Are Asymmetric Graft Placements Common?

[Smolhouse]

I had a transplant back in January and I'm feeling a little anxious about the way my grafts were laid out.  You can see in the photo (taken 1 week post op) that the right side was built up into the healthy hair, but there is a bit of a gap on the left side and the grafts don't go as far back.  

I'm just curious if people think this is something I should complain to the doctor about or if it's fairly common and addressed in follow on procedures?  

 

 

 

 

Edited May 6, 2021 by Smolhouse
Photo issues

[Melvin- Admin]

You had it back in January, how does it look now? If it's noticeable yes you should voice your concerns. I think keeping an open line of communication with your surgeon is vital. It may look like a gap, but it's possible you had some native hair there that was still healthy. I don't think an oversight like that is very common, so there should be some explanation.

[aaron1234]

Everything looks quite good to me.  Yes, the left side doesn't go as far back - but it could have simply been a matter of running out of the extracted grafts.  The doctor must have felt they were more useful elsewhere.  

[Smolhouse]

8 hours ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

You had it back in January, how does it look now?

It's still growing in, but the photo-right side looks a lot fuller.  The left side looks a little sparse and patchy, pretty similar to the photo.    

The office is supposed to schedule a 6 month follow up which should happen soon, so I plan to bring it up.  I just wanted to get an idea of how .. angry I should be for lack of a better word since most post-op photos that I see posted look to be pretty symmetrical and without gaps between the native hair.  

Edited May 6, 2021 by Smolhouse

[Smolhouse]

8 hours ago, aaron1234 said:

Everything looks quite good to me.  Yes, the left side doesn't go as far back - but it could have simply been a matter of running out of the extracted grafts.  The doctor must have felt they were more useful elsewhere.  

Perhaps, but the photo-right grafts were transplanted by an older technician and the left by someone much younger that seemed to be grumbling a bit like something wasn't going well, so I'm afraid I was the victim of inexperience. 

[aaron1234]

1 hour ago, Smolhouse said:

Perhaps, but the photo-right grafts were transplanted by an older technician and the left by someone much younger that seemed to be grumbling a bit like something wasn't going well, so I'm afraid I was the victim of inexperience. 

That's not reassuring, but try not to read too much into it.  How involved was the surgeon during the implanting process?  FWIW, many HT's grow in unevenly at first but even out over time.  It's still early. 

[LaserCaps]

It is too early to tell. at about 9 months you should get a better idea.  Some cases can take the full 12 months to really mature results.  The second point is the fact that symmetry is for system. An asymmetric hairline is your best friend and it adds naturalness to the total result.  And when discussing symmetry, by the way, we are referring to the location of the hairline, (a bit higher up, down, but both sides not being exactly the same). It has nothing to do with density. If not content, the doctor can always modify and add grafts.  It is imperative you go to your scheduled visits and bring up the issue(s) you are concerned about.

[Smolhouse]

6 minutes ago, aaron1234 said:

How involved was the surgeon during the implanting process?

He would check in every hour or so but otherwise wasn't in the room.  

I know it's early and I'm trying to be reasonable which is why I'm not naming names or anything.  It's just a little frustrating when I compare my post op photo to others posted, because it feels like an obvious oversight on something that was quite an undertaking on my end.

[Smolhouse]

9 minutes ago, LaserCaps said:

And when discussing symmetry, by the way, we are referring to the location of the hairline, (a bit higher up, down, but both sides not being exactly the same).

Poor word choice on my part.  I was referring to the back left area that doesn't appear to have been blended into the non-miniaturized hair and not the frontal hairline.