Hair Restoration Blog

According to a recent L.A. Times article, people in our current economy are scaling back on elective cosmetic treatments, and finding ways to negotiate costs and figuring out what’s really necessary (e.g. Botox) and what’s not (e.g. massages and body scrubs).  We have posted on Recession and hair transplant cost before.

US Hair Restoration understands that people have found themselves in challenging economic circumstances. Our goal has always been, “offering quality hair transplant for everyone”. We want to relieve the pressure on people by responding to patients’ needs for more affordable hair transplant prices.

Every year, we have a summer hair transplant special, but this year, we’re going to offer it several months in advance as part of an unprecedented and huge hair transplant cost reduction. And we promise it will be the lowest price ever for our hair transplants using our standby program.

For those who are seriously considering getting a hair restoration procedure, the best time to get one is when we have this reduced-price offer. This is a limited offer and the price might not ever be this low. Now is the time to take advantage of it.

Offering hair transplant cost discounts in our standby program helps us to fill all openings in our operating room schedules. On the other hand, for those people who can be a bit more flexible with the timing of the surgery, it helps them get a US Hair Restoration-quality hair transplant done at historically low rates, at one of our Southern California offices: Beverly Hills, Encino, and Orange County.

The bright side to the recession is that retailers and companies are offering lower-than-usual prices for their products, knowing consumers have become increasingly tight-fisted about their cash. Our earlier-than-usual summer special is our way of saying we are sensitive to our patients’ financial circumstances.

Check US Hair Restoration for more info on our hair transplant promotions.

Q:

Hey Doctor Mohebi,

I was wondering, I’m thinking about getting a hair transplant, but I’m afraid of telling my future wife and female friends that I’ve had a hair restoration. I know men may not care that much, but if I’m dating someone and eventually I tell them I’ve gotten a hair transplant, I fear that they may get turned off.

I kind of look at it like plastic surgery. I know when I meet women who has undergone a nose job, I kind of feel strange about it and think maybe that person was not happy with their looks.
To be honest, it  turns me off.

So, my question is: from your experience with patients, do they keep it a secret from others or do they not mind telling people?

A:

Today, we have capabilities we did not have 50 years ago. As a young soccer lover, I used to have the disadvantage of wearing glasses.  It was very difficult for me to stay competitive in succer team without wearing my glasses.  Every now and then, I use contact lenses to be able to put aside my glasses. I am planning to get a LASIK procedure for that as well.

If I undergo a LASIK procedure, does it make me an insecure person. Not at all. I call it using all your resources to look your best.

We do have technology that we did not have 10 years ago. I say: why not use it? A lot of people are doing it, and nobody cares if these peoples’ hair is native hair or transplanted. The point: they are not bald any more and they can be as competitive as their non bald rivals in life.

One time, I met a very beautiful woman at a party and I ended up having a conversation with her.  When I told her I do hair transplants, she told me a story about someone who proposed to her and she rejected him. She said the man was bald. But I’m not saying because he was bald that he got rejected, but because he did not do anything about it. I know the argument can be made that what the woman did is sad and superficial but, hey, looks do play a part in initial courtship, whether we would like to admit it or not. And it was her prerogative to make that decision.

My point is: Be yourself and do whatever makes your heart happy. No matter what you do with your life, there are going to be people who may not like it. It should not influence your decisions.

Q:

Thanks Dr. Mohebi,

Your input is much appreciated.  The shock loss you had mentioned has been my concern, as a few of my frontal hair seem lighter than before.  You had mentioned that the shock loss might be visible for a few weeks to months - will it be the case that after that shock loss stage, the hair will likely return back to original form?

There’s a very important question that i would like to ask you, and was thinking the it would be great for the blog to have.  Basically, when you saw my before and after picture, i feel like i changed a bit.  The “after” picture seems like i have more redness, and i’m hoping it’s not the case where the hair transplant affects the circulation (e.g., tight donor area/scalp affecting the blood flow to my head).  My surgeon told me before the procedure that i will eventually be back to the way i was before (i.e., the “before” picture), but just have a new scar and more gafted hairs.  That’s the ultimate question: would you agree that a patient who does a hair transplant will relatively return to the condition that he was before the particular sugery (w/ of course, a new scar and more hair)?  This is what keeps me up at night, thinking perhaps my scalp has worsened, or i am now more prone to lose hair.  I hope that’s not the case, and every patient should be aware about before she or he gets a hair transplant done.

