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How Do Patients Deal with The Redness Right After Transplant Surgery?

My question is about coping with hair transplants. It seems like one of the biggest challenges/inconvenience of transplants is for patients to go out in public and resume their daily responsibilities after surgery because of the physical appearance of the scalp and how it initially is red, scabby, and punctured after surgery. I find this a very unappealing aspect about transplants and Im wondering how do patients cope considering the gruesome appearance of the scalp after surgery- do they take time off work and just lock themselves in their house until their scalp starts healing?

The scabbing can be easily addressed with good techniques and small wounds by the surgeon. Add good daily washes and most patients will have no significant crusting after the surgery. Everyone is different, but in regards to redness, only a few patients develop this. You can usually find out if you are one of them by performing a scratch test on the skin of your forehead. If it turns red 2-5 minutes after the scratch is performed, then you run a high risk of redness after surgery. The scratch incites histamine release at the skin level.

Remember, no matter how you want to look at it, a hair transplant is a cosmetic surgery. Just like any nose job, face lift, etc, there will be healing time needed. Some patients might get permission to wear a hat to work, others might adopt a new styling method to cover any initial redness from the surgery. Many of our patients go back to work fairly quickly after surgery (usually 2-5 days).


2011-12-27 09:13:14How Do Patients Deal with The Redness Right After Transplant Surgery?

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How Do I Stop Picking At My Scalp?

I was wondering if there is a way I can treat my impulse in picking out my scabs from my scalp. I am starting to develop bald spots in the front area of my hair. Other than that, I have lots of hair, and don’t think that my hair will ever thin. Also, if I stop picking at my scabs, will the hair ever grow again at the aformentioned bald spots? Or will I have to use aids like propecia, if they would be of any help?

Thank you

You describe a condition known as trichotillomania. It is a sort of obsessive-compulsive disorder and there may be help. But first, you need to see a doctor who can diagnose you and manage your obsessive behavior, one step at a time.

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How do I make the proper diagnosis for hair loss?

So I’ve been to dermatologist and started using fin and minoxidil. He used some camera to see whether I have hair follicles on my temples and it turns out that I have a lot (basically I could go back by 0.5-1 norwood if I grew them out). From what I understood my dermatologist seemed to suggest that there is hope in regrowing this hair. But I’m not sure whether I understood his words correctly. It’s said a lot that fin is going to let you “preserve what you already have at the moment”. And that minox works on scalp only. But I’ve been instructed to use fin, dermaroll once a day and use minox on both crown (which has very little loss) and temples. Does it mean I’m trying to regrow hair on my temples this way? Most articles mention that hair regrowth on the temples is unlikely as hair follicles are probably already dead (unless you lost your hair just recently). In my case I’ve lost hair on my temples quite within 4-5 years mark but most of the follicles seem to still be there. Does it mean I can expect regrowth?

A proper examination of the hair for balding is (1) the use of a video or hand microscope, (2) the use of a HAIRCHECK instrument which will measure the actual hair bulk in different parts of the scalp, and (3) see a good doctor who specializes in this field. With all of that done, you can be confident that you have done everything you need to do to make a proper diagnosis and commence treatment. Hair may or may not regrow with drugs like minoxidil and finasteride.


2019-03-26 18:25:46How do I make the proper diagnosis for hair loss?

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How Do I Know My Surgeon Has My Best Interests in Mind?

First of all, I’m a huge fan of your blog, it helped me a lot.

I visited a surgeon a year ago and he said he would do the surgery for me, but finally i did not have it done. I’m 24 and I haven’t noticed any hair loss for a year or so. I’m only balding in the front and it’s not too bad either.

I’m thinking of doing it now. But I read here that it’s usually not suggested to have it done at this age. Does usually mean that there are exceptions and occasionally you have patients at this age? How do I know my surgeon has my best interest? I actually do trust him. He is a member of ISHRS and seems very trustworthy. He said he usually doesn’t do it for young people, but that I have a lot of hair in the donor area and that since my hair is bright and curly, it’s easy to hide the balding.

