FUE 3000 grafts almost 8 weeks ago: my donor area looks thin, was is over harvested? (Photos)

Question

I am worried about my donor area, as it looks really thin, and bad now. Its been 8 weeks, and donor area still stands out visibly.

Michael Vories, MD · Answer

One of two things has occurred: either the donor area has been over-harvested, or some of the existing donor hair has gone into temporary shock loss (which makes it appear over-harvested). If the later is the case, then the donor area should begin to improve over the next few months.

Jae Pak, MD · Answer

Your donor area will always look "thinner" proportionate to the number of hairs taken out after a FUE harvesting surgery.  The hairs will NOT grow back from the donor area (where it was taken).

Allan J. Parungao, MD · Answer

Maybe. You need to give it time to heal/recover.  As you know, there is certainly a risk of being over-harvested with this procedure, but you will have a better idea of where you stand around month 6.  In the meantime, explore different hairstyles to enhance what you have .  Best of luck to you.

Matt Tahsini, MD · Answer

Hello, good question. I understand your concern but I think you need to be patient for a while longer. It’s only been 8 weeks and it could look thin for a bit longer. Wait a couple of more months and see how it looks. If you are not satisfied at that point I suggest making an appointment with your doctor to discuss your options.

Parsa Mohebi, MD, FISHRS · Answer

Overharvesting is a relative term. In many patients we want to harvest very aggressively to lower the density of a very think donor area. Others may not need or tolerate as much. As I have published (FUE for total evenness), as long as the evenness is there the donor looks reasonable. If harvesting is limited to only one band with keeping the neighboring areas intact our eyes starts seeing pattern. That is the effect of a sharp decline in density. To prevent that the edges of the donor should be tapered and featured as we remove grafts. In your situation that you see this after one procedure, you can see improvement if you need future hair transplant as long as hair is taken diffusely from the other (non-previously harvested) areas of donor zone.

Sagar Patel, MD · Answer

Overall, give it time and see where you end up. Once our hair has grown out...which it looks like it has, see if there is patchiness or thinness that bothers you. The best solution is to get scalp micropigmentation which will help mask the issue. When it comes to harvesting, scientific calculations using density measurements to prevent over harvesting should be taken. If this was your first transplant I would be surprised if it was overharvested .

Fotis Gkaragkounis, · Answer

The thinning areas of concern appear to be directly from where hair was extracted from. 3000 grafts on the average donor would not normally thin it out too much. As long as the harvesting was spread and the transection was kept to a minimum.  It could be shockloss of your native hair and that can return over the coming months.

FUE 3000 grafts almost 8 weeks ago: my donor area looks thin, was is over harvested? (Photos)

Answers (7)

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