Does this transplant make sense? 2250 FUT scalp-to-beard

[BeardHopeful]

I’m a 27-year-old man and I have always had somewhat thin, blond/light brown hair. I hoped that I would be able to grow a thick beard, but as I approach my 30s my beard is thin, especially in the cheeks. I'm not trying to grow a big bushy beard, I just want to be able to keep it trim (see photos) but still have good density. I’ve scheduled 2,250 grafts FUT with Dr. Diep in Los Gatos, California to fill in my beard. I take finasteride to prevent my head hair from falling out, and although I’ve always had something of a mature hairline, my hairline hasn’t changed since high school. I know finasteride can suppress beard growth, but I didn’t start taking finasteride until I was 26, and my beard has not noticeably changed since then. I don’t think a naturally thick beard was ever in the cards for me.

My surgery is scheduled for late May 2022, but now I'm having second thoughts. Dr. Diep said he only uses scalp hair for beard transplants as he feels it's the most successful and natural looking. I know Dr. Diep is pretty well regarded, but I have seen some beard-to-beard transplants online. My head hair and beard hair is not quite the same texture and color, but it's probably close enough (see photos). I couldn't find a ton of posts on here that show scalp-to-beard transplants, but I'm wondering if anyone can direct me to some scalp-to-beard posts from folks with similar hair color as mine. 

An additional factor that I'm considering is whether I should instead go with FUE instead of FUT. Although I’m not crazy about spending $5k more, I do have the money to switch to FUE. Sometimes I see folks on the internet (not necessarily this forum) implying that you’d have to be mad to get FUT instead of FUE in 2022. It feels a little like FUE is the future and FUT is fading away. I also wonder if I will I regret having this big scar across the back of my head, just to have a fuller beard. But I’ve seen many posts from guys who get FUT and have minimal scarring. It also seems to be the case that getting FUT now might maximize my donor area, so I could do FUE in the future if my scalp hair starts falling out.

I know this decision is ultimately mine to make, but I don’t really have anyone knowledgeable in my personal life to hash this out with. Does the transplant that I've described (2250 FUT, scalp-to-beard) make sense as something to do for someone in my situation? Any thoughts you may have are sincerely appreciated 😊

[HappyMan2021]

1) Isn't it more common for body hair to be used in the beard and not scalp hair? I do think it is a justified concern that the scalp hair will not match the beard hair texture

2) I admit I am personally biased as I am not a "beard guy" and have never seriously considered it as part of my fashion. 27 is really young and who knows maybe in 5 years time you legitimately will not like beards at all. Surgery is a crazy amount of stress and money. You 100% know you will never ever want to be bald ever in your lifetime. But with a beard eh who knows fashions come and go. There was a point when mustaches were all the rage.

3) Your goatee region hair seems strong and healthy. If a goatee is an acceptable alternative to a full-on beard, then you are already set. 

4) The density and fullness of your beard in your jawline accentuates the thinning in the cheek area. If you were to consider only having a 1 week-length stubble all over the face, that could minimize the appearance of cheek hair thinning. 

5) You do have significant hairloss in your scalp. I just hope Dr. Diep has factored future hairloss and one or multiple scalp HT's into the equation for this beard procedure. 

Edited January 17, 2022 by SadMan2021

[BDK081522]

I would seriously reconsider this decision for a few reasons. Firstly, you're definitely showing signs of andogenetic alopecia. You have receded temples and show miniaturization along the whole hairline. Secondly, you're young and your hairline will continue to recede even while on finasteride. Fin works wonders for the mid-scalp and crown but most of the time it won't keep a youthful hairline intact. You would get better use of those grafts on your hairline IMO. Also, it's very rare to have scalp hair resemble beard hair when transplanted. Scalp hair is usually thinner and straighter whereas beard hair is coarser and more kinky. Beard grafts are almost always single graft follicles so every multi-graft unit taken from the strip would need to be excised into singles. I'm not sure this particular clinic would have the skill or patience to do this effectively. The hair color is also very different. In addition, I think you would regret the FUT scar from Dr. Diep for the rest of your life. If you're dead set on getting a beard enhancement, my suggestion would be to do an FUE from the grafts under your chin and neck. This hair would match much better and definitely look more natural than scalp hair. I have just had this done with Dr. Konior and it looks absolutely undectable that hair was transplanted. The neck donor area also heals very well due to the amount of collagen present in this skin. Please reconsider going through with your plan. 

