Been contemplating an FUE transplant.

[Derek]

Career firefighter age 56.  Work in a busy city.  Due to the nature of the job I think that FUE would allow me the shortest time off for recovery.  Not sure where Im at on the Norwwod scale but obviously I have recession and thinning at the crown and vertex.  Number of graphs needed to rebuild my hairline and fill in my crown.  I noticed some loss of hair in my mid to late 40's.  Maybe Im too old.  My job says Im still young.lol  Any help is appreciated.  Suggestion on a quality doctor and a price range within reach.

[GoliGoliGoli]

About 1800-2200 grafts for the crown. My crown loss is almost identical to yours and I had 2066 put in a month ago.

Probably about 3500 for the hairline, give or take 500. 

These estimate depend on how dense packed you want the crown, and on how much you want the hairline lowered. You would need to split this up into two surgeries, and most on here would recommend hairline first then crown. 

 

[Derek]

Thanks for the info.  Any suggestions on a quality doctor that has some reasonable affordability.  From my pics would you say Im a Norwood6 then?

 

[ray35]

Yeah it'd be about 14 days off that you'd need... 7 to 10 days you're good to resume most normal stuff but entering a possible fire I'd day best a soild couple weeks recovery. For the grafts primarily, the donor area will be fine rather quickly.

Yeah looking at your hair, totally doable. Fill the crown build a conservative hairline. Graft wise I'd guess and I mean guess, like 3500 grafts? Other here will likely have a better evaluation. Definitely a doable thing.

Be sure... 100% be sure to research research and research your options and clinics... this forum is an exceptional tool and resource to that end. There are a lot of quack HT places out there you'd want to avoid.

And more importantly i gotta say major hat tip to you and your profession... I've done some citizens academies and was a fire explorer scout as a youth. A small window into it all for me but an honor to spend time with some really great people. Thank you and appreciate the work you do.

Back to the issue hand though, you've arrived at a great place to scope around and see results from clinics and patients. Also folks here are super helpful and bound to answer questions you might have.

 

[GoliGoliGoli]

1 hour ago, Derek said:

Thanks for the info.  Any suggestions on a quality doctor that has some reasonable affordability.  From my pics would you say Im a Norwood6 then?

 

I would say you're Norwood 4, definitely not 6. 

[Curious25]

Your donor looks strong, so imagine most docs would be very happy to take your case on. 
 

You look to be balding in a NW5 pattern at the moment as your crown doesn’t really dip that low at all, however you have still retained a fair amount of native hair on the top, which in part is most likely to be miniaturising at a slower rate, and will eventually go should you not take any preventative medication. 
 

I would recommend tackling your situation with 2x surgeries - hit the front out the park first and then head back to address any weak spots, and bring up the crown and vertex to speed. 
 

I would suggest at least two weeks off from your job post surgery. 
 

If you are willing to travel, and budget is of concern, there are copious amounts of comparably skilled FUE docs, if not better, in Europe that are far more economically priced than in the US. 
 

All the Best, 

 

 

 

[mister_25]

10 hours ago, Derek said:

Thanks for the info.  Any suggestions on a quality doctor that has some reasonable affordability.  From my pics would you say Im a Norwood6 then?

 

Agreeing with Curious25, I would say going into Norwood 5 but looks like you are a Norwood 4 right now. You will need 2 Surgeries, medication is key to stabilize your midscalp for long term.

Probably say 2000-2500 in your crown. Can't see your Frontal Third that well but I would say 3000-4500 depending on how big it is, how low you want your hairline, how dense you want it and how much your mid scalp is miniaturizing. Probably won't exceed 4000.

Edited December 13, 2022 by mister_25

[Rahal Hair Transplant]

@Derek,

At your age and level of hair loss, you look to be a good candidate for hair transplant surgery. Your donor appears quite thick… Is it as thick looking when it’s shaved down? Because it looks like you have a pretty abundant donor hair supply which is a good thing. The more donor hair you have available over the course of a lifetime, the more hair you have available for transplanting into the balding areas.

in my opinion, I would start with restoring a conservative but relatively thick looking hairline and then go as far back as possible in the first procedure. Then, depending on what you have left, I would go back for a second procedure and attack the crown.

If you are interested in a one on one information session with Dr. Howell, please don’t hesitate to send me a private message and I’ll be happy to help you.

Best wishes,

Rahal Hair Transplant 

[Derek]

How do I contact you. Being a new member I'm unable to message any others for a specified period.