do younger patients get better yield?

[azn_guy]

do you guys know if getting a ht at a younger age yields better results than someone that is older? Are there any studies or cases where doctors noticed that getting a HT at a younger age of 28 may be better in the long run than getting one at 38?

 

Lets assume I'm a NW3 and I decide to get a HT now at age 28.

 

How would that compare to me being a NW4 at age 38 in terms of yield?

 

obviously with the right surgeon, the yield is at a possible solid number of 95%, but assuming you get a HT of 3000 grafts, if 5% goes down the drain, then that means you're losing 150 grafts

 

Assuming you received the 3000 grafts at a younger age of 28 instead of 38, maybe you get a 98% yield instead. that means instead of losing 150 grafts, you only lose 60 grafts (2% of 3000 grafts is 60 grafts)

 

I know I'm nit-picking, but since many of us put so much effort into the details, 5% versus 2% can make a big deal...especially for those doing ultra mega-sessions.

 

So going back to my original question. Is it advantageous to go for a HT when you're younger? knowing you may possible get better yield results?

[JohnS]

Doubt your age comes into play, unless you are very old. As long as your health is good and there are no skin abnormalities present, the work should be equally as good.

[azn_guy]

interesting...I would have thought otherwise since most your physiological state makes a difference here. A big concern for megasesssions is blood flow.

 

So this raises another question, does being in good cardiovascular shape have any impact on HT's?

[TC17]

Don't forget that as you age you will in all likelihood thin somewhat in the donor area. I do not know where the post is, but Dr. Paul Shapriro briefly explained as much just recently. I believe that the longer you can wait the better for a number of reasons.

1. better technologies may come out which will make transplantation better

2. your balding pattern will probably be easier to predict if you're older

3. YOUR DONOR AREA MAY THIN! this is not nearly talked about enough on here in my opinion, but just look over the few NW 6's who are in their 20's who have had surgeries on this site and compare them to the older men with similar balding patterns. it seems that the very bald older men have at most between 4,000 - 5,000, and that is only after multiple surgeries. however, the younger patients are getting those numbers in ONE surgery. granted, there are physiological differences between the patients that might explain the discrepancy, or it might just be that the older men have a density of 64 or 70 fu's/cm2, whereas the younger men in the early stages of their balding still have the average 80 or so. getting high graft numbers is merely a result of taking wider and longer strips, it's not magic. if your donor thins the wide and long strip is more likely to be visible, and god forbid you BALD into the donor area, then the scar will certainly be visible.

[azn_guy]

THIN! this is not nearly talked about enough on here in my opinion, but just look over the few NW 6's who are in their 20's who have had surgeries on this site and compare them to the older men with similar balding patterns. it seems that the very bald older men have at most between 4,000 - 5,000, and that is only after multiple surgeries. however, the younger patients are getting those numbers in ONE surgery. granted, there are physiological differences between the patients that might explain the discrepancy, or it might just be that the older men have a density of 64 or 70 fu's/cm2, whereas the younger men in the early stages of their balding still have the average 80 or so. getting high graft numbers is merely a result of taking wider and longer strips, it's

 

TC, you raise a good point. I was actually looking at my dad (who has a full head of hair for being 68), but I checked out his donor area and the hair when compared to mine is not as "thick".

 

So assume you transfer donor hair the front of your head, and as you age, that transplanted hair will thin...obviously it wont thin like mpb thin, but it'll lose some of it's density over time.

 

Any doctors have anything to comment about this?

 

I do agree with you TC, that a NW5 28 year old that gets 3000 grafts on average seems to get better results when comparing to a NW5 58 year old that receives 3000 grafts... at least from the photos on this site.