25m, 2 years on meds and got declined for hairtransplant, is it over for me?

[handbalkrantbal]

I am 25 years old, 2 years of using finasteride 0.5mg daily and 5% topical Minoxidil daily. These pictures above were taken in very harsh direct sunlight so probably the worst conditions to accentuate my situation. i contacted dr Pekiner and he denied me based on that I'm diffusely thinning in all of the androgenetic areas (front, mid scalp and crown). I respect his decision and am wondering if I'm truly f#ed, I would say that finasteride and minoxidil pretty much stopped my hairloss. Is there even a point in contacting other clinics and will I just waste my money since Pekiner is pretty well regarded as a surgeon and if he says I'm f#ed then I guess that's the way it is or am I wrong? Kinda really bummed out here.

[Stoner]

Maybe Dr P is too harsh and they just applied some rule of thumb regarding (specifically young?) diffused thinners. If you feel your hair loss has been halted by meds, I think most surgeons would take up your case. Definitely do some more consultations. Just be conservative with HT and the number of grafts, as you are still quite young. 

You may also consult a dermatologist to assess the current state of your hair. Switching to dutasteride may also be an option.

[kajl]

be thankful - and go with the doctors advise. I only went for one consult and proceeded with a hair transplant for the hairline 2800 grafts and only after the transplant i realised I was diffuse thinning as when the hair starting growing back after shaving I could see the midscalp and crown are very weak and thin.

Had I gone to do different consults I probably was not a good candidate and now will obviously have to remove the grafts in the hairline in the future and just be done with it. I am going to have consults now to check my options for the future if I wanted to remove and place back whatever can be placed back in the donor.

So what I would do in your position after my experience is - go to a lot of consults (Reputable surgeons ONLY!!)- not only one surgeon. Its better not to do anything then do a permanent procedure and regret it after the fact.. 

Edited February 8 by kajl

[Maorizio]

Yep, surgeons hate young guys with diffuse thinning, cause most of the time it will lead to a failure.

But if your hair loss stabilised I don’t see a reason for declining you.

I think their fear is you come off meds and all hell break loose.

Edited February 8 by Maorizio

[laverita]

A good call from the doctor. 25 is very young and with diffused loss even the surgery could cause shock depending on the hair quality. Your temple points are thinning and I would say you have signs of retrograde alopecia around the ears and possible nape if you were to lift and expose it.  Remember, doctors do not turn you down as they have too much money, so they believe it is not in your best interest and for sure the more doors you knock, some will open, regardless if it is the right thing to do. Avoid yes men clinics who will do what you ask, regardless of it being in your true best interests.

You are not F'd now but could be if native hair falls and you left with a low density hair transplant that went over a large area. Sincere advice is keep on the meds and see how it goes. You still have a lot of hair and as said you are in bright light so do nothing at present and see how things go in the next few years and you may thank yourself for not doing anything. 

Even if you have as said a conservative approach, where would you place them and what happens if and when you thin throughout and they become stand along and the donor is not the best? At least have a thorough donor check to see density and all and really think twice on this.

Be interesting to know also family loss pattern also.

 

 

[handbalkrantbal]

23 minutes ago, laverita said:

A good call from the doctor. 25 is very young and with diffused loss even the surgery could cause shock depending on the hair quality. Your temple points are thinning and I would say you have signs of retrograde alopecia around the ears and possible nape if you were to lift and expose it.  Remember, doctors do not turn you down as they have too much money, so they believe it is not in your best interest and for sure the more doors you knock, some will open, regardless if it is the right thing to do. Avoid yes men clinics who will do what you ask, regardless of it being in your true best interests.

You are not F'd now but could be if native hair falls and you left with a low density hair transplant that went over a large area. Sincere advice is keep on the meds and see how it goes. You still have a lot of hair and as said you are in bright light so do nothing at present and see how things go in the next few years and you may thank yourself for not doing anything. 

Even if you have as said a conservative approach, where would you place them and what happens if and when you thin throughout and they become stand along and the donor is not the best? At least have a thorough donor check to see density and all and really think twice on this.

