FUT with Dr Diep 4000 grafts - not satisfied

[HT1404]

Quick update.

I have a consultation with Dr. Mohebi in SF the end of this month to get another opinion. I am not sure I would go with him though yet, but it would be nice to see what other Drs think of this case.

I have talked to Dr. Gabel too, and the earliest consultation is April and surgery is November, but I did send them my photos.

H&W are closed till Jan10th and I haven't contacted Dr. Konior yet.

[Al - Moderator]

Are you on any blood pressure medication, blood thinners, or something like Lipitor to lower cholesterol? Some of those and other medications can cause hair loss, so if you are on those post hair transplant I think there could be a higher graft failure rate. I would seriously take a look at any medications you are on before going through another hair transplant.

 

 

[FUT4000]

3 hours ago, BeHappy said:

Are you on any blood pressure medication, blood thinners, or something like Lipitor to lower cholesterol? Some of those and other medications can cause hair loss, so if you are on those post hair transplant I think there could be a higher graft failure rate. I would seriously take a look at any medications you are on before going through another hair transplant.

 

 

To my understanding blood pressure medication helps with hair growth as it increases vasodilation increasing blood flow everywhere including dermal papilla cells.

[Al - Moderator]

https://www.goodrx.com/drugs/side-effects/is-your-medication-causing-hair-loss-these-11-drugs-are-common-culprits

 

https://besthairlosscure.org/causes-of-hair-loss/what-medications-cause-hair-loss-list/#Which_medications_cause_hair_to_fall

 

Edited January 10, 2022 by BeHappy

[FUT4000]

12 minutes ago, BeHappy said:

https://www.goodrx.com/drugs/side-effects/is-your-medication-causing-hair-loss-these-11-drugs-are-common-culprits

 

https://besthairlosscure.org/causes-of-hair-loss/what-medications-cause-hair-loss-list/#Which_medications_cause_hair_to_fall

 

Ok from those two links pretty much every medicine causes hair loss😂

[HT1404]

Good point, but I am not on any medication (or wasn't for that purpose).

[HT1404]

Ok update guys.

I have had 2 more in depth consultations:

1) Dr Mohebi's office:

• I liked how much in depth we went and that we actually spent quite a bit of time discussing all options.
• He actually did a hair density count (which was helpful for me because I never know). Hair density was average (2/mm2), but hair quality is nice and coarse.
• Since their specialization is FUE, they recommended FUE with 1000 to front, 1000 to top and 500 on temples to fix some of the misplaced hairs too. so 2500 in total in one FUE surgery.
• Later on, I would tackle the back part of the top and then scatter into the crown via another surgery (estimated around 2000 hairs, ofcourse wouldn't be full density).
• For the scar, he recommended FUE'ing into it too (but that would be another ~1000 hairs which seems like a waste), but he said they could utilize beard hair too and I have quite a bit of hair on the beard. He said maybe first try SMP into it and see how it looks and not immediately FUE into it (which makes sense).
• The scar itself, he measured to be at max 8mm wide and total 24in (big scar yes), but ofcourse it is smaller towards the end.
• In general, I felt comfortable at his office and he was very helpful trying to tackle all issues to help me fix this mess.

2) H&W's office:

• Not in person but through email. I had submitted this forum to them since it already has a lot of photos and discussion.
• Based on what they saw from pics, they estimate something around 1500-1700 hairs removed via FUT while revising the scar. (More if it allows)
• They also recommended that some of the hairs on the temple would be removed via FUE and replanted for better placement and orientation.
• Ofcourse this is all dependent also on the laxity of the scalp which they can't assess yet, but those numbers are based on an average scalp laxity
• For scar, they would use dissolvable sutures plus skin staples to ensure scar is not under tension, and those would stay for 2 weeks post surgery.

 

So in summary, 2 very different paths that I can take and I am trying to decide which one is better. I feel like H&W first to fix the scar is better way to go forward as then I wouldn't have to FUE 1000 hairs into the scar, and if done properly I can probably get away with SMP for a smaller scar.

 

What do you guys think based on your experience and any feedback would be super helpful.

Thanks guys.

[FUT4000]

13 hours ago, HT1404 said:

Ok update guys.

I have had 2 more in depth consultations:

1) Dr Mohebi's office:

• I liked how much in depth we went and that we actually spent quite a bit of time discussing all options.
• He actually did a hair density count (which was helpful for me because I never know). Hair density was average (2/mm2), but hair quality is nice and coarse.
• Since their specialization is FUE, they recommended FUE with 1000 to front, 1000 to top and 500 on temples to fix some of the misplaced hairs too. so 2500 in total in one FUE surgery.
• Later on, I would tackle the back part of the top and then scatter into the crown via another surgery (estimated around 2000 hairs, ofcourse wouldn't be full density).
• For the scar, he recommended FUE'ing into it too (but that would be another ~1000 hairs which seems like a waste), but he said they could utilize beard hair too and I have quite a bit of hair on the beard. He said maybe first try SMP into it and see how it looks and not immediately FUE into it (which makes sense).
• The scar itself, he measured to be at max 8mm wide and total 24in (big scar yes), but ofcourse it is smaller towards the end.
• In general, I felt comfortable at his office and he was very helpful trying to tackle all issues to help me fix this mess.

