Acne and Oily Skin after HT

[mrcarrol]

Hey,

 

It's been almost six months since my first HT. It's kind of weird but almost immediately after my procedure I started to experience an escalation in acne and oily skin. I'm not exactly sure why. My surgeon stressed a strict diet of as little sugar as possible to help with pimples (I think?) and I did my best to adhere to that.

 

Nevertheless I still experienced quite a bit of acne (especially on my forehead) that seems to have more or less persisted including up until now. Before the HT I can't say that my skin was perfect, but I honestly ate whatever I wanted and the acne seemed to be a lot better than after the procedure.

 

I was (and still am) very diligent about checking for and monitoring pimples in the recipient areas, but it seems like the acne hangs out just outside of the recipient areas, so I haven't been too concerned about it. In hindsight maybe I should have been, I'm not sure.

 

I've lately become concerned that the acne might have affected the recipient sites around my temples. The left temple doesn't seem to be coming in that well. A doctor prescribed me a topical gel called BenzaClin (clindamycin, as phosphate 1% and benzoyl peroxide 5%) but I'm afraid to use it for fear of getting it into the recipient areas and having it negatively affect the grafts (magical thinking?).

 

I've contacted the clinic but they've yet to get back to me. I've included a few photos as well. Any advice would really help.

[Bill - Seemiller]

mrcarrol,

 

Thanks for posting. It seems that your primary concern is that your forehead acne may impact growth in the temple region, am I right? For starters, how far out from surgery are you? It takes a good 12 to 18 months for a hair transplant to grow and mature. Temple areas sometimes take a little longer to grow for whatever reason as well.

 

Severe acne in the recipient area could affect growth if infection occurs. But if it's just a little bit of oily skin and acne, I wouldn't expect there to be a problem.

 

I do suggest speaking to your physician to garner his/her input on the subject. Your pictures don't really show much acne so if that's really the extent of it, I can't imagine you would experience growth related problems as a result.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[mrcarrol]

Thank you for the reply Bill,

 

Yes, you are correct. I am most concerned that the acne on my forehead may affect the temple region grafts. I am only six months out from my procedure, which is probably much too early to be making any definitive conclusions.

 

I am probably more than just a little bit paranoid at this point that I am not doing a good enough job looking for infections. My surgeon told me to pop and drain pimples that form whiteheads as they appear. I've done my best to do this. I'm just afraid that I may miss an infection.

 

Incidentally, I had pimple-like bump appear around the scar region. This is the first pimple that has actually been sore and tender to touch. My thinking is that it is an ingrown hair that may have been affected by shock loss or something along those lines. I'm not sure if this could potentially lead to an infection though.