Timing of transplant

[neuromet]

I'm wondering if it's possible to get a pre-emptive transplant. I'd rather get a transplant while I haven't lost much hair, so it's not obvious that I've gotten a transplant to anyone who knew before.

If doctors can tell where minituarization is occurring, they can estimate where you'll be balding soon. Can they put the donor hair grafts in place before the balding occurs? Perhaps there is not enough space on the head? Perhaps the extra hair will look funny, or it's just too hard to predict and create a natural looking head of hair?

 

[Hiker]

While what you ask is possible, it would be unwise. The most important question you need to answer is where will I ultimately end up without a transplant, Norwood 4?, NW7, so as to determine your needs and the amount of donor you will have.

 

[neuromet]

How can I know that?

 

[Krispin]

I don't think that a preemptive hair transplant is necessarily a bad idea. If you have a generally good idea of what you'll end up as (around Norwood 5.5) then you can plan a hair transplant accordingly. The most important thing to consider is whether or not you have enough donor for satisfactory coverage; if you do, and there will still be enough donor left to cover any scars, I'd say it's not a bad idea at all, especially if you're young now and unsatisfied with your hair. The naysayers on here are at times overly pessimistic, and hence, unrealistic.

 

[Hiker]

Your father's degree of hairloss and your mother's father's hairloss, will give you an indication. The earlier you start to lose, the more likely it is your hairloss will be major. If you started losing at 18 or 21, you should probably expect that you will be at least a norwood 6 or 7.

 

[neuromet]

Thanks for the replies (sorry for the delay in my response- I've been having Internet issues at home).

I can get an idea from my father and maternal grandfather, and my older brother, and the onset of my hair loss... but I know there are differences within families. My hair seems to be going the way of my brother's and not like my father and grandfather's. Anyway, I assume this is something a hair transplant doctor could advise me on in a consultation.