So there is a pending case coming up of BHT that I read about on one of the forums. This young man that is obviously suffering from very aggressive hair loss as a young age is contemplating going in for many thousands of body hair grafts. I’ve warned this young man of how unnatural BHT looks and never looks as natural as scalp hair. In short , body hair on the head looks like, well, body hair on the head.

Now he has posted that his doctor told him that since finasteride has shown anectdotal eveidence of slowing body hair growth that he should STOP taking finasteride else it may make the final result wind up with less overall growth. WHAT????

So effectively what finasteride is supposed to do, and does quite well, is fight further hair loss and stabilizes the hair that remains yet this doctor wants this kid to stop finasteride else it will inhibit the body hair growth on his head? I have an idea. How about not taking this gullible kid’s money and tell him to get a real hair transplant with real head hair for a natural result and not stop taking finasteride so he is locked into coming back over and over for more and more body hair so he can continue to look more and more unnatural! Mother of God!

The rest of the story from Nowpublic.com

Dr. Jörg Gerlach’s Skin Gun: Healing Burn Victims Within Days

Dr. Jörg Gerlach at teh McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine (University of Pittsburgh) has developed a “skin gun”, which sprays stem cells harvested from a burn victim which are redeployed to speed up the healing process. The effect is dramatic: serious burns are healed in days instead of months.

The skin gun looks sort of like an airbrush, or maybe something that the medical droid in Empire Strikes Back would use. The patient’s skin stem cells are held in a water solution. The turnaround time from biopsy to cell prep to spray-on: an hour and a half.

Many victims of severe burns die not from the burns themselves, but from infections that take hold during the healing process. Reducing the healing time in turn reduces the risk and rate of infection.

“Frequently patients ask us about styling options after the hair grows in from their hair transplant. Will they be able to style their hair in any fashion or will they be forced to style it in a particular way to maintain coverage and naturalness?

In general,if the transplanted hair is directed correctly the styling options will increase with higher transplant densities. At low density it is important to comb the hair in a  particular direction to maintain the hair shingling effect to bridge over bald scalp until the hairs reach the next FU at which point the hairs from that next FU will take over the coverage function. In addition lower densities will require longer length hair for coverage. However, there is a point where the hair can be too long thus making the hair appear to give less coverage. Each patient is different so it is up to the individual to find the best length to maximize coverage.

If an individual intends to part their hair through a transplanted area that was previously bald the transplanted hair density required rises dramatically. The shingling effect is largely negated here and what becomes impacted is the distance between transplanted FU’s. Generally for a part to look natural transplanted densities of 50 FU per cm2 and up are necessary. Obviously the hair characteristics such as shaft diameter, color and curl will come into play as well.

As you can see the patients expectations with regard to styling should be an important part of the pre-op consultation. With sufficient donor availability patients with ever demanding expectations can be satisfied but it is important to identify those patients who are demanding in the absence of sufficient donor. These are the patients who should be counseled more extensively to avoid later disappointment.

Victor Hasson MD”