Be interesting to know also family loss pattern also.

 

 

Yeah I have baldness on both sides of my family, my dad is completely bald and my mother's father is less bald but still pretty much bald, both my brothers are older and have better hair than me without any treatment either, I agree with the retrograde alopecia, I noticed that myself but tbh even if I continue receding and eventually be bald I still think it is worth getting a transplant right now in my twenties, it just depends on how fast I will recede really

[TakeAction]

I see no issue if you're stable. Finasteride tends to work well even long term, but if it stopped being as effective as you needed it to be, you can always switch to dutasteride up to 2.5 mg.

[Britanium]

The Dr is being very cautious in his approach, and rightly so. You are at risk of being in a worse position after a transplant. If you go in to it knowing the possible risks/outcomes then you would be able to find a Dr that would take you on. 

Just be very careful on who you consult with, do you're homework and find out who is capable in cases such as your's. Be wary of anyone that will just accept you without careful consideration. 

[Hairwolf]

Pekiner is known for being very selective about who he takes on a patient so don’t lose heart and continue to get a 2nd, 3rd and more opinions before making your choice. 

On the other hand, you are still very young and as others have pointed out, you could give dut and perhaps oral minox a try for another year before taking the plunge. 
 

After a year, if you still want to go ahead with a procedure then Bisanga,Rahal, Keser, Pinto, Couto and Ferriera are all good choices.

Edited February 9 by Hairwolf

[Berba11]

You're not "f*#ked" and I'm not sure I understand the apoplectic tone really.

First of all, you have a lot of hair. Some diffuse thinning yes, but you've got a strong hairline and therefore a nicely framed face. With that much hair on top, you have a lot of styling options nd can easily make things look thicker which product/styling choices.

Secondly, you're young. You have plenty of time and there should be no rush to surgery, especially when surgery could actually accelerate your hair loss through shock loss given there's limited space to safely get grafts implanted.

Lastly, stick to the medication you're taking and review the situation in a few years. Your hair loss should naturally slow down as you get out of your 20's and in combination with the meds, you could be well placed to have a density session with a surgeon who is more comfortable and has a track record with diffuse cases. You may also want to consider switching to 2.5mg of oral minoxidil.

[bbb]

Losing hair and not being eligible for a hair transplant does not make you f#ed. 

Give it all a shave and see how you feel. Being diffuse and having a hairline, I bet it looks great. It sucks when you're young and it's scary and you feel a certain kind of way about it, but become comfortable with yourself. Maybe eventually you still want to do something about it, but you might be surprised and at least will appreciate how you got there.

[Al - Moderator]

Is it over for you? No

But you may have to wait it out a while.

You seem to be in the very unfortunate spot of having a decent amount of hair for someone 10 years older, but not enough hair for your age, but too young to do a transplant on because you have too much hair while being a diffuse thinner and losing your hair. 😒

Your goal right now should be to try to keep the hair you have (it sounds like you are doing that) and look into hair transplants again in a couple of years.

 

[Rawkerboi]

Its better to wait and be on medicines, you are just 25.

My advice, wait till 30 and be on medicines, keep monitoring your hair.

[Raphael84]

Some good advice above and honestly it is good that you reached out to a surgeon who showed some caution and ethics as opposed to the other clinics who may have proceed regardless.

25 is a young patient regardless of extent of loss. When a patient at 25 presents signs of some decline from hairline to crown and thinning and in the temple point area, then the propensity for further loss is in place and at 25, there are still unknowns regarding potential rate of loss. 

The last thing that you would want to do is to proceed with surgery now, and then in the next 2 or 3+ years lose native hair amongst transplanted hair so that the area would begin to look thin and then lose behind any transplant, so that any transplanted area becomes disconnected to native hair. This would leave you in a more compromised position than your current position.

Try and maintain as much as possible at this stage and optimise your regimen of hair loss preventative medication in an attempt to maximise the benefit, and see how the next several years may evolve.

Wishing you the best.

Edited February 15 by Raphael84