expanse of baldness in this NW 7 patient, would 2250 individual hairs really make a difference? This dividing and reimplanting of FU's would lengthen the repair process to assure proper blood supply and growth of the re implanted FU's. Wouldn't this gentleman best be served by cosmetically improving his look in the fastest, safest time frame, have a fairly normal bald look instead of looking like a peeled chicken? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Waterloo Posted December 4, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted December 4, 2009 Stamos, Surgeon's do excise or alter old plugs. They can either sliver them, with something called The Lucas technique, which reduces the plugginess and spread the field, so to speak. they can also excise them and try to suture healthy scalp tissue together. This would also reduce pitting and cobblestoning. Factors which need to be considered are: Scarring from past procedure(s), Space between plugs/grafts, Scalp laxity, Location etc. You would be best served by consulting with any number of the competent surgeons listed at this site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Bachstrad Posted December 7, 2009 Regular Member Share Posted December 7, 2009 Thanks for all replies, especially Dr Feller as he knows my hair as well as anyone. I was hoping to get maybe 200 hairs to put in the front centre to blend in with the 2 sides which are slightly thicker due to an old transplant. 200 on most people wouldn't make any difference but on me I think it would. Plugs being too close is something I never thought about but I can see how it would make suturing more difficult so a minimun 2 visits is on the cards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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