johnny123 Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 I had a FUT operation and the Dr said he severed both the occipital artery and the occipital nerve. The back of my head is numb. He never mentioned this as a risk, did he screw up or is this normal? He didn't tell me until I repeatedly asked him why my head was numb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member voxman Posted August 10, 2020 Senior Member Share Posted August 10, 2020 I am sure you will get the 'who was your surgeon' questions, but I would suggest we all wait for a response from a medical Dr on this or someone who has had the same artery/nerve problem. Did your Doctor give any indication of the prognosis? 1 I'm serious. Just look at my face. My Hair Regimen: Lather, Rinse, Repeat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ciaus Posted August 10, 2020 Senior Member Share Posted August 10, 2020 (edited) Voxman is right, you want doctor responses. Just adding some textbook images/descriptions for anyone else fascinated by human anatomy and health, or just to help follow the topic. Function The main function of the occipital artery is to supply oxygenated blood to the muscles of the upper neck and scalp, but it is not its only function.1 In fact, the occipital artery is responsible for more than the occipital area as it has several branches, in addition to the upper and lower ones. The individual branches of the occipital artery supply blood to different parts of the neck, face, head, and ears. The muscular branches supply the digastric below the jaw and longus capitis, a pre-vertebral muscle in the neck. The auricular branch supplies blood to the back of the ears. The meningeal branch supplies the dura mater of the posterior cranial fossa. The sternocleidomastoid branch divides the upper and lower branches. The descending branch is the largest of all the branches of the occipital artery starting in the back of the neck and dividing into two parts: one that supplies the trapezius muscle (the large muscle bundle extending from the back of the head and neck to the shoulder) and another part connecting to the vertebral artery (an artery of the neck that is a major source of blood to the brain). The occipital nerves collectively share a variety of functions that stem from the parent function, which acts as the main nerve supply of the scalp and most of the head. These nerves transmit information back and forth between their originating location in the spinal column and the brain. The greater occipital nerve and lesser occipital nerve share this responsibility. Edited August 10, 2020 by ciaus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member asterix0 Posted August 11, 2020 Senior Member Share Posted August 11, 2020 This is very scary and I hope you heal well OP. The higher invasiveness of the FUT procedure certainly worries me and makes me lean towards FUE, not to consider the scar itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Al - Moderator Posted August 11, 2020 Moderators Share Posted August 11, 2020 How long ago was the FUT done? They cut a long strip out of the back of your head, so you are going to have nerves and blood vessels cut. There's no way around that. It can take several months or more for the numbness to go away in some patients. I don't know if that's all he was trying to tell you or if it's a lot worse than that in your case. Al Forum Moderator (formerly BeHappy) I am a forum moderator for hairrestorationnetwork.com. I am not a Dr. and I do not work for any particular Dr. My opinions are my own and may not reflect the opinions of other moderators or the owner of this site. I am also a hair transplant patient and repair patient. You can view some of my repair journey here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ShadowMoon Posted August 11, 2020 Senior Member Share Posted August 11, 2020 Sounds like he had to go below the subcutaneous layer. Or, you could have weird anatomy and your artery/nerve ran up into the fat layer at that spot. Permanent loss of sensation should have been detailed in your signed consent form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnny123 Posted August 15, 2020 Author Share Posted August 15, 2020 On 8/11/2020 at 4:17 AM, BeHappy said: How long ago was the FUT done? They cut a long strip out of the back of your head, so you are going to have nerves and blood vessels cut. There's no way around that. It can take several months or more for the numbness to go away in some patients. I don't know if that's all he was trying to tell you or if it's a lot worse than that in your case. 5 weeks ago. Cutting the occipital artery and nerve is not standard. It's a mishap. And it shouldn't happen. The surgeon is part of IAHRS and is in Nor cal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now