Category: Uncategorized

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My Friend Was Very Sick After He Had a Hair Transplant

Hi. I just wanted to know if you have a hair transplant most surgeons tell you after 3 months the transplanted hair start growing. Is it possible it could take longer and if so how long would be the maximum?

My friend had a 3000 graft trasplant done and its been over 4 months, but not much has happened. He says he was very sick on the 2nd day after surgery and the pressure going to his head from vomiting made him feel as if the grafts were going to pop out. Is it possible something could have gone wrong due to vomiting? Thanks for your time.

Some people can have some side effects of drugs that are used for sedation after a hair transplant. Every medication has side effects, but most of the medications we use have few detectable side effects at the doses we utilize. If there are any lingering effects from these drugs, they may last a day or two at most. There has been a rare occasion where a patient was recently sick with the flu just before a transplant, so it would be logical that the same thing could happen after a hair transplant. Perhaps he caught the flu and it was coincidence. I really can’t tell you, as I have no idea.

Concerning your friend, hair starts growing at between 1-5 months after a transplant. I doubt that your friend lost any grafts or did any damage from being sick after the transplant.

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My Hair Has Changed, But There is No Miniaturization

In your opinion, if there is no miniaturization does that mean there is no hair loss? I recently had my hair mapped for miniaturization by Dr. Pak in San Jose, CA. He found no miniaturization beyond what is normal. It is possible that I have experienced a telogen effluvium, I mistakenly took a testosterone booster for a month about 8 months back, I also had 4 surgeries this past summer. I know for a fact that my hair has changed some in the past year, but I don’t show any miniaturization upon examination. Should I be worried?

In the interest of patient confidentiality, I will keep the answers generic. If you have specific questions or concerns you can call our office at 800-NEW-HAIR (800-639-4247) for a personal consultation / discussion.

Having no significant miniaturization should indicate that your hair loss state at that point in time was stable. You may have lost your hair in prior months and may have even experienced telogen effluvium, but there is no way to tell with a miniaturization study, which just shows hairs that are in the process of being lost.

If you take testosterone or anabolic steroids, you could “kick start” the genetic balding process, but as stated above, if you do not show signs of miniaturization at this point, it indicates things are stable. Most people will undergo changes in hair texture with age, but frankly there is no way to tell. I would recommend watching the hair over time with repeat miniaturization studies in the hope that your hair will become more full.

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Can Finasteride Stop Further Hairline Recession?

I’m aware that fin isn’t as effective on thickening hairs at the hairline, but is it effective at halting further recession, as it is at stopping general thinning?

Finasteride (Propecia) may halt further hairline recession, but hairline recession is usually not reversed with this drug. It’s also usually not a permanent phenomenon, so over time you can expect more hairline recession even if it stops the recession initially.

In other words, even if you take Propecia every day without missing a step and have good results, you could eventually start seeing the loss start again. It’s not a hair loss cure, though some patients have been on the medication for over a decade while still seeing good results.

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My Hair Loss Started After I Moved

I have just moved to Jordan from London to live and I notice that more hair than usual (enough for me to worry) comes out when I brush my hair and wash my hair (in particular). It has been quite stressful moving and adjusting, plus I have a 5 month old son. There is no history of hairloss in my family – should I worry?

Many thanks

Hair loss comes when a person has genetic tendencies for it (many people find that they may not have it in the short family history but that it exists in the ancestry somewhere). Add hormones and stress to that and you have a deadly hair combo. Well, not “deadly”, but you get the idea. Then add time and you cement the process. Moving from one country to another with your family will almost certainly cause a high degree of stress. Hair loss is caused by genes, hormones, time and stress. Do you have it all? Yes, you should worry and get your hair assessed for early balding. The drug Propecia (for men only) should slow it down or reverse it if the diagnosis is made.

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Can Hair Regrow in a Scar?

I have a long scar on my head from an accident that happened just over a month ago. I want to know is there any thing that can be done to make it smaller and reduce the appearance of the scar. also wanted to know if there were any treatments that could make the hair grow back were the scar is?