Thanks again for your help.  If I see you in person at your office, I might be interested in discussing about future scar work.

A:

What is hair transplant shock loss

Some of the hair shafts that fall off due to shock loss might come back. Especially if the shock loss happens in an area with permanent hair like back of the head. However, losing hair in the frontal area because of shock loss might not be completely reversible. But, you have to understand that falling hairs are the ones that were supposed to fall off anyway and a hair transplant just accelerates the loss.

How to prevention shock loss

Again, using finasteride can significantly reduce the extent of shock loss. After surgery, in the transplanted area, the tightness should not affect the circulation of the scalp. After a few days to weeks, on the donor area, the tightness goes back to normal.

Donor scar in strip hair transplant

And to answer to your last question, I do not agree you go back to the condition before surgery with only a new scar and some more hair. What I personally do in a repeat surgery is remove the old scar; the patient at the end has only one scar that at times may be even better than the initial scar.

How to improve the appearance of the scar

I perform tricophytic closure when I think it is the final surgery that the patient may need.  Tricophytic closure is when we close scalp skin on the back in a way that hair can grow through the scar.  Tricophytic closure reduces the contrast between donor scar and surrounding areas that eventually improve the appearance of the scar, so you are not more prone to hair loss because of your hair transplant.

In some cases and when we are looking for even less visible scar, the scar may get filled with FUE into the scar in a few months from the initial surgery.

Be patient and you should be able to see results in the coming months.

Q:

Dear Dr. Mohebi,

I had the hair transplant done about 5 weeks ago.  I’m very concern with the recent hair transplant.  First of all, I thought the look of my hair was fine already.  However, I did notice there are some thinning parts and it would be good to thicken the middle a bit.

I look like a mess!  My cousin saw me and she noticed that I looked different and was wondering if I had a hair transplant done.  Ahhh!  I didn’t want it to be noticeable.  If I look at myself now, I can’t help but notice the color of my scalp and how different it looks.  Pic 3 shows a clearer look on how the transplant was done.

Is there something you can do or recommend to make it look more normal to before (it kind of looks like I have thinner hair now too)?  Also, after reading your blogs, I hear that doing the procedure would cause stress to the scalp.  I’m very concern with this also b/c I’m 27 yrs old and this is actually my 2nd procedure.  I hope this does not make me more prone to losing my original hair.  I feel like it’s all my fault that I went to this particular procedure at this time and now I am completely anal about losing my hair.  Hopefully my hair loss pattern is still the same as I was before this recent procedure.

Your input would be much appreciated.

Thanks a lot,

-

A:

The hair shafts on transplanted grafts stay in place for a few weeks after the hair transplant and since they are shorter they may be detectable, but they usually fall out and you go back to where you were before. Then you have to be patient until the transplanted hair starts to grow. I usually recommend to people like you who have long hair on the back to comb their hair forward for the first few weeks after their hair transplant and also for the time that the transplanted hair might be visible because of the short hair there or the slight pinkish discoloration of the scalp.

I cannot predict what it may look like down the road, but I do not see anything unusual for this phase after a hair transplant procedure. Some thinning in your native hair for weeks to months after a hair transplant might be seen due to shock loss. I do recommend that you be on finasteride, which can prevent shock loss (losing hair due to the stress of surgery on vulnerable hair on scalp) to some degree. Try to camouflage your transplanted area and be patient for the next few months that the new hair grows and cover the balding areas.

Previously, we posted an article in our hair restoration blog: Tax on Cosmetic Procedures. For our readers, the good news  is that there were many people who supported us in our rally against the cosmetic tax proposal. Even more good news: the current cosmetic tax proposal has been dropped (hooray!). It was the same proposal that was part of the massive health care reform bill presently being considered on the Senate floor.

