Dear HairLossTalk,
I had a 2806 graft FUT hair transplant done about 14 months ago (6/2018) by Dr. Carlos Wesley for $15500. I created 1 other thread here about a yr ago where I discussed who and what transplant method to do. The folks here helped me with that. Now that we have results, I wanted to share that. Hopefully it helps others and I'm also curious to hear opinions.
Recovery:
Overall, not the most ideal recovery, but no critical problems. Right from the get-go, I started having a hiccup problem for a week or 2 after surgery. I was told it may be caused from the valium or prednisone. It eventually developed into wheezing. I told the doctor and received a prescription medication to calm that down. Problem solved in a couple days/weeks.
I also noticed blood on my pillow. My scar line was leaking small amount of blood and had a few bumps. Concerned me a bit due to possibility of infections. I came in a couple of times at no cost until it was solved. The nurses and doctor cleaned it and applied tiny amounts of colloidal silver. I can't remember what else was used but after 2 months, problem solved.
Shortly after, I developed eczema on my forehead, back of neck, and some parts of scalp. I've had a flareup once when I was a kid on my elbows for unknown reasons. I'm 33 now. The fact that eczema came back few months after surgery only near the surgery site, I can only guess that it's coincidence, but can't rule out that there may be relation to the surgery. Who knows. I know that's usually not the docs fault as eczema's unpredictable and doesn't happen with most patients. I suffered for about 3 months from it. Poor sleep from itching was the worst. Eventually, it mostly went away after 3 months. I'm not exactly sure what helped.
Followup
14 months in, I saw the Doctor. I expressed that while my head of hair is better than before surgery, I expected to see more. At the very least, I was hoping to not be able to see my scalp. Before surgery, I was shown a picture of great results from another patient. The doctor said my results would be similar to that. So I based my expectation off that. Dr. Wesley felt the results were better than I did. He showed me his own pictures of my hair pre-surgery and now. However, it wasn't a fair comparison which I made him aware of. For the pre-surgery photo, the hair on top of my head was combed to the sides to maximize appearance of baldness. The post surgery photo had my hair on top kept on top.
Anyways, as he felt the results were good enough, he stated he can not add more hairs on top unless he charges his prices to do so, but he was willing to give me a free mini-FUE surgery that takes about 2hrs to cover my scar line from the FUT. While that was nice to offer, I haven't gone in for that yet as I'm not worried about it for now. I care more about the hair on top. Speaking of the scar, I'm not sure how it looks as it's hard to see the back of my head, especially with long hair. Most likely fine.
So I left with telling him I'll try some topicals to get more growth, but only after the minor eczema that remains completely heals (not risking aggravation until it's gone). IF the result from the topicals is not enough, I might do another transplant. I haven't decided if with him or someone else. If anyone recommends someone who does great work at a fair price, let me know. I don't mind traveling out of NY, but hopefully somewhere that isn't too long of a ride. While glad there was an improvement, not sure I would have paid $15.5K to see some improvement with the scalp still showing. I feel I shouldn't even be thinking about topicals and another hair transplant so soon... but I am. Am I wrong or right in how I'm thinking? Dr said that my eczema and loss of sleep would cause high cortisol, which may mean I didn't have the best foundation to recover for hair growth. Even though it's been a yr, he said I should get some growth for another 6 months.
I didnt take the best pre-surgery photos but I wish I did. 1 picture's in low light.
I had a 2806 graft FUT hair transplant done about 14 months ago (6/2018) by Dr. Carlos Wesley for $15500. I created 1 other thread here about a yr ago where I discussed who and what transplant method to do. The folks here helped me with that. Now that we have results, I wanted to share that. Hopefully it helps others and I'm also curious to hear opinions.
Recovery:
Overall, not the most ideal recovery, but no critical problems. Right from the get-go, I started having a hiccup problem for a week or 2 after surgery. I was told it may be caused from the valium or prednisone. It eventually developed into wheezing. I told the doctor and received a prescription medication to calm that down. Problem solved in a couple days/weeks.
I also noticed blood on my pillow. My scar line was leaking small amount of blood and had a few bumps. Concerned me a bit due to possibility of infections. I came in a couple of times at no cost until it was solved. The nurses and doctor cleaned it and applied tiny amounts of colloidal silver. I can't remember what else was used but after 2 months, problem solved.
Shortly after, I developed eczema on my forehead, back of neck, and some parts of scalp. I've had a flareup once when I was a kid on my elbows for unknown reasons. I'm 33 now. The fact that eczema came back few months after surgery only near the surgery site, I can only guess that it's coincidence, but can't rule out that there may be relation to the surgery. Who knows. I know that's usually not the docs fault as eczema's unpredictable and doesn't happen with most patients. I suffered for about 3 months from it. Poor sleep from itching was the worst. Eventually, it mostly went away after 3 months. I'm not exactly sure what helped.
Followup
14 months in, I saw the Doctor. I expressed that while my head of hair is better than before surgery, I expected to see more. At the very least, I was hoping to not be able to see my scalp. Before surgery, I was shown a picture of great results from another patient. The doctor said my results would be similar to that. So I based my expectation off that. Dr. Wesley felt the results were better than I did. He showed me his own pictures of my hair pre-surgery and now. However, it wasn't a fair comparison which I made him aware of. For the pre-surgery photo, the hair on top of my head was combed to the sides to maximize appearance of baldness. The post surgery photo had my hair on top kept on top.
Anyways, as he felt the results were good enough, he stated he can not add more hairs on top unless he charges his prices to do so, but he was willing to give me a free mini-FUE surgery that takes about 2hrs to cover my scar line from the FUT. While that was nice to offer, I haven't gone in for that yet as I'm not worried about it for now. I care more about the hair on top. Speaking of the scar, I'm not sure how it looks as it's hard to see the back of my head, especially with long hair. Most likely fine.
So I left with telling him I'll try some topicals to get more growth, but only after the minor eczema that remains completely heals (not risking aggravation until it's gone). IF the result from the topicals is not enough, I might do another transplant. I haven't decided if with him or someone else. If anyone recommends someone who does great work at a fair price, let me know. I don't mind traveling out of NY, but hopefully somewhere that isn't too long of a ride. While glad there was an improvement, not sure I would have paid $15.5K to see some improvement with the scalp still showing. I feel I shouldn't even be thinking about topicals and another hair transplant so soon... but I am. Am I wrong or right in how I'm thinking? Dr said that my eczema and loss of sleep would cause high cortisol, which may mean I didn't have the best foundation to recover for hair growth. Even though it's been a yr, he said I should get some growth for another 6 months.
I didnt take the best pre-surgery photos but I wish I did. 1 picture's in low light.
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