Hair Transplant longevity

[muddyball]

Hi,

Quick question, how long can you expect to get out of a hair transplant? has anyone gone 20-30 years with the transplanted hairs still intact? Obviously with being on finasteride etc, if for example you got a transplant in your early 30's - what shelf life can u expect when taking meds as well.

 

[Man in Space]

The beauty of a hair transplant is that the transplanted hairs themself will last a lifetime as they are resistant to DHT, thats why they take them from the back and sides as most people who go bald still retain their hair there. What you have to guard against is transplanting hair say to the hairline and then the baldiing process continuing behind it bald, leaving a clear line of transplanted hair with nothing behind it.

The problem with this is that the future is hard to predict, you might maintain all your hair for 10 years on finasteride and then suddenly lose the native hair just leaving you hair transplant hair behind and at that time you would then perhaps want to think about having another one to fill in the gaps. Once you start down the hair transplant route, you are likely binding yourself into more sessions in the future

 

[muddyball]

Ahh I see, so say someone who gets a full head transplant, that will be bulletproof for a lifetime?

 

[Man in Space]

Exactly, you have a finite amount of hair in the donor area which you must manage and not over harvest, say for examle dense packing grafts into a receded hairline, in case you then continue to bald behind that but dont have enough grafts left in the donor area. There is also the strip or fue debate to consider as having a strip scar obviously then limits your hair style options down the line. Thats why its generally best to wait as long as possible before you progress. Even if you have a hair tranplant in your 30's, if you live to your 80's thats 50 years for your hair to mature around it and a dense packed NW1 hairline is going to look more than a bit stupid if you have lost all your other hair. You may require many more transplants, or if you only have slight loss, it may be better to try and conserve with meds.

Its very important you consider all these factors, as the choices you make when you transplant your hair are permanent, but the situation on your head around it is not, its not simply a case of dealing with your hairloss today, with meds and hair transplants you must plan for tommorow as well.

 

[muddyball]

cheers thats super advise, hopefully in ten - twenty years there'll be a few more options available!

 

[Man in Space]

Definately, hopefully one day donor management will become a thing of the past

 

[mashang]

you could always sport a zidane look

 

[Man in Space]

That is an option for some people, though I have a suspicion that he is that hansome that most things would look good on his head, Id personally feel less confident of pulling that look off myself so after you buddy!