Is my hair will grow back in the donor area? I had FUE 4000 grafts 45 days ago. (photo)

Question

I had FUE 4000 grafts 45 days ago , i attached a picture of my donor area , I am so furstrated , i have pataches Please advise

Michael Vories, MD · Answer

Hopefully this is a case of temporary shock loss in the donor area, as opposed to over-harvesting. Often photos of the area immediately after the procedure could help in this determination. Your clinic should have these.

Jae Pak, MD · Answer

4500 graft FUE is a very high number.  You may be experiencing shock hair loss or donor depletion. You may have to wait 6 to 12 months to see if your donor area will recover.

David Deutsch, MD · Answer

It is difficult to determine based on just a photo,but I am concerned that this represents an overharvested donor area.4000 grafts is an extremely large number to harvest in one session.I would suggest giving it a few more months and if there is no improvement than follow up with your surgeon.Applying Minoxidil to the area might help with any potential "shock loss".

Jeffrey S. Williams, DO, FACOS · Answer

Thanks for the question.
It is difficult to comment thoroughly from the picture provided, but there are multiple reasons to have patches post-transplant. The most likely culprit is shock loss.  Shock loss is common and typically transient.  PRP injections and Light therapy can help prevent this. But there are also technical reasons to have patches.  It would be good to know how densely your grafts were placed (for instance, over how big of an area were the grafts placed).  When doing transplant, it is important to place the grafts such that they have sufficient space between them to insure good blood flow to the grafted hair.  For instance, if I place grafts too closely to one another (densely pack), then the grafts may be starving each other for blood supply and as a result some may fail. Apart from these, there are other reasons such as strenuous activity immediately after transplant.  This  can cause the follicles to swell and fail.  Other reasons such as smoking can also affect the the follicle.

Matt Tahsini, MD · Answer

Thank you for the post. Little difficult to judge from one photo. It can either be of 2 things, Shock Loss and or over-harvesting. If it is shock-loss, then it will resolve within 4 to 8 months..... Applying Minoxidil on that area, should also be of help. Best wishes.

Allan J. Parungao, MD · Answer

Your picture is alarming. It warrants a follow up, in person, with your surgeon. It could be over harvested. It could be shock loss, which is generally temporary. It's really not possible to make a diagnosis via picture on the internet, so go see your surgeon and have that talk. Good luck with this.

William Rassman, MD (retired) · Answer

You may have been overharvested or just developed shock loss of the donor area which usually will reverse in 3-8 months. Go back and speak with your doctor about this

Is my hair will grow back in the donor area? I had FUE 4000 grafts 45 days ago. (photo)

Answers (7)

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