Hair Transplants: Effective Hair Loss Treatment or Scam?

What would your explanation be if I told you I had a hair transplant 9 years ago, but I have less hair than I used to. My hairline has definitely receded more. All of my transplant hair is dead. Why? I would love to do something for my hair but what operation actually works? I really have to wonder if this is all a scam. The pics I see about this seem so fake. I don’t know what to believe.

It’s very unusual for hair harvested from the permanent donor sites to fall out. Normally, when hair continues to thin in the years after hair transplant surgery, it is due to continued loss of natural, non-transplanted hair. For this reason, hair restoration physicians normally recommend medically stabilizing hair loss with Propecia (finasteride) and Rogaine (minoxidil). However, if you’re sure that your transplanted hairline has receded, there are at least a couple of possible reasons that this might occur.

I can only speculate since I don’t know your hair loss history and have no photos for reference, but one possibility is that you are genetically predisposed to advanced hair loss and, 9 years ago, your donor hair was harvested from outside the permanent zone in an area that was not resistant to the effects of DHT. If your donor area is still intact and dense enough to hide your scar then this is probably not the case.

Another possibility is that the progression of your balding is due to some reason other than androgenic alopecia. There are a number of non-genetic causes of hair loss.

I can’t say whether or not you are still a candidate for surgical hair restoration. I suggest consulting with one or more of the skilled and experienced hair transplant surgeons we recommend. If you prefer, you can also schedule free online consultations with the physicians of your choice. Also be sure to check out our recommendation criteria.

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David (TakingThePlunge)
Editorial Assistant and Forum Co-Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q & A Blog.
To share ideas with other hair loss sufferers visit the hair loss forum and social community.

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