Is my transplant a failure ?

[Law]

Hi board.

I'm living in France and recently had a FUE transplant. I'm now very anxious about the results, thinking about the transplanted hairs being too spaced. Looks indeed poorly dense.

Please any expert here, could you tell me frankly what do you think about it.

I'd like to mention that we agreed in the pre-op consultation that transplants will be grafted inside the recessive part. I can see now that all transplants are very peripherical. I'll complain to the doctor next week as the formal invoice do mentionned "hairline + golfs + recessive parts". No reason to left the work incomplete.

Thank you.

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/685/72671039.jpg/

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[Spex]

Hi there,

Impossible to say if its a failure as its not grown in yet. Any pre op pics ?

In my honest opinion the density is way off, far to low. It appears to me that this will result (if it grows out) as a sparse result in need of refinement and further work.

How many grafts did you have and who was the surgeon ?

SPEX

[Tracy C]

Hi Law,

It is way too soon to tell. It takes 12 to 18 months before you really know. I think it is going to look nice.

Take care,

Tracy

[Law]

F..ck. I was in a famous plastic surgery clinic here in Paris. It has been done by a "full auto FUE" which is a new patented method able to keep "100% of the grafts intact" during the prelevment. As this method is automatised it's much cheaper than conventionnal FUE, I paid 3900€.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggds3yby7uM&feature=player_embedded

The punch are 0.8, 1, 1.25, or 1.4 mm

I don't know what was the punch used, could it be the cause ?

The clinic director is a good salesman often in tv shows. I've been operated by someone of the clinic, he did not looked too experienced.

During the pre-op consultation I asked about the density, the doctor said the grafts "cannot keep in place if they're too close". Well I sincerely regret not to have checke more the internet before.

I fixed a new consultation next monday, what can I object in your opinion ? I'll ask to double the density.

[Law]

Hi Law,

It is way too soon to tell. It takes 12 to 18 months before you really know. I think it is going to look nice.

Take care,

Tracy

Thank you Tracy.

Anyway I think I'm going to meet a more experienced and trusted surgeon here. Only discussing about the work that has been done on my head.

Comparing the photos on the internet it seems indeed that the grafts density is quite low.

[topcat]

Law those punch size sound awfully large. How many grafts were planted and how many hairs per graft? Measure the area that was worked on and divide it by the total hair count. Very simple just get a pen and paper. What was your original density just behind the area worked on and how does it compare to this number? Was there any native hair in the area worked on?

Why in the world would you be willing to now make a second mistake in judgment and go back to the same clinic?

[Law]

Law those punch size sound awfully large. How many grafts were planted and how many hairs per graft? Measure the area that was worked on and divide it by the total hair count. Very simple just get a pen and paper. What was your original density just behind the area worked on and how does it compare to this number? Was there any native hair in the area worked on?

Why in the world would you be willing to now make a second mistake in judgment and go back to the same clinic?

What is the ideal punch size ?

He told me there's about 500 grafts. There's 1, 2 or 3 hairs per graft. It don't saw him sort them, not sure the grafts has been sorted. I spoked with a woman in the pre-op consult who said the 1 hair grafts should be put on the very borer of the hairline while the 2-3-4 should much behind.

But I feel like the grafts hasn't been sorted. This clinic really looks like a supermarket, people go in, out..

I sent a complaint e-mail to the director of the clinic, he said I should come back in 6 months and we'll see if more transplants should be made (WITHOUT CHARGE for me).

But if the punch they use is too big, it can only be worse right ?

Sh.t I'm such a fool. I better educate myself first before trusting in people.

[Tracy C]

Anyway I think I'm going to meet a more experienced and trusted surgeon here. Only discussing about the work that has been done on my head.

Hi Law,

There is certainly no harm in getting professional opinions. However, please don't go for additional work until the grafts you have had planted have had time to heal. I don't think your situation is as bad as you fear it may be, it's too soon to tell - but if you do something rash you could make it turn out badly. If you feel you have been wronged, by all means pursue it - but don't risk losing what you have gained thus far. Even if it isn't as much as you wanted. You can always take corrective action after you heal.

[Law]

Hi board.

Facing my complaints the doc said he can add more grafts free of charge.

I would like to ask if they can double the density and penetrate into the slightly recessive parts.

