What Norwood Is It When You Are Beyond hair transplants?

[razzmatazz91]

At what Norwood can surgery not help?
Also... Could someone please tell me my final norwood appears to be from this photo. The hair is buzzed close...but my thinning is still noticeable. I thought I was NW5 with some hope but it may so be that I am in fact a NW6 .... The hair seems to be very thin in the donor area.

 

[razzmatazz91]

It's crazy how all this happened in just three years... Just a couple of years ago, I had the look of a fullhead, albiet Norwood 2. Now I'm sinking again.... f***.

 

[JeanLucBB]

What does it look like grown out? I can't tell if that bit at the back is just a little thin with a lightning issue in that pic or you are balding fully in the NW6 area. My dads been a NW5 for twenty years and that part at the back has always been a little thin in the NW6 area, but still gives enough coverage that it doesn't it doesn't make the horseshoe visible. Also his sides are still high.

Agree that you really have to see a surgeon to figure out donor numbers and see what it looks like grown out to make an accurate judgement.

 

[razzmatazz91]

My heart sank when I read that, wolf.
I'm adding here some more pics when I had my hair a bit longer... Just to be sure. Please tell me what you think. That thick forelock I have... Can it make up for anything in an hair transplant?

So nw4? I'm utterly fucked? and

 

[JeanLucBB]

Ok from those angles it looks much better, only balding in a Norwood 5 area and the density looks fine. Not sure if you're on finasteride but with a 5000 graft transplant in one hit you would likely get very strong results.

 

[sunchyme1]

get on meds man

if that has only happened in the last few years you got a great chance of regrowth

 

[razzmatazz91]

It happened while I've been on meds for two out of the three years

 

[razzmatazz91]

Ok from those angles it looks much better, only balding in a Norwood 5 area and the density looks fine. Not sure if you're on finasteride but with a 5000 graft transplant in one hit you would likely get very strong results.

Thanks for your input. I'll post another picture next weekend with my hair grown out a little bit.
I will ultimately have to go see a surgeon to know for sure... Will have to travel far.

BTW... 5k grafts actually works for NW5? I'm Indian... So I think I have decent density in the donor area. No idea about hair calibre and scalp laxity though.

I have no money ATM for an hair transplant.. funny isn't it. Just thinking that it is possible to feel normal some day in future helps me take heart. Still... I'll need to find out for sure if something can be done...

 

[JeanLucBB]

Thanks for your input. I'll post another picture next weekend with my hair grown out a little bit.
I will ultimately have to go see a surgeon to know for sure... Will have to travel far.

BTW... 5k grafts actually works for NW5? I'm Indian... So I think I have decent density in the donor area. No idea about hair calibre and scalp laxity though.

I have no money ATM for an hair transplant.. funny isn't it. Just thinking that it is possible to feel normal some day in future helps me take heart. Still... I'll need to find out for sure if something can be done...

Seen probably over 100 Erdogan cases on similar situations to yours with very strong results. Not perfection, but you should be able to get the "illusion" of a full head of hair back.

Indian likely means very strong hair calibre which makes a huge difference. FUE with Erdogan you'd be looking at 12500 Euros. I've also seen good results with suneet soni in India for FUT which is slightly cheaper I think.

 

[razzmatazz91]

Seen probably over 100 Erdogan cases on similar situations to yours with very strong results. Not perfection, but you should be able to get the "illusion" of a full head of hair back.

Illusion? I thought no hair transplant patient ever gets perfection, but only an "illusion". How would you compare those results to the one you had? Yours looked fabulous...but would you call it perfection?

 

[JeanLucBB]

Illusion? I thought no hair transplant patient ever gets perfection, but only an "illusion". How would you compare those results to the one you had? Yours looked fabulous...but would you call it perfection?

Transplants by nature are illusion. I can go out when its windy or go out after waking up without styling it in any way and it looks fine, but when wet It's clearly lacking density. With a small amount of length and layering this isn't a problem and still gives various styling options.

It's hard to explain without having actually had a transplant and comparing the density to the original. Most of my transplanted area is packed with 25-30 grafts per square centimetre and 50 in the hairline, natural density would around 80. The eye can't easily distinguish this though, the reason why transplants work in the first place is that for half or even slightly less of original density you can get 80% of the cosmetic effect of a full head of hair.

I think with another 20-25% density over my transplanted areas I would achieve cosmetic "perfection" from my perspective, but it's still providing an illusion that isn't at the level of natural density. The easiest way to distinguish is the feel of mass when you run your hand through it that a transplant lacks compared to the real thing.

 

[razzmatazz91]

The easiest way to distinguish is the feel of mass when you run your hand through it that a transplant lacks compared to the real thing.

So.... You just don't let a girl run her hands through your hair?

I think the biggest issue is the anxiety that someone will notice. Especially when wet, after a swim etc. Or when getting intimate with someone. The anxiety is the whole reason I want to always avoid hair pieces and concealers.

 

[Nick1990]

are you using regaine or lipogaine or anything?

 

[razzmatazz91]

are you using regaine or lipogaine or anything?

Minoxidil and finasteride

 

[Nick1990]

for how long?

 

[razzmatazz91]

for how long?

Minoxidil since January 2015, finasteride since March 2016

 

[Nick1990]

Oh wow really... Take it your a non responder or have you seen any growth?

 

[razzmatazz91]

Oh wow really... Take it your a non responder or have you seen any growth?

I saw minimal regrowth after 6-8 months, and lost it soon. After that, my hair has been getting worse. Maybe if I was not on meds it would take a few months less to get to where I am today.

 

[Nick1990]

damn dude cant remember ever seeing someone not respond to both finasteride and min

 

[razzmatazz91]

damn dude cant remember ever seeing someone not respond to both finasteride and min

Yeah... Glad to be an anomaly. There are many though. Just ask @buckthorn