Thank you for taking the time to review my questions

I looked a the photo you sent, and although I won’t publish it on your request, your scar appears to be about 2 inches long and 1/4 inch wide. This is a scar that has no hair elements within it. The only solution for this is hair transplantation, something that can be fairly easy to do. I have done surgery on patients with cranial scars from brain tumor surgery and even injury scars like this, and they can take a transplant fairly well. This particular scar can not be removed without returning.

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My Hair Transplant Hasn’t Grown In 3 Months After Surgery

Dear Doctor R.,
I had a FUT procedure of 3,000 grafts 3 months ago, primarily into the vertex area. Three months on, none of the transplanted hair has yet fallen out nor has it noticeably grown past 5mm.

Should I understand this as a random event, or should I infer that this represents some indicator of the expected telegen/anagen phase timeline? Thanks & with regards

I would not expect the hair to grow out until 5-7 months have elapsed. Following a hair transplant, your newly transplanted grafts will go through a dormant phase. All you can do at this point is have patience. Some people could see the start of growth after a few months, some take a little longer. A very lucky few will not go through any dormant phase and the hair just starts growing.

Did you ask your surgeon? You should’ve been informed of the wait time prior to undergoing your surgery.

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Can I Cause Traction Alopecia From Pulling My Hair Back or Using a Comb Obsessively?

Can frequent, obssesive pulling back of the hair cause traction alopecia at the hairline? I’m a 20 year old male who cannot go past a mirror without pulling my hair up to look at my hairline. If there is a comb available, I use that as well. I do this to the point where the left side of my hairline in particular feels sore. Would you have any pictures to illustrate this sort of traction alopecia?

If you have an obsessive compulsive disorder to constantly pull on your hair, that may cause permanent hair loss to the area (depending on the severity and length of the offending habit)… but just looking at yourself in the mirror and combing your hair back will likely not cause traction alopecia.

It may seem like a chicken/egg conundrum (which came first…), but most men who have frontal recession are likely experiencing male pattern baldness. Particularly men around your age, which is when it wouldn’t be uncommon for genetic hair loss to begin.

If you are indeed worried about your possible hair loss or an obsessive compulsive disorder, you would establish a diagnosis with your doctor.

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My Herbalist Says…

You know how the literature says that Propecia takes a few weeks at most to leave the body because of tissue fixation? How come when people start a new diet, such as cutting out milk, gluten, or soy, they say to wait 90 days in order to see results? An herbalist told me the threshold is 90 days because that’s the time it takes for the blood to recycle/cleanse completely or something.

Of note, red blood cells have a life span of 120 days, but this really has nothing to do with tissue fixation. Red blood cells are not tissue nor do they carry Propecia.

You are asking me about starting a new diet and things that herbalists practice. They generally do not have any good science behind them. Let me reiterate with an example: A few of my acquaintances heard about colon cleansing (colonics) and how it rids the body of toxins, so they went as a group to try it since they thought it was a great idea. Now personally, I find it a bit disturbing to go with a group of friends to have a stranger in a white coat put a hose up my bottom, followed by flushing gallons of fluid up there for a good sum of money just so I can watch the fecal waste come out. Granted, I’d find it equally disturbing if it wasn’t a stranger… but the point is, there is no good science behind colon cleansing. All of this is a bunch of B.S. (pardon the pun).

I realize I’m going off on a tangent, but people will believe what they want to believe. I also realize there is a community of alternative medicine supporters out there, but I’m a Medical Doctor. There are some alternatives that have been shown to work just as well as claimed, but there are also many of them that are just don’t work at all.


2009-11-17 08:59:44My Herbalist Says…

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Can I get a transplant now? (photo)

I am 31 and have thinning on the top of my head as shown in the photo below. Can a hair transplant solve this problem for me now?

First, I would try drugs like finasteride and/or minoxidil. A hair transplant for such diffuse thinning doesn’t work well except make money for the surgeon. Set up a Personalized Master Plan with a good doctor and follow the plan


2020-04-27 12:51:33Can I get a transplant now? (photo)