Trying to figure out the best option between FUT and FUE

[gs1207]

Hi all,

I’ve been thinking about the potential of a hair transplant for almost two years now to address my receding corners. I’m 26 years old and about a NW2 (pictures attached.) I started noticing some hair loss in my early 20s but not much until around 23. 

I’ve schedule multiple consultations with Surgeons in my area for January (predominantly NY area) and one doctor gave me an estimate for around 1600-1800 grafts to fill the corners and try to build a fuller hairline. I think this is reasonable given my current situation.

I’ve been taking Finasteride for about 15 months and so far I haven’t noticed a ton of further hair loss. I do have some MPB in my family but no one is completely bald. I have to imagine I’ll see some level of loss down the road so I want to go with a conservative approach to build a “mature” hairline that will look natural into an older age.

I’ve heard that for younger patients FUT is a good decision as it can leave you with more donor supply for future HTs but I like to wear my hair short in the back and sides with a fade. I also have a scar on the side of my head that I got from a rugby game when I split my head and had to get staples. The scar was repaired decently but left a bump on the side of my head that causes concern given an FUT scar could do the same but much larger.

Would really appreciate hearing what you guys think. If I were to go with an FUE given my current situation could that put me in a bad spot down the line?
 

Ive included some rough estimates of where I’d like the hairline to be… is that a reasonable request given my age?

Any feedback would be amazing.

Thanks guys!

 

Edited December 26, 2021 by gs1207

[Dillpickle123]

1 hour ago, gs1207 said:

Hi all,

I’ve been thinking about the potential of a hair transplant for almost two years now to address my receding corners. I’m 26 years old and about a NW2 (pictures attached.) I started noticing some hair loss in my early 20s but not much until around 23. 

I’ve schedule multiple consultations with Surgeons in my area for January (predominantly NY area) and one doctor gave me an estimate for around 1600-1800 grafts to fill the corners and try to build a fuller hairline. I think this is reasonable given my current situation.

I’ve been taking Finasteride for about 15 months and so far I haven’t noticed a ton of further hair loss. I do have some MPB in my family but no one is completely bald. I have to imagine I’ll see some level of loss down the road so I want to go with a conservative approach to build a “mature” hairline that will look natural into an older age.

I’ve heard that for younger patients FUT is a good decision as it can leave you with more donor supply for future HTs but I like to wear my hair short in the back and sides with a fade. I also have a scar on the side of my head that I got from a rugby game when I split my head and had to get staples. The scar was repaired decently but left a bump on the side of my head that causes concern given an FUT scar could do the same but much larger.

Would really appreciate hearing what you guys think. If I were to go with an FUE given my current situation could that put me in a bad spot down the line?
 

Ive included some rough estimates of where I’d like the hairline to be… is that a reasonable request given my age?

Any feedback would be amazing.

Thanks guys!

 

It seems that your temple points receded too was that after taking finasteride? And your crown looks a little thin fut would probably be best If you believe you’ll need to get more hair transplants 

[gs1207]

Thanks for your response. Yeah the temple points are receded as well which definitely makes the whole hairline seem worse in my opinion. However, they looked this way before Finasteride. Since taking it they haven’t improved but haven’t necessarily gotten any worse either at the moment. 

[Rahal Hair Transplant]

Gs1207,

I think it’s great that you are researching your options and taking your time before making a decision. In my opinion, given all the advancements with FUE over the last several years, there are only two compelling reasons to choose FUT over FUE. The first one is price. FUE is still more expensive than FUT however, the consistency in obtaining impressive results is pretty much the same now as long as you’re going to an experienced surgeon who specializes in FUE.  The only other reason to consider undergoing FUT is the possibility of obtaining more grafts over a long period of time.  For example, someone who is young with advanced balding might undergo as many FUT procedures as possible until they’re “stripped out” and then switch to FUE to max out and finish everything off.  Combining FUT with FUE does enable a patient to maximize the number of grafts over many procedures.

All that to say, most patients don’t need to combine procedures because undergoing a few FUE procedures is often enough for a patient to get the results they want and need and will provide the patient with the ability to wear their hair cropped short on the sides and back without showing any scarring. It’s not that FUE scarring is invisible, but it is far less detectable and eliminates the linear scar associated with strip.

Best wishes,

Rahal Hair Transplant 

Edited December 26, 2021 by Rahal Hair Transplant

[gs1207]

1 hour ago, Rahal Hair Transplant said:

Gs1207,

I think it’s great that you are researching your options and taking your time before making a decision. In my opinion, given all the advancements with FUE over the last several years, there are only two compelling reasons to choose FUT over FUE. The first one is price. FUE is still more expensive than FUT however, the consistency in obtaining impressive results is pretty much the same now as long as you’re going to an experienced surgeon who specializes in FUE.  The only other reason to consider undergoing FUT is the possibility of obtaining more grafts over a long period of time.  For example, someone who is young with advanced balding might undergo as many FUT procedures as possible until they’re “stripped out” and then switch to FUE to max out and finish everything off.  Combining FUT with FUE does enable a patient to maximize the number of grafts over many procedures.

