What to do? More HT or get rid of it all? See pics

[Guest]

Here are a couple of pics. I had some HTs when I was younger, probably too young, and now I'm at the point where I want to do something about it.

 

With all the advances in FU work, etc., over the past several years, I am wondering about my options. I know I cannot have a full head of hair like some of the success stories here, but would it be possible to restore some of my hair to the point where it looks like I'm perpetually balding? Anything is better than this little island of hair. Also, I have significant scarring in the donor area, which I think could be excised and harvested.

 

The other option would be to get rid of it, dermabrade my head smooth, etc.

 

Thanks for your time.

[Guest]

Here are a couple of pics. I had some HTs when I was younger, probably too young, and now I'm at the point where I want to do something about it.

 

With all the advances in FU work, etc., over the past several years, I am wondering about my options. I know I cannot have a full head of hair like some of the success stories here, but would it be possible to restore some of my hair to the point where it looks like I'm perpetually balding? Anything is better than this little island of hair. Also, I have significant scarring in the donor area, which I think could be excised and harvested.

 

The other option would be to get rid of it, dermabrade my head smooth, etc.

 

Thanks for your time.

[Guest]

here's another pic

[Guest]

You have lost alot of hair.My opinion is you have 2 options since you have limited donor hair:

 

1)Permanent removal with laser

 

and

 

2)Dr. Woods in Australia.He can utilize more of your donor hair then strip method and since you have scarring already you dont want another strip surgery. PLUS he can use your body hair and transplant it into your scalp.

[vocor1]

Rugby:

It *looks* like your donor supply is sufficiently dense and you have okay donor supply. My layman's point of view.

That being said, go for thin coverage and go to a top doc (duh). Forget about the crown. Go for top coverage and blending in the already transplanted hair.

The transplanted hair looks out of place, as you noted. If I were you, I would do what you are doing and look into options to change that appearance.

I guess I'd vote for a conservative HT to blend it in instead of hair removal (which probably would leave some scarring as well).

Best of luck with your decision. See some docs and get their opinions.

 

vocor1

[uncjim]

Rugby,

Of course, you should get the opinion from a top doctor as to the viability of a HT. If you get a green light, by all means, go for it. This idea of going completely bald these days really is garbage. In my opinion, it's a poor way of coping. Of course you want your hair back and the technology these days allows for it. GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR DECISION.

Jim

[NW]

Rugby,

 

If you want a no B.S. very conservative opinion see Dr Bernstien, he does a lot of correctional work. From what I have heard he is short on time, but he has seen several guys like you.

 

Good luck

NW

[arfy]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>If you get a green light, by all means, go for it.

This poor guy will be able to find PLENTY of doctors who will be happy to give him the "green light". That is not a good criteria for making a decision. Look at what the "green light" did for him the first time around. Just because a doctor is willing to operate on someone, doesn't make it a good idea! Even when it is a "recommended" doctor, this is true.<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> This idea of going completely bald these days really is garbage. In my opinion, it's a poor way of coping. Of course you want your hair back and the technology these days allows for it. This guy does not need a cheerleader for hair transplants, he needs sensible advice. With all due respect your post is inane.

 

My first question is have you ever shaved your head (the grafted area) and if so, how did it look? Very damaged (pitting and or cobblestones? aka divots and bumps)? If the scalp surface is not too damaged, you may consider shooting for a normal "bald look". If the scalp surface is too damged, that may or may not be reasonable, depending on how you feel about exposing the scars.

 

The other option, as you stated, would be to use the careful placement of new grafts to give a more normal "receding" look. I think you could improve your appearance this way, but I can only guess how far you would get, and whether that would be worth the effort. You do need to consult with several different doctors in person. Find a few who seem to be the very best, then carefully consider your options, and see what seems to make the most sense. You are in a very tough spot, so you really need to play your cards right. Be careful and take the time to think your options over.

 

Just out of curiousity what is your approximate location?

 

I would like to see some doctors advise this fellow.