I'm such a newbie in the hair transplant field so I could be missing something in my reasoning.

Is the "punch" in relation to the donor AND the transplant zone ? Theorically what could restrain them to achieve a good density ? It is obvious to me that the density is actually too low.

In pre-op consult the intendant said it is not technically possible to transplant the grafts too close form each other. Saying "it will not stay in place".

Is this a lie or something based on facts ?
I'll ask to double density.

Like Tracy suggested, I'll give one month to my grafts to heal. I'm a good healer so speaking. I think it will be enough.

My transplanted zones are quite small and I paid the full price, there's no reason to not add more.

I'm sorry if I sound annoying but this is on my head.
Id appreciate any advises and answer to my questions.

Thanks.

[mattj]

The larger of the punch sizes do seem very large. Typically, FUE surgeons use tools of below 1mm in size. This doesn't spell disaster, though. I mean, if anything a larger punch will be less likely to damage the follicle. FUE surgeons have to be extra skilled to remove the grafts without damaging them with the small extraction tools.

I'm not sure what your surgeon meant by the grafts not keeping in place if they are too close...

I agree with Spex that the result will probably be quite thin, and the number of grafts you received does seem low for the area treated. None of this means that you are in a terrible position, though. You might end up looking for another procedure to add density but you haven't been butchered.

I do think that the price you paid was pretty steep for only 500 grafts

[Law]

Thanks for sharing your opinion.
I sure haven't been butchered but I expected more. 3900€ is an investment for me.

I try to understand the reason of that. Is that pure stinginess or is there something, technically speaking, who could restrain them to densify the zone ?!

Right now I feel like they wasted the space on my head. It's like when you have 3 parking's places. When two cars do not park properly the third place become unusable and is wasted.

I'll speak with them on monday to see what can be done. If nothing I'll just take my check back and tear them off. I paid an account already (1/3 price), they did nothing on my head but an account. Also the pre-op quotation invoice mentionned "recessive parts", it obviously hasn't been done. Work is incomplete so why should I pay.

[CriticalObserver]

Hi Law,

First off, I would say don't panic.

The hairline the grafts were placed in looks spot on - the work looks clean enough - just as the other posters have said, it isn't very dense.

There is a reason for this, and it's the same reason that hair transplants of old were always 'pluggy' and spaced wide apart - the graft is injected using a 'punch' rather than a 'slice'. I recently met with Dr Feriduni and he showed me the difference between using a more refined modern (manual) blade and an old type. Wheras you can slice through a piece of paper 50+ times with the new blade, the old one leaves 'bumps' - like when you push a pen tip through paper.

I suspect that the automated equipment which was used on you was similar to this, preventing the grafts from being placed too close together.

HOWEVER, as was the case in the olden days, this is why you were often asked to come back in for a second procedure (perhaps a year later)- because the area inbetween the grafts can still be used for placement of more hair - you haven't 'used' up your car parking spaces. It's just that your surgeon was delivering your normal sized car using a lorry which is 2 spaces wide - so he couldn't get a car in every slot.

My advice to you, is, don't worry at all. Let it all grow out for 1 year - and see if you're happy with the result. If not, head over to Belgium, meet up with Dr Feriduni and Dr Bisanga and ask them to thicken the hairline up. It would be a relatively easy job for them and you'll have the thickness you wanted.

Cheers and good luck!

[mattj]

You aren't being stingy at all. 3900 Euro is a lot of money. It does amount to over $10 per graft, though, so it's not exactly good value for money.

It sounds like your surgeon will work with you on giving you the result you hoped for, so that's good. However, you should leave it a while before going back and having more grafts placed in the same area.

[CriticalObserver]

Just to add to the above, I meant 50 slices per sq cm. If you try doing that with a small pen tip you'll end up with a big sq cm hole. The doctor was probably being responsible not playing your grafts too close together given the equipment he was using.

In terms of 'recessive parts' - this does mean the areas of your head which have already receded - the bits the surgeon did look to be the right areas.

While you may want him to go further back into your thinning area, many top surgeons would refuse to do this because you risk losing or accelerating the loss of your native hair - which is already going through some miniaturization and could suffer greatly from 'shock loss'.

To answer your question - yes, the punch is used in both the donor and the recipient area.

[topcat]

Law you have to wait at least 1 year before doing anything. And going back because something is free is not necessarily a good idea.