All that to say, most patients don’t need to combine procedures because undergoing a few FUE procedures is often enough for a patient to get the results they want and need and will provide the patient with the ability to wear their hair cropped short on the sides and back without showing any scarring. It’s not that FUE scarring is invisible, but it is far less detectable and eliminates the linear scar associated with strip.

Best wishes,

Rahal Hair Transplant 

Thanks for the insight that’s really helpful! Assuming I can keep my hair relatively in check using Fin and taking good care of it/myself, given my current level of hair loss, would it be a somewhat safe assumption that I could get an FUE initially and likely have enough donor for 1 maybe 2 more procedures if absolutely necessary? 
 

I understand there are many variables at play, but curious to hear your opinion. This would be in the event my crown really goes or the hair behind what was already transplanted becomes a noticeable issue.  

Edited December 27, 2021 by gs1207

[Rahal Hair Transplant]

Gs1207,

Based strictly on your photos and from what I can tell, you appear to be a good candidate for FUE and assuming that you can stabilize your hair loss, I’d say that meeting your goals would be fairly simple and wouldn’t require a large number of grafts.  So in my opinion, you very likely have adequate donor hair for a few solid FUE procedures although you may only require one for now awesome that you don’t lose any additional hair.  Feel free to send me a PM or contact the clinic directly if you are interested in a formal consult.

All the best,

Rahal Hair Transplant

[gs1207]

1 hour ago, Rahal Hair Transplant said:

Gs1207,

Based strictly on your photos and from what I can tell, you appear to be a good candidate for FUE and assuming that you can stabilize your hair loss, I’d say that meeting your goals would be fairly simple and wouldn’t require a large number of grafts.  So in my opinion, you very likely have adequate donor hair for a few solid FUE procedures although you may only require one for now awesome that you don’t lose any additional hair.  Feel free to send me a PM or contact the clinic directly if you are interested in a formal consult.

All the best,

Rahal Hair Transplant

Thanks again Dr. I’ll definitely be in touch!

[Melvin- Admin]

 

[Fue3361]

In your photos you’re not looking to lower your hairline an inch or to do extreme changes.  What you’re proposing wouldn’t be many grafts at all.

 

 But even if it was more grafts, I’d personally almost always say to go FUE.  FUE has advanced a ton and the advantages outweigh the cons in most cases imho.

[digi23]

I would also recommend FUE for that small loss, I was Norwood 3 and had 2550 grafts FUE at 26(a month before I turned 27). I wouldnt choose a strip scar for that small amount of grafts this will require, then you will most likely be set for many years to come specially if you can keep being on Finasteride.

[NAVI]

On 12/27/2021 at 4:40 AM, Rahal Hair Transplant said:

Gs1207,

I think it’s great that you are researching your options and taking your time before making a decision. In my opinion, given all the advancements with FUE over the last several years, there are only two compelling reasons to choose FUT over FUE. The first one is price. FUE is still more expensive than FUT however, the consistency in obtaining impressive results is pretty much the same now as long as you’re going to an experienced surgeon who specializes in FUE.  The only other reason to consider undergoing FUT is the possibility of obtaining more grafts over a long period of time.  For example, someone who is young with advanced balding might undergo as many FUT procedures as possible until they’re “stripped out” and then switch to FUE to max out and finish everything off.  Combining FUT with FUE does enable a patient to maximize the number of grafts over many procedures.

All that to say, most patients don’t need to combine procedures because undergoing a few FUE procedures is often enough for a patient to get the results they want and need and will provide the patient with the ability to wear their hair cropped short on the sides and back without showing any scarring. It’s not that FUE scarring is invisible, but it is far less detectable and eliminates the linear scar associated with strip.

Best wishes,

Rahal Hair Transplant 

Is there any problem in doing fue first ,max out,and fut later? Can you please tell what difference does it make

[Rahal Hair Transplant]

Navi,

“Is there any problem in doing fue first ,max out,and fut later? Can you please tell what difference does it make?”

Good question. While it is technically possible to start with FUE and finish up with FUT, you won’t get as many grafts that way.  To understand why, you must understand exactly how the extraction process of each procedure works.  With FUT/strip, every single follicular unit in the strip of tissue that is harvested is used for transplanting.  With FUE, follicular units are cherry picked and the surgeon will never extract follicular units that are next to one another for multiple reasons. Besides the fact that this would increase the visibility of scarring, in many cases, the surrounding  grafts and tissue are damaged during the FUE extraction process, making them unusable for surgery.  Now imagine harvesting a strip of tissue for FUT after FUE and then dissecting the grafts under microscopes.  What do you think the technicians would find?  Ultimately, many of the grafts would be damaged from previous FUE work and thus, would not be viable for transplanting. Overall therefore, the number of grafts available for transplanting would be far greater if you start with FUT and finish off with FUE than the other way around.

I hope this makes sense. 

Rahal Hair Transplant 

Edited December 28, 2021 by Rahal Hair Transplant