Donor “Shock Loss” After Hair Transplant Surgery – Is it Common?
I feel I have suffered hair transplant “shock loss” from the actual area where the strip was taken despite it being stitched up after the op. I am not talking about the top part of the recipient or frontal area. Has anybody heard of this before?
This insightful answer was provided by Dr. William Lindsey of Reston, VA who is one of our recommended hair restoration physicians.
Shock loss in the donor area definitely can occur after surgical hair restoration. We don’t see it too often mainly because of hair covering the scar. But I have a marine we worked with about 2 months ago who, like all marines, didn’t take his valium as he is tough. This guy was a character! When I started giving him a hard time about 90% of my military patients not taking valium and then I gave him the first shot, he said “thank you sir may I have another!”. Indeed he was tough.
But I think he was nervous too. As he was fairly oozy on the first half of his strip (left side) but had calmed down and wasn’t oozy at all on the right. I recall using a bit of cautery only on 2 spots on the left. Well when he came back at 2 months, he had shaved down to almost no hair anywhere and it was clear that on the left side of his strip he had 2 areas of shock loss and on the right he had stubble growing through his scar. Unless you were looking specifically, it actually looked like he had a really wide scar on the left in those 2 areas, and you really couldn’t see but a fine line on the right. But with 2 mirrors and some pictures, I could show him that it was a nice fine line scar on the left with 2 areas of shock loss…almost certainly in my mind from that cautery. Alas if only he’d have taken a valium I think he would not have had any notable hair loss in the donor area.
But, he is one tough guy. Definitely tougher than me, and I sure would not want to be a bad guy in some cave with him on my trail.
I am proud to have him serving our country and happy to have him as a patient.
William Lindsey, M.D.
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Bill Seemiller
Associate Publisher/Editor
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