What Are My Options After 2 Failed Hair Transplants?

What are my options after 2 failed procedures?

I had hair transplant surgery around 2007 using strip form back of head method, by what I thought was a credible Dr. from reviews online, experience level etc…Paid alot of money for hundreds of graft and got very little result. In fact only a few strands grew in at the hairline and temples grew in. None of the grafts in the crown area, where he said he really “packed them in” grew. He kept saying “you had beautiful grafts” and seemed dumbfounded as to why they didn’t grow.

After the salesperson tried to convince me that there was something wrong with me, the Dr. finally admitted that it was a failed procedure and agreed to do another one at no cost, This time saying he was going to try less grafts in that area hoping for better blood circulation. Well that also yielded very little growth. Although after about a year and half, filled in a little,but very little. Which shows me that there was no scalp biopsy necessary as they initially tried to say there was something wrong with me. I did get some growth. If there was a problem with my scalp, wouldn’t I have gotten 0 growth??

Overall I consider my decision to be a poor one because now i cannot even shave my head or wear a low style because of this huge scar (even wider now from 2 procedures) on the back of my head.

So my question is a two part question. Is a future transplant out of the question for me or could it be that this Dr and staff blew it twice? It should be noted that I am of mixed race(black and white) 38 years old,(34 at time of procedures), with more of wave than a curl to my hair, not real kinky but thick and puffy and coarse when it grows long on back and sides. The Dr did say they had experience in afro american hair types and seemed very confident during consultation with my donor area and being able to handle my hair type

Any insight as to what might of went wrong? The balding area was pretty much completely bald so I am not seeing native area that has thinned out after surgery, but the area that never fully grew in after 2 procedures.

Also is it possible that 4-5 year later that some of those graft may still have ability to grow?? With the aid of a product like Nioxin??

Thanks in advance for your answers

That is one hell of a story! If that happened to one of my patients, I would want to get a biopsy of his scalp, looking for a disease like alopecia areata that would cause rejection of the hair grafts. Unfortunately, your story is far more common than our profession would care to admit. Doctors who lack competence often use salesmen to push hair transplants beyond their abilities to perform it well.

One of the reasons that I started BaldingBlog is to have a place to let people share their stories. Your situation is quite unfortunate. For those that are shopping around for a doctor, remember that it is critically important to have thorough research. I’ve written a “how to” guide of sorts for selecting your hair transplant doctor.

As for your options, I think you should see a doctor who specializes in fixing screw-ups. The grafts should be growing, and if there’s nothing there after 4 or 5 years, I wouldn’t expect them to suddenly appear. I would be happy to give you my opinion, but I would have to see you. I’m in Los Angeles… but as you are in the Northeastern United States, consider a visit to Dr. Robert Bernstein for an opinion. Best of luck to you.