Edited January 17, 2022 by BDK081522

[AlexMeister21]

2,250 grafts feels like quite a lot to fill in your beard. I would consider getting FUE in your case unless you think you'll need a lot of grafts transplanted on your scalp in the future. Are the men in your family bald? You have some recession but it doesn't look too advanced at the moment.  Dr. Diep's a good doctor, but I don't think I've ever seen a pencil-thin FUT scar from his patients (me included).

Edited January 17, 2022 by AlexMeister21

[NARMAK]

Don't do it OP. 

You're wasting your money imho. Save your scalp hair for your hair transplant if you potentially need it. Especially that many damn grafts. 

I recommend you actually look into using a mix of topical Minoxidil on your beard and Microneedling on the areas. A lot of guys have had a great result and grown hair that's pretty permanent on those areas doing this. 

I think down the line those 2300 or so grafts you might end up deciding to use for your frontal hairline and it would work out better. 

Final, and probably a controversial take. I don't know if you would feel growing out your facial hair, it seems like it's a more red hue and from experience, people with that colour as opposed to a darker colour tend to keep it shorter like you have, and that's why it actually looks fine imo as it is. You could probably even do a Tony Stark/Dr Strange goatee if you wanted to easily. 

[Dillpickle123]

You don’t need it use rogaine for one year and it’ll grow your beard, keep applying until the hairs become terminal they will never fall out after that I attempted this experiment and it worked wonderfully 

[Dillpickle123]

I rather use the 2250 grafts on your hairline 

[BeardHopeful]

Thanks everyone for these reality checks. I really appreciate the points you all have made, although more opinions are welcome!

Just some thoughts in response to current comments:

I probably sound crazy saying it on this forum, but I really don't mind my receding hairline. I've had the same hairline since high school and it just kind of works. But I do appreciate the reminder that it will continue to recede, even on Finasteride, and I might want to save hairs for the scalp. 

I have always worn my hair long enough that I believe it would hide even a not-so-great FUT scar. But it's definitely on my mind. Does anyone have trouble hiding the scar with 1 inch long hair in the back?

I am set on wearing a beard. I don't really like how my face looks without a beard, and I've had it consistently since early college. I would wear it even if it weren't in style. I appreciate SadMan's 1-week stubble recommendation, which is what I usually wear. I took these photos right before I trimmed.

I appreciate BDK's recommendation of Dr. Konior. I'll look into his work. BDK, do you have any post photos that you can share?

Alex, I agree that 2250 seems like a lot, maybe I can bring this up with Dr. Diep. We've only had a zoom appointment so far. 

Narmak and DillPickle, I appreciate your Minoxidil recommendation. I actually just started using it on my beard and hairline. We'll see how it goes. I haven't been that impressed by what I've seen online, because users often post after-Minoxidil photos with way longer beard hair, so it's  tough to really compare density. I'm looking into the dermaroller as well!

Narmak, I appreciate the Tony Stark recommendation! I've tried this, but my jaw line is really weak (one reason I grow the beard) so it doesn't work for me.

Thanks everyone! I am definitely less certain about this decision now. Still would love to hear from others, especially if you've gone through this procedure.

 

[A Fue Good Men]

I would def hold off on surgery for now, try alternative methods first. There are forums of guys using various meds and techniques to grow their beards with success- minoxidil, dermarolling, copper peptides, etc.

 

secondly, if you do go with surgery, I’d recommend finding a doctor that specializes in this. Not saying diep can’t do it but I’ve yet to see any beard restorations from him 

[Al - Moderator]

I agree with just about everything everyone else has said. I wouldn't use scalp hair. If you are going to do it then use some beard hair from below the chin. You won't have any noticeable scarring, you won't use any scalp donor that you may want to use for a standard hair transplant at some time in the future, and the beard hair under your chin will match the rest of the beard hair.