[uncjim]

Arfy,

Surprise, surprise...another attack. I'm not going to get into a long distance pissing contest via email here,as is your penchant. I consider it, at best, cowardly. I don't want my message to Rugby clouded though, so I am going to repeat it. If he gets the green light from a top doctor, he should go for it. This is about getting ones hair back. With today's technology, why not be happy? Sorry pal, hair transplants done by top doctors, can make people happy.

Jim

[Guest]

Thanks to all of you for your responses - I wish this kind of thing were around 15 years ago.

 

Have not shaved recipient site - it isn't bad cobblestoned, but it is a little divot-ish. Secondly, you can see that I've had a lot of sun exposure and am starting to show it - lots of hot sunny days playing rugby. The recipient site is whiter, and without spots - definitely a contrast.

 

Then there is always the reduction scar, which is paramedial (on one side). It is a very fine scar, but I think it would be much more noticeable where the grafts are.

As for location, I am currently between Atlanta anc Charlotte. I have friends in NY, and could go up and see Dr. Bernstein. As for Australia, really not an option at present.

 

Here are a couple of more pics.

 

Thanks again everyone; I really appreciate all your input.

[Guest]

rear pic - I can't seem to get a decent one, but this should give some idea.

[uncjim]

Arfy,

Being a fan of common courtesy, I consider "dumb" and "inane" an attack. The point is this, if Rugby is a poor candidate, a well respected and honest doctor, (they're out there) will inform him. I don't consider this my, or your,resonsibility. It has nothing to due with how well informed I am, of which you have no idea. Rugby would like a solution to his present situaton, My suggestion was pursuing a top HT doctor. Nothing more. At no time did I, or would I, suggest that anyone get a transplant as a panacea. Of course, I understand that there are limitations. Take care. I'm going back to the UCONN vs NC game!

Jim

[Guest]

If you don't mind me asking, how old were you when you had your transplant, how many drafts did you get, and how old are you now?

 

I'm no doctor but there may be a way to make what you have less noticeable through graft reduction and recycling, if you have enough donor hair to add some FU's to it and keep your crown bald. I also understand that Dr. Jones in Toronto is able to transplant body hair. May be worth contacting him to get his opinion. Please let us know what the docs tell you and try to stay positive. GOOD LUCK TO YOU!!

[Guest]

I'm 38 now.

I was 19 when I had my first HT, it was done in the Orentreich office in NYC. I had 25 4-mm punch grafts. I had another 25 4-mm later that same year. About 4 years later, I had a scalp reduction with them, followed by 30 more 4-mm grafts.

 

It would be another 7 years or so before my next HT, at Bosley (ugh!) in Boston, where I had 150 grafts, the size of which I am not exactly sure, but it is certainly a mix of "micro" and "mini" because it did soften my hairline for a time.

 

Then, FINALLY, came Al Gore and the invention of the internet.

 

Since discovering this site, I've been reading a lot about this, and am encouraged by what I've found. Plug recycling should have a decent yield percentage, even with thin hair such as mine, and FU work is encouraging, too.

 

Lastly, I'm also very encouraged by the positive feedback on some of the Drs. on the site. I don't expect to look like a hair-band guy from the 80's - hell, I'd kill to look like Jotronic did 4 months post-op - kind of a cool buzzcut look. Anyway, I'm keeping fingers crossed and will keep you guys updated.

[tincup]

Hey Rugby,

 

You may want to have a look at Dr. Jeff Epstein's web site. He has some excellent articles on reparation procedures including removing grafts without re-planting them.

 

Your area of coverage isn't that big so some faint scaring in a small area might not look too bad...might look like an injury from a rugby scrum

[tincup]

Rugby,

 

Here is a URL to that article on Dr. Epstein's web site. Worth a read anyway.

 

http://www.foundhair.com/pages/RevisionSurgicalHairRestorationRepairOfUndesirableResults02.pdf

[poet]

I would shave it off, unless you have a huge amount of body hair and are willing to do some FUE work. Otherwise you will never have good density with your weak head donor hair and large bald area. I am not 100% anti strip but for you it is clearly not a good choice for further work.

[dodgedabullet]

Either go for very thin coverage in the front using FU's or go completely bald. Unfortunately, you don't have a tremendous amount of donar hair.

