Question about hair transplant's

[daedalus]

This may be a stupid question, so please bear with me. I'm not really seriously considering a hair transplant right now, but I'm just thinking about the future. I'm 27 and a diffuse thinner. I've been losing my hair for about 2-3 years and it's getting worse pretty quickly.

My question is once you get an hair transplant, do you have to take Propecia/minoxidil or some kind of medication for the rest of your life? I tried propecia and had bad side effects from it, so I had to stop taking it. So am I screwed since I wouldn't be able to take it after a hair transplant?

Does the transplanted hair become susceptible to male pattern baldness just like the remaining hair? Because in that case, it seems like all a hair transplant does is buy you some more time. It doesn't seem like a permanent solution.

I just hope some day comes when I can forget about this damn hairloss completely. I even shaved my head recently, but I know that it's not a great look for me. Anyway, thanks for the help.

 

[mvpsoft]

If you get a hair transplant, you will have to treat your male pattern baldness for the rest of your life. Think of it this way. Suppose you get the hair transplant. Those hairs won't fall out, but the rest of your hair will continue to disappear. How will you look in five years if that happens? Surgery replaces the hair that won't grow back through medication, but it is not a once-and-done permanent fix.

 

[daedalus]

So basically, I'd have to take propecia or minoxidil for the rest of my life even after a transplant. Considering that I can't even take propecia, a hair transplant doesn't seem like a good solution.

I guess that means I better get used to the shaved head look. Unless something else comes out. This really sucks.

 

[eastend]

So basically, I'd have to take propecia or minoxidil for the rest of my life even after a transplant. Considering that I can't even take propecia, a hair transplant doesn't seem like a good solution.

This is simply not true. The first thing to consider is where on the norwood scale you are likely to progress to. I say "likely" because obviously nobody can see the future. If you're destined to be a NW5A, then it means you're destined to keep all your hair on the sides and on the back, and that your sides and back won't recede down. One or two megasessions totalling about 5,000 well-placed and well-spaced grafts later, and you'll look like you have a full head of hair for the rest of your life without ever taking medication. Look at this guy for proof: http://www.happilytransplantedhair.com/ I don't know if he ever took finasteride, but he never mentions it.

On the other hand, if you're destined to become NW7, then your sides and back are going to recede down. If you get a megasession that dense packs the top, but doesn't go far enough down the sides, you'll have an 8-ball on your head as you get older. The medications, especially finasteride (or more powerful DHT blockers) may help preserve the hair on the sides and back that is destined to recede downward. Having said that, it may be that the meds simply buy you time, but eventually your hair will recede to where it was supposed to go, meaning the meds may lose effectiveness over time. So if you're destined to be a NW7, then you and your surgeon will have to decide on a strategy to place grafts such that you get optimum balance between coverage and density, and the surgeon will have to plant the grafts such that you get a natural looking bald area in the crown. It CAN be done. There are many examples of NW6's and even some NW7's that look orders of magnitude better with a well-designed transplant, even though they have bald crowns and/or vertexes. There are other things you can do that will work to your advantage. If you opt for a high/mature but full hairline, for example, you gain coverage. If you opt for a mid-20s hairline, you'll use up those grafts.

As it pertains to hair restoration, the single best piece of advice anyone could ever give you is to plan ahead. [/url]

 

[daedalus]

eastend, thanks a lot for the reply. that's very helpful. my hairloss definitely isn't stabilized yet. in fact, when I buzz my hair very short (with a #1 or #2 guard) it's not that noticeable. but I was just wondering what my options were for the future.

one more question - why isn't the transplanted hair susceptible to falling out due to male pattern baldness?

thanks again for the help.

 

[eastend]

my hairloss definitely isn't stabilized yet. in fact, when I buzz my hair very short (with a #1 or #2 guard) it's not that noticeable. but I was just wondering what my options were for the future.

Glad to help. You probably have plenty of options, but you may have to learn to live with the idea of a high hairline and a thin or bald crown. Although body hair FUE is getting a lot of attention, so it may or may not be an option for you. From what I've read, use it as a last resort becuase the growth rates aren't all that hot. As it stands right now, if your hair loss is "not that noticeable" when you cut it short, then I'm willing to bet that your hair looks WAY worse to you than it does to anyone else. So you have some time.

For me personally, I don't need movie star hair, I simply want to look like a guy who kept his hair as I get older (I'm getting close to mid 30s, btw). As for the meds, my personal opinion is that some guys rely on them too much, and do not give enough consideration to the idea that finasteride may lose effectiveness over time. So they get an aggressive hair transplant (e.g. look at some of Dr. Alvi Armani's early to mid 20's patients - the work looks great, but how is it going to play out when the patient gets older??) I started on it two months ago (I cut Proscar pills into fifths), but I regard it as a temporary measure. If it helps, great. If it stops working, oh well. My hair transplants will have been done such that I'll should still look natural (I had a 2900-FU surgery with Dr. Seager just over two months ago and so far so good). He thinks the back of my head, without finasteride, will naturally recede downward, but he thinks the sides are pretty safe. So naturally, I'm probably on my way to a NW5A at best, NW5 most likely, and NW6 worst case.

one more question - why isn't the transplanted hair susceptible to falling out due to male pattern baldness?

One of the mysteries of life. I don't think anybody has answered this one yet.