My Hair Transplant Is Growing At an Unnatural Angle (with Photo)

Hello Dr. Rassman,

Thank you so much for the service you provide the public with this site. It must be alot of extra uncompensated work for you, I appreciate it.

I got a 1300 hair graft about 9 months ago to the area that I roughly outlined in red (on both sides of my head of course, I am only showing one side). As you can see it is growing at nearly a 90 degree angle on my head whereas my natural hair falls forward. Even though I cut my hair at the same length, the transplanted area looks twice as long because it is growing directly ‘up’. My two questions are this: 1. Is this a lack of skill on the doctors part that it is growing at an unnatural angle? and 2) if I keep trying to comb it forward can you gradually adjust the natural angle of the hair so that it matches with the rest of my hair as to the angle that it grows (or will the transplanted area permanently be at odds with my natural hair growth angle)?

My doctor recommends a second procedure because as you can see the transplanted area looks quite thin. I am 26, do you see any concerns with having a second procedure done with this doctor, or do you sense a lack of skill and I should look elsewhere? I have minor thinning in the crown area as well, but I do not plan on transplanting anything to that area. I have been on propecia for 9 months, and while it has not totally regrown the crown area, I am hoping that it will prevent further loss in that area.

Many thanks, and feel free to post the picture.

Thank you for permission to post your photo. Please click the photo to enlarge.

You are correct. It seems your hair was transplanted at different angle than your native hair. The surgeon planning for the correct angle and direction of hair is a very important factor in a hair transplant procedure. Unfortunately, this is very difficult to correct and relatively impossible to reverse. Your transplanted hair will always grow in that unnatural direction. One of your options is to have another transplant procedure and make sure that the new transplants are in the correct direction to “blend” in with your hair.

With respect to a second surgery with the same doctor, you need to be able to trust the doctor before having any procedure. Doctors are human beings and they can make mistakes or misjudge the many decisions that are before them in a treatment plan. If you and your doctor have a good trusting relationship, I am sure he/she will see the difference in angle and your concerns and will be more than happy to accommodate accordingly. The key here is to directly discuss this with your doctor first, and then make decisions on the value of the doctor/patient relationship.