But let’s keep in mind that it is quite possible the “Bo-tax” could be tacked back on before the bill’s final passage.

I say the five percent tax is insane because a very similar type of cosmetic tax has been implemented in New Jersey, with disastrous results. Tax revenues from plastic surgeons and cosmetic doctors have dipped in that state, probably because potential patients are going to doctors in surrounding states for their cosmetic surgery needs, while not having to pay as much.

In this case, we may deter those people who visit the United States every year from coming to America in order to take advantage of our top-of-the-line cosmetic procedures.

The additional tax on cosmetic procedures has lowered business profits for doctors, thus limiting the amount of tax revenue the state of New Jersey receives to pour into public institutions and not-for-profit organizations. It seems to be a no-win situation for everyday citizens, doctors, and state assemblymen and politicians who are sincerely trying to do good service for the people of their district.

Another drawback: the tax may be applicable to a broad-range of procedures that improve a person’s self-image and self-confidence. These procedures may very well end up improving a person’s depression or social anxiety, as described in our article, Psychology of Hair Transplants.

Lastly, the cosmetic surgery levy unfairly discriminates against people with congenital defects, such as bald people who are looking for a hair transplant or women seeking to rid themselves of wrinkles by using Dysport or Radiesse.

Data sources show that about 90 percent of people who are considering cosmetic-type treatment are women (source: American Society of Plastic Surgeons). These women are seeking to enhance their self-perception and to feel more comfortable in social settings and also looking to gain an edge in the workforce (studies show chances are better for more “attractive” people to get hired, to receive promotions, or to receive a higher salary).

I would like to take this time to thank all physicians, patients, and politicians who supported the drop of this proposal from the health care reform bill.

Dear Dr. Mohebi,

First of all, thanks for this great blogging avenue.  I am very thankful that this website is around.

I’m a bit concern w/ my recent hair transplant.  i’m only 27 years old, and had decided to have a 2nd hair transplant done one month ago.   i was mainly just thinning in my front side, and was convinced by my hair surgeon that i should get a 2nd hair procedure done to add thickness in the thinning front side. Please note that the sides of my front have been pretty thick already, but i did have a few thinning gaps in the top center of my scalp.  Overall, i had a total of 1500 grafts transplanted on the front and a few on the center of my scalp (crown).

Immediately after the surgery, i felt remorseful.  i realized i should’ve done more research.  It just didn’t occur to me until the day after the surgery that this procedure might cause me to lose my native hair faster.  Right now, i notice a few shock loss on the frontal thinning hair.  I don’t think the center had much (if any) shock loss, as it had pretty thick native hair already.

I was wondering, would this shock loss accelerate the affected hair to retirement stage?  Lastly, overall, do you think this hair transplant will make my native hair to thin out faster had I not done the transplant?  I recall that my hair surgeon informed me that it shouldn’t be the case, and that any thinning results would be directly from my own thinning pattern.

Please support.  Thanks in advance.

A:

Many people who undergo a hair transplant have some degree of miniaturization (thinning hair shafts) on the balding area, which indicates there is active hair loss in those areas. Miniaturized hair is when your hair has already started the process of balding. Although the process of hair loss is usually very gradual and it may take years to complete, stressor (either physical or emotional) may accelerate the loss and facilitate the process of balding in prone hair (in thinning areas).

Shock loss is losing hair in an area with significant miniaturization due to a stressor. Shock loss after hair transplants used to be common in the past. However, using finasteride (Propecia) is proven to prevent this type of hair loss after hair transplant or significantly minimize it. I usually start all my patients on finasteride a few days before their hair transplant and continue it for at least six to eight months if they do not want or cannot continue it for the rest of their lives.

In regards to whether or not this hair transplant can affect the thickness of your native hair, I cannot say without performing a miniaturization study (examining hair with a microscope to determine the rate of miniaturized hair). If you had a large number of miniaturized hair to start with, you would be running a higher chance of shock loss. The chance of shock loss is usually higher for the first hair transplant. It seems like if you were to have a lot of vulnerable hair, you would have lost them mostly at your first hair transplant surgery. I recommend that you go on finasteride as soon as possible to protect your native hair if you are not already on it.  That is all you can do at this point.

