A good candidate?

[draught19]

Hey everyone,

I was hoping to get some advice about whether a hair transplant would work in my situation. I think I have a mild-moderate diffuse balding pattern (see attached photo). I've never taken propecia but I have been taking minoxidil for the last 4 years to some effect but have had to stop it recently because of side effects. Also, as a pharmacist I'm definitely not keen on taking propecia.

Just a few things to consider....

1. since I have recently stopped minoxidil my hair should return to baseline so I will experience further hair loss in the next 4 months
2. since it is a diffuse pattern I'm wondering whether "shock loss" will be a problem.
3. I should also lose some hair in the crown area as well (not shown) because I was also using minoxidil there also

If a hair transplant is not recommended at this earlyish stage of hair loss, when would be a good time?

Oh, and im 24. I was unfortunate enough to start losing hair at 19.

Thanks in advice for your time!

 

[dreamermerlin]

Hey everyone,

I was hoping to get some advice about whether a hair transplant would work in my situation. I think I have a mild-moderate diffuse balding pattern (see attached photo). I've never taken propecia but I have been taking minoxidil for the last 4 years to some effect but have had to stop it recently because of side effects. Also, as a pharmacist I'm definitely not keen on taking propecia.

Just a few things to consider....

1. since I have recently stopped minoxidil my hair should return to baseline so I will experience further hair loss in the next 4 months
2. since it is a diffuse pattern I'm wondering whether "shock loss" will be a problem.
3. I should also lose some hair in the crown area as well (not shown) because I was also using minoxidil there also

If a hair transplant is not recommended at this earlyish stage of hair loss, when would be a good time?

Oh, and im 24. I was unfortunate enough to start losing hair at 19.

Thanks in advice for your time!

I think you should send the photos or even go to consultations to real transplant doctors.
We cannot tell you what you want. Oh, and to see if you are a good candidate, one must see the donor area, analyze the hairs there. It is not that simple to only look at one single photo and tell!
Too bad you didn't take Propecia.
Anyway, it also depends on what results you expect, what density you want, how low you want your hairline. You sau it's a mild diffuse, i don't want to upset you, but it's a pretty thin area (and you sau it might get thinner because of dropping minoxidil), and it needs very many grafts to restore good density...
Your form of hair loss seems pretty agressive, and considering you're only 24, further loss is very likely to happen. I bet any good doctor you'll see would advice you to take propecia. Because if you don't take it, you would need soon another transplant and then another, etc.

 

[draught19]

Thanks for getting back to me. I do agree that propecia would be a huge help. My goals are at the moment to try and maintain hair on my head until my 30s or if im lucky My 40's. At that stage I'd either shave it or with gods mercy hopefully there'd by some sort of cure. To me cost or effort isn't an issue but health is. Also keep in mind that what you don't see in the photo is relatively thick hair behind my hand.[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Let me know what you think of this plan:[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]1. I wait a little while to see how my balding pattern unfolds and where the trouble areas are. At this stage I'd undertake a FUE to see how well I receive donor hair and to patch up a few areas.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]2. If they take well then I'd undergo strip transplants when necessary until it is no longer viable.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]3. I am more than happy to undergo multiple procedures [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]The big drawback here is the scarring when eventually I'd have to shave my head. Do you think that with a decent doctor this scar would be bearable?[/FONT]