One thing I noticed that I don't think has been mentioned is it looks like you have some lighter colored beard hair on your cheeks, either blond or possibly graying. The first thing I would do is try coloring your beard, so it's all the same color. This may go a long way to making the entire beard look fuller. See the photo below to see the area I circled. You can see there are some lighter hairs there that would give you a fuller look if they were darker to match the rest of your beard. Take a look at JustForMen hair color and go to mustache and beard and pick your color. I'm thinking M27 Light red brown seems to be your shade https://www.justformen.com/mustache-beard.html

 

 

[hairman22]

my facial hair thickened naturally when I was 29.

 

It will probably thicken a bit as you get older

[AlexMeister21]

I don't think you'd have a problem covering up the scar if you keep your hair the length it is now. My scar is about a half inch and I can cover it up, but I expect I'm going to have to get some scar repair work done when I'm 50-70.

Have you consulted with other clinics? Eugenix seems to be a popular name in this forum these days and they seem to be good with transplanting beard hair to the scalp. I'd assume they'd be good doing the opposite, and it'd probably be for cheaper too if you're comfortable traveling to India. I like the idea of taking beard hair from underneath your chin/neck area as opposed from your scalp donor area. Maybe a combination of both would work to get the density you want while preserving donor hairs.

[Fue3361]

My beard was way weaker than yours, and now it is quite a bit stronger than yours.

 

I applied minoxidil to it twice a day and dermarolled it 2-3 times a month, all for 6 months.

 

After stopping minoxidil on it, kept most of the gains.

[Melvin- Admin]

That many grafts seems like overkill. How thick is your chin? The issue is the closest thing to beard is scalp and vice versa. Chest hair and other hair don’t grow long enough, and have different anagen (growth) cycles. Pubic and armpit hair might match, but you need someone who specializes in BHT.

Dr. Diep is a great surgeon and he was my surgeon, but he will admit BHT is not his specialty. As a result, I went to Dr. Sethi. That said, there are other options for BHT. Dr. Mwamba in Atlanta is one option. True and Dorin in New York is another. Of course, there’s Umar as well in California.

Lastly, minoxidil can help the weak area to the point of not needing an HT.

[HappyMan2021]

5 hours ago, hairman22 said:

my facial hair thickened naturally when I was 29.

It will probably thicken a bit as you get older

Ca you explain this? Pretty sure that universally for all males, if anything the hair will thin and get weaker as people age. 

[TEXAN35]

25 minutes ago, SadMan2021 said:

Ca you explain this? Pretty sure that universally for all males, if anything the hair will thin and get weaker as people age. 

I dont think thats universal. I am not sure about beard but different hair in the body have different growth cycles. Like chest hair and arm hair definitely grow more in thirties. The head hair on the other hand maximizes during teen and then definitely goes downhill. My beard grew thicker during late 20s for sure. Again as others have suggested, before going for transplant make sure you have exausted all other means to make it denser. Even coloring helps.

[ciaus]

 

Hold off on transplants for your beard, you owe it to yourself to try using minoxidil first. And unlike with scalp hair, the results are permanent if you do the minoxidil for long enough, anywhere from 6 months up to a few years. 

 

 

 

 

[ciaus]

Googling 'minoxidil beard' will get more results. Here's some more:

 

 

 

 

 

[aaron1234]

6 hours ago, hairman22 said:

my facial hair thickened naturally when I was 29.

 

It will probably thicken a bit as you get older

Yeah, same for me.  2k scalp grafts for a beard transplant is not a prudent use of a finite donor supply, especially for a 27 year old. 

[BeardHopeful]

Wow I'm really overwhelmed by the amount of advice here. Thanks for providing a space where I can quickly get so much info. You've convinced me to try Minoxidil and microneedling on my beard first to see what results I get. I'll plan to push back the HT to give that a good 6 months or more. If I'm happy with the results, I'll just cancel the HT altogether (I'd be out $1000 for the deposit though 😢). 

Thanks to BeHappy for suggesting coloring my beard. I honestly never considered that option!

Big thanks to Melvin for multiple recommendations of doctors who specialize in BHT. I will definitely check them out if I'm not happy with my results from Minoxidil and dermarolling. 

