2659 grafts, Dr. Bloxham - 6 month update

[John1991]

The pictures are as follows:  my hair in normal conditions before surgery, my hair immediately pre-op after the hairline was buzzed, post-op, buzz cut phase, ugly duckling, week 15/day 105/17 days shy of 4 months, which is today.  I deleted my old thread because it was too long given that I hadn't even started the growth phase yet.  As you can tell in the last picture, while many grafts have "popped" they are still quite fine and thin.  That seems typical for 3.5 months.   Hopefully many more pop.  The frontal part was around 55-60 FU/cm^2, for reference.  

 

 

[Melvin- Admin]

This is only the tip of the iceberg. 

[John1991]

If you'd told me this is what it would look like at 3.5 months, I would've taken it gladly.  It actually looks a bit better in person (except in very harsh lighting) than in those pictures. This is more favorable.  Obviously the grafts that are growing are thin and that's to be expected, but would you think (and I know it's a guess) that there are likely 40-50% that still haven't "popped" through the scalp yet?

Edited July 11, 2022 by John1991

[ThinnedHair]

53 minutes ago, John1991 said:

If you'd told me this is what it would look like at 3.5 months, I would've taken it gladly.  It actually looks a bit better in person (except in very harsh lighting) than in those pictures. This is more favorable.  Obviously the grafts that are growing are thin and that's to be expected, but would you think (and I know it's a guess) that there are likely 40-50% that still haven't "popped" through the scalp yet?

What is your age and the number of grafts you had as well as fut/fue ? thx

[John1991]

I'm 31 and it was 2659 grafts.  It was FUT.  I don't have any recent pics of the scar, but as of a few weeks ago it was looking quite good.  There is hair somewhat growing through it too.  It's worth nothing that a good amount of the hair in the front is buzzed native hair that has grown back.  As in this picture.  Still, it's quite clear a lot of grafts are growing as evidenced by the difference between the below picture (around 8-9 weeks post-op) and the ones in my prior posts.

Edited July 12, 2022 by John1991

[hairfloss]

Based on the pics, graft count, recipient area, I think you will get about 50%(at least) more density through thicker shafts as well as more grafts continuing to pop.

[John1991]

Thanks. I wonder what that will look like. I’ll leave this here and then post again at around 4 and a half months out. 

Edited July 13, 2022 by John1991

[John1991]

The first is 8 days before the 3 month mark (June 20) and the second is today, 8 days before the 4 month mark. The lighting is the same and it’s neither the most favorable nor the harshest lighting. 

 

 

Edited July 20, 2022 by John1991

[John1991]

J

 

 

Edited July 20, 2022 by John1991

[thatoldchestnut]

Looks very promising John. Exciting times ahead! You had what appeared to be a pretty great starting point, so this should be a great end result, if all goes well (which it appears to be!).

 

Edited July 23, 2022 by thatoldchestnut

[HappyMan2021]

looking good! appreciate the full face pic. HT's are so much more than just putting hair on the scalp, its also how they frame your face. 

Edited July 24, 2022 by HappyMan2021

[John1991]

Thanks. I definitely think once it thickens and continues to progress it should frame my face well. At present it looks worse than pre-op because it’s still thin and the difference in length between the shaved hair, transplanted hair, and the rest of the hair looks odd. Not that I’m concerned - just trying to be objective. Here’s another pre op pic.  Not a drastic change, but I figure that’s really the only improvement I can make other than staying fit/lean

 

 

 

 

Edited July 24, 2022 by John1991

[John1991]

Some more pre-op pics.

 

 

Edited July 25, 2022 by John1991

[RecessionProof]

Damn, looks great. Looking forward to the final result

[John1991]

9 minutes ago, RecessionProof said:

Damn, looks great. Looking forward to the final result

Thanks. Still apparent how thin the hairs are in harsh light, but that seems normal for just prior to the 4 month mark (which is on this upcoming Thursday). 

[John1991]

4 months exactly. Growth seems good and you can see in the front right part of the hairline some brown dots that are grafts popping through. I do have a fair deal of what I would call flakes stuck to my scalp throughout (probably sebhorreic dermatitis) and some dry flakes too. Doesn’t seem to be hampering growth, but is frustrating.  Anyone had this issue 4 months post op, but not had it hamper growth?  Bloxham said he didn’t expect it would especially given that growth is pretty even throughout. They don’t really itch and you pretty much have to get close to a mirror in harsh light to see them - it’s not as if it appears I’ve been snowed on or some such dandruff catastrophe. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 28, 2022 by John1991

[John1991]

[John1991]

A pic of the flakes. Anyone have any thought on that aspect of this?  

 

 

Edited July 28, 2022 by John1991

[John1991]

4 months and 4 days/ 18 weeks and 1 day. It’s coming in well, the length difference between the rest of my hair is pretty huge. There’s one small part that's a bit worse than the rest still, but even if it doesn’t fill in perfectly, the corner of the hairline would still look good. It’s also probably going to look better once the hairs there are long enough to comb and aren’t just sticking up. Looking forward to the next couple of months.  I think it'll be a little denser than my pre-op hairline, though probably less dense than my hairline was when I was 18-20, which is totally fine.

Edited August 2, 2022 by John1991

[HappyMan2021]

2 minutes ago, John1991 said:

There’s one small part that's a bit worse than the rest still, but even if it doesn’t fill in perfectly, the corner of the hairline would still look good.

in your post op photos, is this weak area filled in with grafts just like everywhere else? If so, I would still be confident that this area will grow in. Just slower than other areas

[John1991]

Ya, there were grafts planted there for sure.  And I never bled or dislodged them  It did get a bit irritated more than other areas when I exercised (started 2 months after operation), so I figure it's going to take more time.  It's not as if it's completely bare even now, so I'm not too stressed.  Also, I really don't think that tiny area would be a big deal if it ended up slightly less good - it's not a gaping wound type weakness, more like a minor scratch.

Edited August 2, 2022 by John1991

[John1991]

When you actually comb the hairs the way they’ll go when they’re long enough to comb there’s an improvement. 

[John1991]

4 months and 14 days.  The first sunshine pic is the brightest sunshine possible (3rd pic overall) and wet, the second is basically brightest possible (5th pic overall) and dry.  Things are improving.  If the left corner doesn't get all the way there I'll be ok.  There's a few doubles in the hairline, but there may still be singles that will grow in front (and even the few I've seen aren't the most anterior and have singles fairly near them so as not to be too bad).  Overall, hopefully things continue to improve and I'm staying positive.  Any thoughts?  I think if even 30-40% of the grafts still have to "pop" through the scalp this will turn out very, very well.  

It's worth noting that even my native hair is VERY unruly when it's short, so once the grafts grow long enough to comb/blend in, that alone should be a considerable difference.  Redness is pretty much only visible now in blisteringly bright sunshine, so that's encouraging.  I'll update at around 6 months, I've promised myself I won't take another picture for at least a month now - I'm sure you guys can relate to the constant judging (which gets infinitely worse once growth starts). 

Edited August 12, 2022 by John1991

[Melvin- Admin]

It’s growing in like CRAZY! 

[FormerFutureKrillin]

Looking really good so far, bet the next few months will be fun!