Aproximately how many grafts will I need? (Photo)

Dear Luiswww,Thank you for writing in with your question. One of the things to keep in mind when looking to restore your hair is that there are non-surgical options to address hair loss, that generally work best to actually regrow hair in areas that are lost in young men like yourself. It may be worth spending 12 months using these therapies prior to a hair restoration. Things like low level laser therapy (LLLT), platelet-rich plasma with ACell (PRP with ACell) and finasteride can be effective in both slowing the rate of hair loss, and in some cases, especially in patients under the age of about 35, the miniaturization process that results from male pattern hair loss can appear to be reversed, and the hair can literally grow back and become thicker.That being said, it when approaching hair loss in a man your age, prevention must be a part of the picture. Hair loss is like tooth decay in that it’s progressive. A hair restoration surgery will fill in lost areas, but does nothing to prevent the further recession and hair loss in the future. It would not make sense to undergo a hair restoration surgery and not think about slowing down or halting the progression of the hair loss, or else you’re setting yourself up for many more surgeries in your lifetime than is needed. You’re only 25, and you have decades of living to enjoy, and decades of hair loss to endure. Today I performed a surgery on a person who has had 6 previous surgeries. That’s a lot of hair restoration surgery. Hair is a finite resource; you’re born with roughly 100,000 hair follicles, and like fingers, you’re not going to grow any more. Any regrowth that appears to take place with conservative, non-surgical measures is really just a rejuvenation of the existing hair follicles on your scalp. The non-surgical treatments are not as important for older patients. For instance, if you were 65 years old with this same hair loss pattern, then the emphasis on prevention would not be as important, as typically there are not decades and decades of life left to live, and so it is relatively less important. Your youth dictates an increased importance on engaging with one or more therapies to slow down the progression of hair loss. Keep in mind that there is no cure for hair loss, and so using more than one therapy to try to slow the loss is indicated, as the different therapies work by different mechanisms, and they are complementary to each other. In terms of your original question about the number of grafts, that would depend on how much you’d like to lower your hairline in the areas of loss, which would require a virtual or in-person consultation with an expert. Somewhere in the range of 600 to 1200 grafts is indicated, in my opinion. I hope this information is helpful to you.

How many grafts you may need depends on YOUR goals.  You need an examination by a doctor for a clear diagnosis or understanding of possible future hair loss.  You also need to have a clear goal of how low and how dense you want your hair to look like.  What does a straight hair line mean? These are the basic information you and your doctor need to figure out if your goals are achievable.  You can get an estimate based on the aforementioned factors.

 If I were you I would wait a few years before starting. In the past 35 years I've seen many patients like you who have had grafts placed only to end up with not enough hair to finish the job. See a very experienced surgeon and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different ways of fixing your problem besides hair transplants.

It is best to wait until you are at least a few years older
prior to undergoing a hair transplant procedure. This will give your physician a better
understanding of your hair loss pattern, and ultimately, will give you a better
outcome. At this time, medical treatment
is preferred to maintain and thicken your existing hair. You should discuss the
medical options with your local physician.

At 25 and taking into account your current hairline, you're probably not a great candidate for surgery. Medical options are critical to consider. A flat hairline is rarely every a goal to aim for. It's important to sit down with a hair restoration physician to understand the various medical options including minoxidil, finasteride, laser and PRP.Together with your doctor plan out the next 75 years of your hair - taking into account best case scenarios and worst case scenarios. You'll quickly come to see that adjusting your hairline right now is probably not a good idea.

FUE is a great way to restore temple hair loss.  The hair in the temples, once lost, generally doesn't respond to medical therapy well.  Therefore hair transplant becomes the best option.  Given your age however, it is equally important to slow down the rate of hair loss.  Traditional medications such as minoxidil and finasteride are helpful in this regard, but cellular therapy has now been demonstrated to be successful in this regard.  Therefore, PRP would be something else to consider right away.  FUE can be done at your age with little risk, assuming you are aggressive about treating any further progression. Estimates for grafts can vary but on average about 400-500 grafts for either temple is required to give excellent density.  I would recommend PRP and then FUE and close follow up.  You also have the option of cellular therapy and transplant at once.  Goto regenerismedical and look up hair for more info. Best, Dr. Wetler

The question is not how many grafts you would need, but whether it would be wise for you to have a hair transplant at your age for a minimally receding hairline and with so much potential for ongoing hair loss over the years. I think it is safe to say that most experienced, full-time hair transplant surgeons would discourage a 25-year-old from trying to re-create the hairline he had at 18. Rather, it would make sense for you to focus on maintaining the hair you have through medical treatment – some combination of Propecia (finasteride) and/or Rogaine (minoxidil) and/or low level laser therapy (LLLT). A seasoned hair transplant surgeon who has been around long enough to have some perspective, and who is not simply interested in drilling for dollars, could monitor your status and advise you over the next few years. 

A lot of young men are in your same position, wondering whether hair transplant is the right move.  The answer is not one you can really get from an online forum like this one.  It is best if you go to see a doctor who specializes in hair in your area to give you a definitive hair loss diagnosis.  Once you have a diagnosis, then you can start to look at treatments - but don't skip the diagnosis part!Medical treatments that WORK include finasteride, minoxidil, some shampoos, and low level light therapy.  If you have genetic hair loss TRY THESE FIRST!At your age you might just be getting a "mature hairline."  Most men in their 20s can remember 18 a lot more easily than they can imagine being 30 or 40 (God Forbid!).  So it is important to choose a physician who recognizes this!Good luck!

How many grafts will I need, you ask. First, get a good doctor to make the diagnosis of genetic hair loss. If that diagnosis is made, then the drug finasteride is a good starting point which will be discussed with your doctor. Your examination will determine the amount of transplant to achieve your goals and to answer the question, I would advise you to look at our gallery to identify one out of 1000 patients that had hair transplants done and see what pattern they had and how many grafts it took to fill the area (see below in the web reference).