Regardless, I'll check back in 6 months and post some post Minoxidil/dermarolling photos!

Thank you all again so much, it's really an amazing community. Keep up the good work

[NARMAK]

3 hours ago, BeardHopeful said:

Wow I'm really overwhelmed by the amount of advice here. Thanks for providing a space where I can quickly get so much info. You've convinced me to try Minoxidil and microneedling on my beard first to see what results I get. I'll plan to push back the HT to give that a good 6 months or more. If I'm happy with the results, I'll just cancel the HT altogether (I'd be out $1000 for the deposit though 😢). 

Thanks to BeHappy for suggesting coloring my beard. I honestly never considered that option!

Big thanks to Melvin for multiple recommendations of doctors who specialize in BHT. I will definitely check them out if I'm not happy with my results from Minoxidil and dermarolling. 

Regardless, I'll check back in 6 months and post some post Minoxidil/dermarolling photos!

Thank you all again so much, it's really an amazing community. Keep up the good work

Why don't you consider using the hair transplant to augment your frontal hairline? 

Instead of losing $1000 you could potentially ask for a smaller procedure and just close in the temples and just change the slight framing of the frontal hairline. 

Entirely up to you as you said you had a higher hairline and if you happy with where it is, no need to. However there's quite a few others who decide to just close in the corners and drop it a little. 

Entirely up to you and good luck with the Minoxidil and Microneedling 👍🏼

[draggerz8726]

On 1/17/2022 at 7:02 AM, BDK081522 said:

I would seriously reconsider this decision for a few reasons. Firstly, you're definitely showing signs of andogenetic alopecia. You have receded temples and show miniaturization along the whole hairline. Secondly, you're young and your hairline will continue to recede even while on finasteride. Fin works wonders for the mid-scalp and crown but most of the time it won't keep a youthful hairline intact. You would get better use of those grafts on your hairline IMO. Also, it's very rare to have scalp hair resemble beard hair when transplanted. Scalp hair is usually thinner and straighter whereas beard hair is coarser and more kinky. Beard grafts are almost always single graft follicles so every multi-graft unit taken from the strip would need to be excised into singles. I'm not sure this particular clinic would have the skill or patience to do this effectively. The hair color is also very different. In addition, I think you would regret the FUT scar from Dr. Diep for the rest of your life. If you're dead set on getting a beard enhancement, my suggestion would be to do an FUE from the grafts under your chin and neck. This hair would match much better and definitely look more natural than scalp hair. I have just had this done with Dr. Konior and it looks absolutely undectable that hair was transplanted. The neck donor area also heals very well due to the amount of collagen present in this skin. Please reconsider going through with your plan. 

Hi, 

I was going through this post and saw your reply in which you mentioned about you undergoing beard transplant using grafts from under your neck.

I'm considering the same and wanted to ask you some questions regarding it if that would be okay with you?

[Fue3361]

I’d never do it in your case.  Instead, try microneedling beard 2-4 times a month at 1.5mm and daily minoxidil on beard as well, for 6+ months.  Good chance you’ll get a viking beard just from that, and results are pretty permanent in beard area for most people.

[HappyMan2021]

can you provide an update @BeardHopeful? did you end up going through with this?

[BeardHopeful]

Hey everyone, my update:

I tried minoxidil and dermarolling for a year. I was super consistent, religiously applying twice a day. And in the end, I just didn't see much new hair growth in the cheeks, where I wanted it the most. My chin and mustache did get a bit thicker though, so that's nice. So I'm basically back where I was before. I agree with you all that scalp-to-beard is probably not the smartest use of hair, and that I should instead find someone who transplants neck beard hair to the cheeks. I've reached out to Eugenix, where Dr. Bensal does beard transplants, for a cost estimate. Earlier in this post, Melvin also recommended Dr. Mwamba in Atlanta, True and Dorin in New York, and Umar as well in California. 

Let me know if you all have any other recommendations for drs who have performed beard-to-beard transplants. I'm open to looking outside the US as well. If the price is decent, I might even get some FUE on my temples from the back of my scalp. This was something I had in mind reaching out to Eugenix. Thanks again!