Q:

When I do look down placing more tension or pull on the tight donor area, I noticed it is also pulling my neck muscles and there is no laxity at all (compared to the right).  There is no up or down movement possible of any subcutaneous tissue or the galea at the donor site. Is this normal? If the tightness does not subside, what solution options are there?

I also understand there are recommended scalp exercises before and after HT surgeries?

Regards,

A:

It is normal to feel tension on the side that we removed the strip.  Skin needs a few weeks to get relaxed and stretches to compensate for the removed area.  Although we generally recommend scalp exercise before hair restoration surgeries with strip technique, you should avoid scalp exercise after hair transplant for the first 3 or 4 months.

I recommend that you avoid all movements that increase the tension in the area until you feel that the tension on the skin is gone.  If you put too much stretch on the back of your head in the first few months after hair transplant, you running the risk of stretching the donor scar.

Have a good weekend.

Q:

Dr. Mohebi, my next follow up appointment with you for 10 months follow up is scheduled in early January. I am very pleased with the results of my hair transplant, at the front, but, as we had thought, we may need to do some more at the back. When is a good time to do a repeat hair restoration surgery after the first one?

With all best wishes,

A:

If you need more density on the crown, you can consider another hair transplant surgery for that area anytime after 6 months from your first hair transplant. The reason you have to wait for 6 months is because at that point you should be evaluated for the growth of the grafts from your prior hair restoration surgery and donor area. All grafts should be grown at month six after your other hair transplant. So we should be able see which areas need to be covered further. Performing another hair transplant surgery may risk putting a new graft on top of an area that is supposed to grow new hair, but the hair is not visible yet.

Q:

Hey there, doc,

It’s been about three weeks since my second hair transplant in Los Angeles. As of this moment, when I bend my neck, there’s a tightness and tension on the back of my head (donor area). Can you tell me if this tightness will ever go away and be back to the way it was before my operation? I really want to be back in the gym doing my jump ropes and abs.

A:

I’d say to give it about three weeks and begin more gentle activities such as jogging, brisk walking, bike riding, or push-ups. As long as you don’t stretch that donor area by looking down (this is important), you ought to be OK.

Activities to stay away from four to six weeks after a hair transplant: wrestling, flag football, basketball, boxing, abs exercises, and surfing or boogie boarding. Make sure there isn’t much strain on the donor area. It’s sensitive and requires protection and non-contact to heal.

Remember: Activities which increase tension between the edges of the healing wound in the donor area, such as lifting barbells or weights and other exercises involving intense bending of the neck are to be avoided. You should wait at least six months for this type of exercise in order to prevent reopening of the wound or stretching and widening of the donor scar.

One time, a friend told me he was at a diversity conference and there was a man who came up to the podium to speak. He asked the audience, “what is the first thing you notice about me?” Someone yelled out, “BALDIE!” And subsequent laughter ensued (being an African American, it turned out he was hoping someone would say, “you’re black”).

Although the remark was taken as a joke, it’s unfortunate many people in our society notice physical appearances before anything else. There’s no shame whatsoever in losing one’s hair. The reality is that it’s not that person’s fault. It’s their genetic coding.

For those losing hair, there’s a socially acceptable solution: A hair transplant. Hair transplants have done wonders for all types of people, from big-name actors to prominent television sports anchors. It boosts self-confidence, makes a person feel less conspicuous in social settings, and may even increase the chance of a person landing a first date or better someone’s job prospects.

Hair transplants at US Hair Restoration are all-natural. Take a look at our hair transplant before and after photo gallery.  In a way, a hair restoration can restore your youth and help you feel at ease around people you’re meeting for the first time, making the experience of life better and more rewarding.

Much like narrowing a gap between teeth by getting braces, or correcting one’s near-sightedness by lasik eye surgery, a hair restoration can be a wonderful option for those who believe they may benefit from it.