If you go the bald route, I would see a laser surgeon after the hair removal to improve the scars. Three of the top laser experts in laser scar reduction are Richard Fitzpatrick and Mitchel Goldman in San Diego and Tina Alster in Washington, D.C. The scars can often be improved 50-80%

[HarryLemon]

Contact Ron Shapiro's office and email Matt your pictures to see what he says about them. Shapiro has done a lot of pretty amazing repair work in the past. Maybe he could just "bridge" that island from the sides and buffer it out a bit all round with a relatively small graft count...

 

Worth asking IMO.

[Mr. Hair]

Rugby,

 

I would say if you want to play it safe, have the plugs removed. Then have some laser resurfacing done. I've seen how they smooth out pop marks from acne using laser. You said the top of your head has pitting, and not the cobblestone look. Once the plugs are removed, they should be able to smooth out the top of your head pretty easily. The only problem you'd run into is discoloration from the scars on the top of your head.

 

On the other hand, if you want to go the transplant route (I know correcting the donor scar you have is also a concern). Then I would definitely see Dr. Bernstein. He has a proven history of doing great repair work. Check out www.newhair.com. They have a whole section on repair work. Also, he'll tell it to you like it is. Your donor supply does seems weak, but if he feels he can work with it, what he'd probably do is remove your old plugs and redistribute them as FU's. He'd correct your scar, and harvest any donor he can. And in transplanting, he'd give you a conservative, yet natural look. Also, another poster had suggested Dr. Shapiro. I think he's another good choice for you to see. Both Dr. Bernstein, and Dr. Shapiro have been around doing all FUT and repair work for a long time. The other doctor's mentioned are well respected, but are just now beginning to make a name for themselves. If I were you, and I was going the transplant route, I'd go with history, and a track record (Bernstein, Shapiro). This is my opinion. I hope this helps. Good luck with whichever path you choose. Please keep us posted on whatever you do, as well as what each doctor told you. I look forward to watching your progress.

 

Mr. Hair

[Guest]

Got my haircut this morning, and my barber got a little carried away. There is very little donor hair left, and numerous punch graft scars.

 

[arfy]

Rugby

I am in a similar situation as you are... punch-graft scars, very little donor hair, and bad grafts that need to be corrected.

 

There are no obvious answers. Be cautious, try meeting with some doctors, and weigh your options.

 

You might want to consider meeting with Dr. Woods, of Sydney Australia. He will be in New York for a seminar with interested patients on the weekend of February 8th. Dr. Woods does a procedure that doesn't involve a strip excision to harvest grafts, he moves FU grafts individually from all over the head, (one by one) and is not limited to just the back for donor hair. He is another option you should know about, and take into consideration.

 

Here are three examples of "repair" stories that you may find helpful. One is from NHI (Dr. McClellan) and 2 are from Dr. Woods:

repair patients

[Guest]

Thanks; I read these yesterday, with interest.

Have you decided on a course of action, or are you in consult mode like myself? Have you posted photos?

 

I just ordered some Couvre to cover up the scars, but am on my way to wal-mart to get some eyebrow pencil to colour this for work tomorrow. I can't believe how bad it looks.

 

After my haircut, and LOVING my short hair, I am really leaning towards plug removal and scar correction, and being done with all of it. Unless I hear something different from the docs. I am calling two of them first thing in the morning.

[arfy]

Rugby

I have had some of the plugs "corrected" which has helped some. However, unlike you, the grafts I have are spread out all over my head, and not in a dense concentration, which complicates things for me.

 

I have been working on this as well as weighing my options, for the past couple of years. Because the graft corrections happen in stages, it has allowed me to continue to think about what direction to take, when I need to start making harder decisions. I will be posting my pics soon, I am working on a web site and it's taking longer than I expected.

 

Keep searching, and asking questions. There are no obvious solutions.

[Dr. Paul Rose]

I believe that the appearance can be enhanced and made to look far more natural.

 

As was pointed out your donor area may be lack adequate density. It is difficult to assess from the pictures.

 

Similarly it is important to know what your expectations are and what could be accomplished

 

 

I would suggest consultations with several physicians before deciding on a course of action.