Hi,

I am about 2.5 weeks post op from a 1600 FU Strip HT. I have had 800 grafts placed in the front to middle and another 800 placed in the back (bald spot area). If you want to see pictures, check out my post in the photos section.

Now the question or concern of mine: I feel that I am experiencing some shock loss in the back area where the bald spot is. Just about all the scabs are gone at this point, but a few still remain and seem more stubborn and don't want to come off. I am only massaging my scalp gently as I don't want to 'force' anything to come off, etc. If you look at the photos, a decent number of grafts were put in the back. Should I be worried about the shock loss in the back? Is the shock loss of the existing hair permanent or is it temporary? I guess I am in 'doubt' mode because of the fact that I am brand new to this. Please share your thoughts and expertise with me. Thanks.

Falc

the problem with placing grafts in and around existing hair is there is a greater risk of PERMANENT loss of those existing hairs, IF they have already begun to miniturize. In other words, if those hairs were already being affected by DHT, the "shock" may have sped up the process for those hairs. If you have some shock loss of normal terminal hairs, you can rest assured that they wil return.

Nasty thing , shock loss. I had very little with my 1st procedure, but a bunch with my second. Mostly in the frontal area though. Some of those were probably on their way out and havent come back, but most of it has.

By being on propecia for a few months before HT you decrease the odds of permanently losing hairs due to shock. Propecia helps to thicken those weaker hairs and further embeds their follicles into your scalp.

Can we see some pics.
Did you have some hair growth in the crown/baldspot or was it slick bald.
Shock loss can be due to a no. of reasons the most important being if existing hair roots are cut while making recipient sites.
But that is applicable only when transplanting hair in between existing hair growth.

Shock loss is a nasty bugger. Like onebald said, it can come as a result of cutting into existing hairs when new hairs are transplanted into "populated" areas of the scalp. Other times, it can be as simple as the shock of the procedure itself and the lost hairs will most likely grow back.

It is best not to sweat it much now. Don't let a cloud of doubt swarm over your head. At 3 or 4 months post-op you should be able to start seeing the little guys come in and at 9 months or so you will be able to safely assess the success of the procedure.

What is done is done. I wouldn't give yourself any gried over worrying until you are positive that there is definitely something to worry about.

-Robert

Hi all.

Thanks for the reply. I understand more about shock loss now. You know, I just took a few pictures, and after comparing the pictures, I think I may be overreacting. Basically, any hairs that may have disappeared are the ones that were in the bald spot anyway and were so light you couldn't even tell they were there in the first place. I am posting a few pics here for your evaluation. Does anyone see shock loss? How does it look thus far?

compare.gif (259 Kb, 112 downloads) before and after

falceros,
you look to be in fine shape. You're going to be fine!

Thanks HairBeThere! Looking at the pics myself, I feel a bit more satisfied too! Any other comments are welcome from anyone!

Hey a fellow musician! What kind of music do you play on this nice keyboard?
I wouldn't worry too much about shock loss, trust me you can't POSSIBLY have it as bad as I did... & everything went back to normal after 3 months. Patience is the key word!

If you take a look at my thread you will see that I went through a fair amount of shock loss in my recipint and donor areas. I believe that my (fanaticism?) diligence with minoxidil, finasteride, Nizoral 2%, and multi-vitamins helped stave off the worst, though.

-Robert

Robert's Thread