2) H&W's office:

• Not in person but through email. I had submitted this forum to them since it already has a lot of photos and discussion.
• Based on what they saw from pics, they estimate something around 1500-1700 hairs removed via FUT while revising the scar. (More if it allows)
• They also recommended that some of the hairs on the temple would be removed via FUE and replanted for better placement and orientation.
• Ofcourse this is all dependent also on the laxity of the scalp which they can't assess yet, but those numbers are based on an average scalp laxity
• For scar, they would use dissolvable sutures plus skin staples to ensure scar is not under tension, and those would stay for 2 weeks post surgery.

 

So in summary, 2 very different paths that I can take and I am trying to decide which one is better. I feel like H&W first to fix the scar is better way to go forward as then I wouldn't have to FUE 1000 hairs into the scar, and if done properly I can probably get away with SMP for a smaller scar.

 

What do you guys think based on your experience and any feedback would be super helpful.

Thanks guys.

I like that first option. Did Dr. Mohebi talk about why you didn't have as much success with your grafts previously placed? Or any possible reasons? Did he check for any dermatological issues?

[HT1404]

He didn't check for any dermatological issues and I wonder whether I should go do that before getting another surgery. Where would i do a check like that? Anyone knows?

But as per Dr Mohebi's office, I actually went and got an SMP onto the scar. Had 1 session and still have another so we will see how it is after 2 sessions. But after 1 session I can definitely tell it is less visible which is nice.

But I still want to continue the hair transplant journey. The front is too thin and I don't like it.

[Bronamath123]

@HT1404...I also had a disappointing result from Dr. Diep, approx. 3,000 grafts FUE implanted and the yield looked much lower than 3,000. Your post-op growth looks almost identical to mine. And the items previously mentioned of grafts planted in rows and incorrect angle of the grafts in the temple points were also present. I had a similar hair loss pattern to yours, so I think initially I was just happy to have any hair at all on top, but as time went on I realized I wasn't satisfied. So while I wasn't satisfied, I know other patients had great results with Dr. Diep that I've seen on here, particularly Melvin. For whatever reason, mine was not a success, in my opinion. 

So I took the following steps to try and fix the issue:

1. Approx. 2,800 scalp FUE performed by Dr. Shapiro/Dr. Josephitis

2. Approx. 1,500 scalp/beard FUE performed by Dr. Wesley

3. Approx. 4,000 beard/chest FUE performed by Dr. Mwamba which was just completed yesterday

The first two procedures were okay. Perhaps recency bias, but I really enjoyed the procedure that I just finished with Dr. Mwamba. He spent about 3 hours with me pre-op answering all my questions, measuring, and drawing. There was another post on here that mentioned this also, but he really is a perfectionist and worked on me for 3 days of which two were about 12 hour days. He punched out the remaining incorrect temple grafts (Shapiro and Wesley started it, but didn't get all of them) and redesigned the temple areas. I don't know how the results will look since I'm only one day post-op and all beard and chest were used, but I was generally pleased with the process.

I know I haven't posted much here, but have avidly been following the forum for about 9 years and it's helped me a great deal. I'm not pushing you in one direction or the other, just wanted to share a similar experience I had and what I did to try and fix it. 

I've done my fair share of research over the years, but I am in no way as gifted with the technical knowledge as so many other members of the forum. However, happy to answer any questions about my experience. 

[HairRun]

On 3/18/2022 at 6:17 PM, Bronamath123 said:

@HT1404...I also had a disappointing result from Dr. Diep, approx. 3,000 grafts FUE implanted and the yield looked much lower than 3,000. Your post-op growth looks almost identical to mine. And the items previously mentioned of grafts planted in rows and incorrect angle of the grafts in the temple points were also present. I had a similar hair loss pattern to yours, so I think initially I was just happy to have any hair at all on top, but as time went on I realized I wasn't satisfied. So while I wasn't satisfied, I know other patients had great results with Dr. Diep that I've seen on here, particularly Melvin. For whatever reason, mine was not a success, in my opinion. 

So I took the following steps to try and fix the issue:

1. Approx. 2,800 scalp FUE performed by Dr. Shapiro/Dr. Josephitis

2. Approx. 1,500 scalp/beard FUE performed by Dr. Wesley

3. Approx. 4,000 beard/chest FUE performed by Dr. Mwamba which was just completed yesterday

The first two procedures were okay. Perhaps recency bias, but I really enjoyed the procedure that I just finished with Dr. Mwamba. He spent about 3 hours with me pre-op answering all my questions, measuring, and drawing. There was another post on here that mentioned this also, but he really is a perfectionist and worked on me for 3 days of which two were about 12 hour days. He punched out the remaining incorrect temple grafts (Shapiro and Wesley started it, but didn't get all of them) and redesigned the temple areas. I don't know how the results will look since I'm only one day post-op and all beard and chest were used, but I was generally pleased with the process.

I know I haven't posted much here, but have avidly been following the forum for about 9 years and it's helped me a great deal. I'm not pushing you in one direction or the other, just wanted to share a similar experience I had and what I did to try and fix it. 

I've done my fair share of research over the years, but I am in no way as gifted with the technical knowledge as so many other members of the forum. However, happy to answer any questions about my experience. 

Would love to see some pics + 1 month update .

[FUT4000]

3 hours ago, str8-n-pluggy said:

Found the answer here, first paragraph:  https://www.rn.ca.gov/pdfs/regulations/npr-b-18.pdf. California law does allow the first assistant registered nurse, not just any assistant, to perform suturing.

"The role of RN first assistant to the surgeon requires the performance of a combination of nursing and medical functions. The RN first assistant directly assists the surgeon by controlling bleeding, providing wound exposure, suturing and other surgical tasks."

No idea if Dr. Diep does delegate however.

he does it himself