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I am a Pacific Islander who had dreadlocks for about 6 years. I noticed small, developing bald spots approximately a year ago. I recently cut my dreads since I noticed that the bald spot is growing. Is it abnormal for my scalp to be itchy? I have always had dandruff, could this be to blame? Sometimes it is particulary itchy at the bald spot? Could this be new growth or perhaps the cause of my baldness? Are there any treatments that can be sought for traction Alopecia?

Having dreads or braids can cause traction alopecia, which is not reversible unless it is caught early enough. For those who are lucky enough to catch it before it becomes irreversible and the dreads or braids were not in for extended periods of time, you may experience regrowth of hair. If this is the case, it could take up to year for hair to regrow.

Your scalp should not itch with new growing hair. I do not believe there is a correlation with itchy scalp and new hair growth. As you mentioned, this may be dandruff or other skin/scalp problem and I agree with that belief.

A brief rundown of my first ever consultation. The whole thing lasted less than 30 minutes. I filled out a couple questionnaires and then met with a “counselor.” They estimated I was a great candidate due to limited loss and strong donor hair and I would need 1500 or less grafts with FUT.

I asked about aftercare, and was told about a laser cap I should wear 6 minutes a day. I asked about Fin and was told not worry about side effects. I asked whether my thick back hair would blend with my finer front hair, was told that all transplants are the same way and not to worry.

I was told 1500 grafts would cost me around 7500, as long as I picked a date in the next two months while they had a promotion. They needed a $1000 deposit which I’d lose if I cancelled more than 2 weeks before the surgery date.

I was told that less than 5% of patients need a touch up afterwards.

I paid the deposit and left. Quickly I felt that I had been had, the whole thing was super high pressure sales, and though she said otherwise I’m pretty sure this “counselor” worked on commission.

I did not meet with an actual doctor, and the counselor did not get up from her desk so never got a close look at my scalp. I was told I would have the doctor consultation on the day of surgery, and I realized that does not leave me any time to consider the decision after being given actual medical advice.

The counselor didn’t advise me whether I should be starting fin or anything else before the surgery.

I was told FUT was better than FUE/ARTAS because the robotic method is not as “artistically sensitive” to the angle of the root and you get less hair per graft.

I was told the doctor they use is normally in Beverly Hills and is one of the top 3 in the country. But when I searched for reviews I couldn’t find anything.

I feel a little depressed because I guess I was thinking by the end of this year I’d be sporting a full head of hair and got excited. Now I feel like a bit of a fool.

In my practice, you never meet with a salesman, only either myself of my partner Dr. Pak. Since we do the surgery and all of the consultations, we understand the process from the beginning to the end. We spend close to an hour with each new patient, perform an extensive examination and build a Master Plan for the patient’s short and long term future. We try to predict the final pattern of hair loss using the HAIRCHECK instrument which then allows us to understand the donor supply and the eventual balding pattern. You should demand nothing less than what we offer, regardless if which doctor you end up seeing. We offer monthly Open House Events where you can meet former patients, see a surgery and get a free consultation with either me of my partner. That is just being a good doctor. Our reviews can be found on Realself, and Yelp for everyone to see.

Source: Phuong Tran/Post-Gazette

Dr. Nghi Nguyen is my personal friend I’ve known since his immigration to the U.S. His story was published recently in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The theory is that tight scalps cause hair loss. There is no evidence whatsoever that this is true. The goal of this video is to sell you a device to loosen up your scalp. I don’t believe any of this but still will present it to you for the purposes of always presenting contrary opinions.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/sq5QYSNL_Ds?fbclid=IwAR0nXulCoyXy4Er3V6XrwwS1tTDx8rVEpU8SRgvyP_C1ApTgxLBF943_Ldc

The picture that was forwarded is a public photo. It appears to be a comb-over to cover a receding corner of the hair line. Of course, without seeing it directly, I can’t supply an opinion.

Based on case reports of Dr Hitzig and Cooley from 2010, and the spirit of science we have tried to replicate the cloning claims by applying for clinical research through an institutional review board (IRB), also known as an independent ethics committee (IEC) or ethical review board (ERB), IRB.

We had two category of ACell trials:
(1) ACell to promote new hair follicle regeneration from plucked hair, thus creating two hairs from one hair as the plucked hair is assumed to grow back. This in essence is viewed by some as cloning.

At this time, at about the 3+ year mark, our patients who received ACell for hair regeneration have not reported growth and we had seen all of them at the 6th month and 12 month point in time. If you read the ACell update from ISHRS Alaska 2011 conference, it would seem the ACell cloning was only hype.

(2) ACell to promote wound healing and less scar formation. This involves ACell that is incorporated into the strip donor wound.

At this time, at about the 3+ year mark, some patients have reported less pain after the surgery and a better looking scar (those who have had more than one surgery to compare their own experiences). But the overall width (size) of the scar is not any better (smaller). In other words the scar may NOT be smaller, but they are less pink and seemed to heal faster.

In summary we have spent thousands of dollars applying for the IRB permission as well as materials cost as well as staff hours for not so stellar results. More importantly it is regrettable to those patients who have participated in hopes of unlimited hair to only receive nothing from their effort. ACell may have some place in wound healing and we still offer this option to our patients at no cost.

To be clear: ACell does not grow hair. ACell does not make the scar smaller. Acell may heal the wound better but there is no clear proof of this. This observation is merely subjective.