Do You Think I Should Get An Fue At This Point?

[MeanArchive]

Like a lot of other gents, I'm looking for honest feedback from the crowd on what I ought to do. So far, I've only gotten feedback from hair transplant clinics. I haven't asked any people that know me. I think they would just tell me not to get a transplant, because that is the nice thing to say.

Anyway, my question is, does it make sense for me to get an FUE hair transplant now? I am 36, almost 37. I've lost hair fairly slowly since 28. I am on Minoxidil. Had side effects with Finasteride and am not going to go back to it.

I mainly am motivated by the loss on my crown. You can see I have some loss in the front, but I can cover it up when I comb my hair. But as long as I'm getting the crown done, I think I met as well do the front at the same time. Surgeons have told me that they could do both areas in the same session.

 

[Murkey Thumb]

You have to consider how your hairloss is likely to progress. It you cant take finasteride, like me, you need to find another DHT blocker like RU or S5 cream. At your stage if you cant get your hair loss stabilized, a transplant at your early stage will eventually look like an pacific island in a sea of bald.

 

[MeanArchive]

Thanks for the comment, Murkey Thumb. That is a concern.

I don't know anything about RU or S5 cream but it seems to me that any DHT blocker would have the same side effects as finasteride.

My loss is stable in the sense that it's quite slow. Surgeons have told me it would likely be 10 years before I would "need" another transplant, which seems right to me.

I was also told that even if I didn't get one, the loss pattern I would get in the future would look natural. That seems less likely. I can see having hair in the front while the middle goes away. But I do worry about the hair loss in the back expanding while the crown itself has transplanted hair...

 

[shookwun]

Look like a good candidate, in my opinion.

 

[Murkey Thumb]

Thanks for the comment, Murkey Thumb. That is a concern.

I don't know anything about RU or S5 cream but it seems to me that any DHT blocker would have the same side effects as finasteride.

My loss is stable in the sense that it's quite slow. Surgeons have told me it would likely be 10 years before I would "need" another transplant, which seems right to me.

I was also told that even if I didn't get one, the loss pattern I would get in the future would look natural. That seems less likely. I can see having hair in the front while the middle goes away. But I do worry about the hair loss in the back expanding while the crown itself has transplanted hair...

No they work differently. Unfortunately finasteride because you ingest it affects more than your hair follicle. Both S5 & RU are topicals so don't enter the blood steam and typically will stay local to the scalp like minoxidil does. I think you need to go down this route first to see if you can get regrowth as minixodil alone wont keep your hair in good shape.

A transplant can take up to 6 months to show any cosmetic change and a year to achieve full growth its worth while taking 3 months to see if you can stabilize your hairloss(you may even gain hair).

I had a small FUE of 1000 graphs 5 years ago to create my hair line but without the DHT blockers it looks rubbish. The hair goes thin and a lot disappear.

 

[MeanArchive]

Thanks again Murkey Thumb. Did S5 and RU give you re-growth or just stabilisation?

 

[rclark]

Like a lot of other gents, I'm looking for honest feedback from the crowd on what I ought to do. So far, I've only gotten feedback from hair transplant clinics. I haven't asked any people that know me. I think they would just tell me not to get a transplant, because that is the nice thing to say.

Anyway, my question is, does it make sense for me to get an FUE hair transplant now? I am 36, almost 37. I've lost hair fairly slowly since 28. I am on Minoxidil. Had side effects with Finasteride and am not going to go back to it.

I mainly am motivated by the loss on my crown. You can see I have some loss in the front, but I can cover it up when I comb my hair. But as long as I'm getting the crown done, I think I met as well do the front at the same time. Surgeons have told me that they could do both areas in the same session.

You need to take doctor prescribed hair medication, because that would honestly make a difference,
and you could save your vertex hair.

Topical Finasteride/Minoxidil has been studied to be very good with few sexual side effects.

I would recommend hopping on it now, because you're right, you do have good hair for your age.

And your hair is definitely saveable, if you use an intense medical treatment. There are a lot of good ones
out there.

I recommend use multiple vendors, and stick with the one your happy with. But have a doctor prescribe it to you,
so you can ensure it has to meet standards.

 

[Murkey Thumb]

Thanks again Murkey Thumb. Did S5 and RU give you re-growth or just stabilisation?

The S5 didn't do much as its fairly weak but its easy to put on and is non toxic. In early stage hair loss like yours it would certainly help if you used S5 at bed time and a minoxodil first thing in the morning. I takes about 3-6 months before you would know for sure.

I use the RU because after 2 years of been on finasteride I just couldn't take the sides any more. I tried to live with them but I just wasn't myself so I have been on the RU for around 7 weeks. I use the 5% premixed stuff it wasn't cheap but seems to last well (I'm still on the first 60ml bottle)! You have to be a bit more cautious with it though: I wear surgical gloves when I apply and normally either apply the minoxidil on top an hour later or wash it off 1-2 hours later. It dries within 3-4 minutes but leaves a slight residue.

The sides from Finasteride have almost disappeared entirely and so far have not experienced any from the RU. I did have a shed when I first transitioned from finasteride to RU but I can clearly see what appears to be lots of small hairs appearing. I just hope that they will grow to be terminal hairs because that would take me back a couple of Norward scales. So far I am happy with the RU & Minoxidil regime and am planning on showing results after another 6 weeks(I have base line pics) However for you I would try the S5 night time and 5% minoxidil foam in the morning give it 3 months and take more pictures to see if there is any noticeable difference. If that doesn't work then perhaps try the RU.

Good luck!

 

[MeanArchive]

You need to take doctor prescribed hair medication, because that would honestly make a difference,
and you could save your vertex hair.

Topical Finasteride/Minoxidil has been studied to be very good with few sexual side effects.

I would recommend hopping on it now, because you're right, you do have good hair for your age.

And your hair is definitely saveable, if you use an intense medical treatment. There are a lot of good ones
out there.

I recommend use multiple vendors, and stick with the one your happy with. But have a doctor prescribe it to you,
so you can ensure it has to meet standards.

@rclark I tried topical finasteride. Although not as severe, I noticed some of the same sexual side effects that I had will the finasteride tablet.

 

[MeanArchive]

@Murkey Thumb - great to hear of your success on S5 so far!

Have you seen any scientific studies on spironolactone for male pattern baldness? I can't find any. I do see, at the link below, that "spironolactone is not used in men due to the risk of feminization."

"Spironolactone in dermatological treatment": https://static-content.springer.com...2597-y/MediaObjects/105_2013_2597_MO1_ESM.pdf

 

[Murkey Thumb]

@Murkey Thumb - great to hear of your success on S5 so far!

Have you seen any scientific studies on spironolactone for male pattern baldness? I can't find any. I do see, at the link below, that "spironolactone is not used in men due to the risk of feminization."

"Spironolactone in dermatological treatment": https://static-content.springer.com/esm/art:10.1007/s00105-013-2597-y/MediaObjects/105_2013_2597_MO1_ESM.pdf

I tried it for 3 months but didn't really do anything for me but I am a quiet advanced Norwood 4 so cant expect to much. Spironolactone will only feminize if taken in large quantity orally so the topical version it wont feminize at all as it stays local to the scalp. If you read some of the forums a few guys have used it orally to regain their hair without too many sides, the results are staggering going from N5 to N1 in a matter of months. Some have had sides like gyno, frequent urination and loss of hair in other areas but generally not affecting their sex lives so for a short term option if you have high testosterone levels its not a bad option.

 

[Pequod]

You might want to try a tiny dose of finasteride daily to see what amount brings on heavy side effects. I cut my pills in quarter pieces and use one a day.