Actual experience with laser and/or electrolysis?

[Toubey]

Hello gentlemen

Some years ago I had a hair transplant done which wasn't very successful. The doctor used an outdated FUT method with big plugs, and the whole thing ended up looking very unnatural. In addition to this, I was quite young when it was done, and at this point I am losing so much hair that a repair or a new HT seems unrealistic in the long run.. My father is already almost bald, and at one point I will be there too. So I have decided to have the process reversed. I feel relieved to have come to that conclusion, really.

This time I am researching the issue more thoroughly. I am therefore aware of the basic options for a reverse HT, and have decided that either electrolysis or laser combined with inserting new plugs into the old scar might be the best solution for me.

Electrolysis in particular seems to be recommended because of its potential for less scarring. I have noted though that it is important to find the right crew for the job, as reversing HTs with electrolysis requires a person who knows what they're doing. Apparantly it can lead to very ugly scarring if the person hits the plugs at the wrong angles..

I have some questions regarding mostly electrolysis though: Can anyone tell from personal experience how their procedure was, and whether it was all done in one go; or whether they had to return to the clinic multiple times before the procedure was finalized? I am a little confused over the fact that some sources say that 10-15 electrolysis procedures over 1-1.5 years are necessary, whereas other sources claim to have solved the problem with only one session (?).

Anyways, eventually I will try and find the right clinics and doctors for this - including for inserting new plugs into the old scar. I will appreciate any sort of advice or input in this thread from you guys :). I have also attached some images of my hair, just so you know the basics of my situation..

PS: I am located in northern Europe, so probably won't go to visit US-based surgeons or clinics in case anyone will be advising this :).

 

 

Edited March 8, 2022 by Toubey

[Britanium]

@digi23 Can chime in here with his experience 🙏 How many grafts was your procedure? Have you considered a FUT scar revision? I had x2 FUT procedures and later had it improved upon. 

Edited March 8, 2022 by JC71

[Toubey]

Hi JC, I do not remember the original number of grafts.. As for an FUT scar revision then yes; I believe that's what I mentioned above.. That I would have hair inserted into the scar area again.. Hopefully that will work.. Thanks for your input :).

[JoeMan]

I believe @digi23 is having many sessions. 

[Britanium]

1 hour ago, Toubey said:

Hi JC, I do not remember the original number of grafts.. As for an FUT scar revision then yes; I believe that's what I mentioned above.. That I would have hair inserted into the scar area again.. Hopefully that will work.. Thanks for your input :).

When I say scar revision I mean specifically reopening the FUT strip scar and improving it and then it being reclosed with a improved technique. Then yes it can be further improved upon by adding Grafts in to it at a later date (Beard grafts are good for this) 

[gillenator]

How would you rate the quality of your beard donor?...and how dense is it as a potential donor source?

Possibly consider several Belgium doctors starting with Dr. Mamba.

[Melvin- Admin]

@digi23 is the only person I know who has had hair lasered off, personally i'm more a fan of removing the hair and replanting rather than lasering it off.

[digi23]

11 hours ago, Toubey said:

Hello gentlemen

Some years ago I had a hair transplant done which wasn't very successful. The doctor used an outdated FUT method with big plugs, and the whole thing ended up looking very unnatural. In addition to this, I was quite young when it was done, and at this point I am losing so much hair that a repair or a new HT seems unrealistic in the long run.. My father is already almost bald, and at one point I will be there too. So I have decided to have the process reversed. I feel relieved to have come to that conclusion, really.

This time I am researching the issue more thoroughly. I am therefore aware of the basic options for a reverse HT, and have decided that either electrolysis or laser combined with inserting new plugs into the old scar might be the best solution for me.

Electrolysis in particular seems to be recommended because of its potential for less scarring. I have noted though that it is important to find the right crew for the job, as reversing HTs with electrolysis requires a person who knows what they're doing. Apparantly it can lead to very ugly scarring if the person hits the plugs at the wrong angles..

I have some questions regarding mostly electrolysis though: Can anyone tell from personal experience how their procedure was, and whether it was all done in one go; or whether they had to return to the clinic multiple times before the procedure was finalized? I am a little confused over the fact that some sources say that 10-15 electrolysis procedures over 1-1.5 years are necessary, whereas other sources claim to have solved the problem with only one session (?).

Anyways, eventually I will try and find the right clinics and doctors for this - including for inserting new plugs into the old scar. I will appreciate any sort of advice or input in this thread from you guys :). I have also attached some images of my hair, just so you know the basics of my situation..

PS: I am located in northern Europe, so probably won't go to visit US-based surgeons or clinics in case anyone will be advising this :).

 

 

Well I have done alot of research on Electrolysis before I started, and yes multiple sessions is neccesary. The hair follicles need to be in the anagen phase for them to be put to sleep for life. That said, usually the grafts who stays alive become more and more minituarized, so if you plan on doing another hair transplant, you could do a couple sessions I assume and you pretty much killed them all and the ones who survived is much less noticeable.

Another thing is if you have alot of them sitting in a small area, you cannot go hard in the same spots because you might get scarring then, so that will also make you need more sessions.

Not sure about your situation, but your photos is not very clear so I cannot see exactly how many and how bad it looks. I would assume you got multiple grafts and not "plugs" as you call them? They are not done anymore anywhere I would think.

If you want to try this route you need to find someone with many years of experience so they know what they are doing.

Edited March 9, 2022 by digi23

[Toubey]

Thanks for the answers guys, really appreciate it :).

For J.A.C: My scar is actually looking pretty good, so no need to remove it. It's more the insertion of new grafts in the area that I am thinking of..

Digi123: Thanks a lot for your input. How many sessions over how long time did you have before you got rid of them, and has there been any significant scarring? Is it true, based on your experience, that the person doing needs to have specialized experience with HT patient as their case is different from other non-HT patients?

 

[Toubey]

@Gillenator: I have a very dense beard, so should be a lot there to take from .. :). Thanks for the recommendation of dr. Mamba..