We put together this post to help people like you to select a doctor: Selecting a Hair Transplant Doctor. You have to apply judgment in filtering out the variables discussed in this reference.

At 24 years old, you are at the marginal edge for doing hair transplants. Ask yourself — what is the rush? Is it bothering you enough to do something about it now or would waiting another year help you make the decision?

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How do I know if my donor area will look bad after FUE?

Basically from what I’ve seen discussed, when people get hair transplants, they move hair from the sides/back of head to the top. This sometimes leads to scarring, so what people do is the keep the sides/back a bit longer to conceal it. If i were to get a hair transplant would I still be able to get skinfade haircuts like this or would I be required to keep the sides/back long due to scarring or any other reason

The answer to that question is: (1) depends upon your donor density, the higher it is, the less the problem, (2) it depends upon hair thickness, the higher it is, the less the problem, (3) it depends upon how many FUE grafts were taken and transplanted and (4) it depends upon your hair length, the longer it is, the less will be the problem.


2020-03-02 12:42:25How do I know if my donor area will look bad after FUE?

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How Do I Know If I Have Telogen Effluvium?

I am a male in my early 20’s and I just came across your website. I have been on propecia for maybe 3 years and I have a feeling it is loosing it’s power. More so in the front of my scalp. What is another option? I received a book from a dermatologist and in it he lists some other medications. I don’t have the list handy but I would like to send you the list so you can let me know what you think.

I want to know about telogen effluvium. How do you know if you have it or if you are going bald? I read on the net that for telogen effluvium there is an overall thinning of the scalp but not baldness and that the hair comes back. But how long before the hair comes back? I am guessing if the hair doesn’t come back within a year then you are going bald I guess.

congrats on the site once again. Really helpfull.

It would be hard to judge about the efficacy of Propecia. You don’t know how you would look if you were not taking it. It is true that some patients experience better results than others, but your hair loss may get even worse if you stop taking it now (by catching up to the point of loss you would have experienced if you’d never taken it at all).

As discussed here before, the effect of Propecia on the frontal area is not completely studied. Current studies on Propecia indicate good result on crown and back of scalp. Other options are minoxidil and hair transplantation. Propecia and minoxidil are the only FDA approved medications that should be used for treatment of hair loss.

Human hair is in growth or anagen phase most of the time (between 3-6 years), and following that enters to a resting or telogen phase (about 3-6 months). The hair loss that we experience on a daily basis is due to shedding of hairs that are going into telogen phase (10% of our hair population at any one time). Telogen effluvium is triggered when a physiologic stress or hormonal changes cause a large number of hairs to enter to telogen phase at one time. Telogen effluvium is characterized by diffuse hair shedding. It is usually caused by a metabolic or hormonal imbalance or medications. Typically, recovery occurs within 6 months without any treatment. If your hair didn’t come back after 6 months, you should see a dermatologist for further evaluation and to rule out the other causes of hair loss.

At your age, with frontal balding, I would expect that you have genetic hair loss. The diagnosis is made by mapping out your scalp hair for miniaturization. This will show regional miniaturization weighted to the frontal area as you are describing. If the diagnosis is telogen effluvium, it will not show that pattern and it will be more generalized beyond the frontal area into the permanent zone.


2006-11-27 14:54:19How Do I Know If I Have Telogen Effluvium?

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How Do I Know I Really Got All the Grafts I Paid For?

Hello doctor,
I am 22 year old and i had a hair transplant yesterday. I was told by my surgeon that 2560 grafts have been implanted. My question is how do i know if 2560 have been planted or not? Thanks

As the doctor’s staff are preparing the grafts, there should be accounting sheets that allow the technicians to count and sort the grafts by the number of hairs in each graft. Ask your doctor to show you the sheet and the doctor should be easily willing to do this.

While you do have to have some level of trust in the surgeon and his staff, these accounting sheets will show that the number of grafts, once counted and sorted, have been reviewed and prepared by a large staff of people.

It’s rather sad that a day after your surgery you are having trust issues with your doctor.


2013-12-06 07:25:49How Do I Know I Really Got All the Grafts I Paid For?