Freeze your follicles for later

[DrFuzzy]

Modern medicine can freeze embryos. Modern medicine can freeze sperm. Why can't we freeze hair?

 

Why isn't it possible for a HT doctor to do a megasession harvest off every young person undergoing their first procedure and store the "leftovers" for later?

 

This would be very useful to a young person such as I who currently only needs about 1000FU but realistically expects to need more down the track. I could top up every few years with another 500 without undergoing the inconvenince and scaring of further strip surgeries. Dare I say it would save so much time, you could almost get it done in your lunch break.

 

Are any of the HT researchers working on such a procedure? Surely if hair multiplication technology is around the corner, hair storage should be yesterday's news.

 

I know i'm being simplistic but i'd like to know why it isn't offered/possible.

[DrFuzzy]

Modern medicine can freeze embryos. Modern medicine can freeze sperm. Why can't we freeze hair?

 

Why isn't it possible for a HT doctor to do a megasession harvest off every young person undergoing their first procedure and store the "leftovers" for later?

 

This would be very useful to a young person such as I who currently only needs about 1000FU but realistically expects to need more down the track. I could top up every few years with another 500 without undergoing the inconvenince and scaring of further strip surgeries. Dare I say it would save so much time, you could almost get it done in your lunch break.

 

Are any of the HT researchers working on such a procedure? Surely if hair multiplication technology is around the corner, hair storage should be yesterday's news.

 

I know i'm being simplistic but i'd like to know why it isn't offered/possible.

[YungAtHart]

Actually, if the tech exists, I think that's a great idea. Don't be surprised if that's an option in the near future. Nice thinkin' DrFuzzy

- Mark

[NC30]

Well.....assuming that you're talking about harvesting hairs from areas that will eventually go bald (because we would have no reason to harvest from areas that wont lose hair), then wouldn't those hairs be "programmed" already to be hairs that fall out in the future? so they would be transplanted, but you'd lose them a few years down the road anyway? just a thought

[Guest]

NC30 - i think he's saying take a large strip from the back (bald-resistant area) and use only what you need now, and preserve the rest for later. I kinda like this idea. It would suck, though, if you found out 10 years later when you were ready for some more hairs that they got freezer burnt or were otherwise unusable.

[Havhairnow]

Hugh Jorgan

 

Or even worse....you found out that you WEREN'T destined to become bald!!!

[NC30]

Hugh...I assumed he couldn't be talking about taking a strip from an area in the back already resistant......what would be the point of that? I've already my potential hair grafts in their storage area called "backsideinus nogginus" (the back of my head). I can see storing blood or sperm or whatever for future use...no big deal as those arent invasive procedures. But having someone cut a strip of hair from the back when it is already perfectly stored would expose you to the risk of any surgery/recovery complications or as you pointed out them getting freezer burn or being unusable later.

 

I think the only way I could ever agree of this procedure if the hairs were grafted (FUE method) from a non-traditional harvest area and the hairs would change their "programming" of falling out. Havhairnow makes a good point about unnecessarily harvesting hairs that you potentially may never need....but I think some people can be pretty sure (like I was) that I'd be bald (to a good degree of NW) someday.

 

just my opinion

[NC30]

djtrojanz.....

 

ahh ok....well...it only took 4 or 5 posts before I'd realized I'd missed what DrFuzzy said originally. I didn't realize I'd misread the part about it being part of the first HT and using the "leftovers". My apologies to all.

 

I still dont think I'd like that idea. I would think (and hope) that FUE/FIT would continue to become more efficient and economical in the few years to come. To take the chance of those grafts being potentially unusable down the road is just too much of a risk, and to take more skin/hair than necessary at that moment would just be unacceptable to me.

 

ok....I'll shut up after this and let the topic develop from here.

[DrFuzzy]

Dtrojanz explains what I was talking about for those of you who didn't follow.

 

If you were one of the people you see on here with three or four parallel scars at the back of their head, the idea of this would have been a godsend.

 

I doubt i can bring myself to have strip for the measely 1000-1500 grafts i need and risk having a scar knowing i may well end up with more if i want another HT. But I also can't really afford to spend $15000 on FUE either. Why can't they freeze em?