Advil

Alka-Seltzer

Alka-Seltzer Plus

Anacin

Anaprox

Anadynos

Ansaid

A.P.C

Argesic

Arthropan liquid

Arthritis Pain Formula

Arthritis Strength

Bufferin

A.S.A

A.S.A Enseals

Ascriptin

Ascriptin A/D

Ascriptin with codeine

Ascriptin Extra Strength

Asperbuf

Aspergum

Aspirin

Atromid

Axotal

Azolid

Bayer Aspirin

Bayer Aspirin Maximum

Bayer Chrildren’s Aspirin

Bayer Children’s Cold

Bayer Time Release Aspirin

B.C. Tablets and Powder

Buff-a-Comp

Buff-a-Comp No.3

Bufferin Arthritis Strength

Bufferin Extra Strength

Bufferin with Codeine No. 3

Norgesic

Norgesic Forte

Buffets 2

Buffinol

Buf-Tabs

Butazolidin

Cams Arthritis Pain Reliever

Carisoprodol

Cheracol Capsules

Chlortrimeton

Clinoril

Conjesprin Chewable

Cope Tablets

Cosprin Tablets

CP-2 Tablets

Damason P

Darvon Compound

Darvon compound-65

Darvon N with A.S.A

Darvon with A.S.A Pulvules

Di-gesic

Disalcid

Dolobid

Dolprin

Dristan

Durasal Tablets

Easprin

Ecotin

Efficin

Elavil

Emagrin

Emprazil

Empirin with Codeine

Encaprin

Endep

Equagesic Tablets

Etrafon

Excedrin

SK-65 Compound

Stanback

Feldene

Fiorinal

Fish Oil

Flagyl

Flexeril

Four Way Cold Tablets

Gaysal–S

Gelprin

Gemnisin

Goody’s

Ibuprofen

Indocin

Indomethacin

Lanorinal

Lioresal

Lortab

Magan

Magsal

Marnal

Maximun Bayer Aspirin

Measurin

Medomen

Methcarbamol with Aspirin

Micrainin

Mobidin

Midol

Mobigesic

Momentum Muscular

Backache Formula

Motrin

Mysteclin F

Nalfon

Naprosyn

Naproxen

Neocylate

Nicobid

Revised: 11/6/02

Nuprin

Oraflex

Orudis

Pabalate-SF

Pamelor

Parnate

Pepto Bismol Tablets

Pepto Bismol Suspension

Percodan

Percodan Demi Tablets

Persantine

Persistin

Phentermine

Phenylbutazone

Ponstel

Propoxyphene compound 65

Robaxisal

Rufen

Ru-Tuss

S.A.C

Saleto

Salocal

Sine Aid

Sine- off Sinus Med.

Sinutab

Stendin

St. Joseph’s Aspirin for

children

St. Joseph’s Cold Tablets

Sulindac

Surmontil

Synalgos

Tagamet

Talwin Compound

Tenuate Dospan

Tetracycline

Tolectin

Tolmetin

Triaminicin

Triavil

Trigesic

Trilisate tablets and liquids

Uracel

Vanquish

Verin

Vibramycin

Vitamin E

Voltaren

Zomax

Zorprin

The same thing is happening in your scalp. After having thousands of tiny incisions made in your scalp the body starts to produce edema to protect itself. Some of this edema seeps out of the scalp, either through incisions or pores, and once it dries it creates a crusty by product. Sometimes this can completely cover the scalp and then when it cracks it can look like earthquake cracks in your scalp. What is even worse is that these cracks or rivulets as I call them are devoid of hair. Don’t worry, the grafts are still intact but the hair follicle was taken out when the crusties fell off. All is well and the area will fill in once the new hair begins to finally grow in four to six months.

Ancient Man Not Immune to Hair Loss

The following links open in a new window

• Bobman’s Hair Transplant Blog
  Bobman had a total of 8475 grafts in two sessions and his results are amazing. He photoblogged his results in real-time.
• NicNitro’s Hair Transplant Blog
  NicNitro had over 10,000 grafts! In two sessions at Hasson & Wong. His before and after photos are inspiring.
• Shuffle’s Hair Loss Blog
  Shuffle had 5300 grafts in one session. Check out his blog.
• Biscuit’s Hair Transplant Blog
  Biscuit had 4411 grafts in one session. His photos chronicle his transformation.
• London Lad’s Hair Transplant
  London Lad had 7761 grafts in one session. View his hair transplant results photos
• GarageLand’s Hair Transplant
  GarageLand had 4859 grafts in one session. He was nearly bald on top…not anymore!
• SoThin’s Hair Loss Blog
  SoThin was, welL, so thin. Now he is so thick!
• Evolution’s Hair Transplant Blog
  Evolution had 4300 grafts in one session. Take a look at his hair transplant blog photos. Great result!

View more hair transplant blogs.

If you’ve never had a hair transplant understand that it acts just like non-transplanted hair if the procedure was performed correctly. You cut it when it grows long, you style it every day, and you can even have highlights or dye applied to it (obviously from my photos:))

What I have learned over time however is that if you have had a large area addressed with transplanted hair there is a sweet spot so to speak regarding the length and how it positively or negatively affects the appearance of your hair. By this I mean that certain lengths make it look fuller than others. I have found that for me a medium length will make the density seem the strongest. When I cut my hair really short the results seem to be a bit thinner and when it is really long (like shown in my HT# 3 gallery) it also can appear thinner. I am not really sure why this is the case but it has been confirmed over and over as I have had my hair at drastically different lengths.

So, the lesson here is, after your results have grown in you may want to experiment with different styles to find the one that best accentuates your appearance. If it looks too thin, let it grow a bit more or cut it a bit shorter. Good luck!

They need to be consistent. They need to be in good lighting. They need to show good detail. This list of do’s and don’ts is from my own experience over the past several years of taking photos of my hair transplant progress. I hope you can learn from my experience and pass it on to others. If you see anything that may need to be updated or modified then please let me know.

1. Use the lighting from the room you are taking the photos in. Do not use the flash accessory on your camera.
2. It tends to work out better if you take your photos in your bathroom. The environment is small, the lighting is usually adequate and you have a mirror in which to judge your angles.
3. Any lighting that you have available in the room should be slightly in front of and above the area to be photographed. You never want the source of lighting to be behind the subject,(you head).
4. Place the camera on a steady support such as a bathroom counter or shelf to steady your shots. Almost all cameras come with a timer delay feature of ten seconds. Use this to get the most stable images. You do not want any “blur” effects to ruin your shot. It will take several practice shots to get proficient at using your camera in this manner but it will be worth it. You can place your camera in one place for all angles of the shot. Turn yourself for each angle, not the camera.
5. CONSISTENCY!! Take consistent photos of yourself. This means taking photos from the same angles throughout your documentation process. This helps to truly see the progress.

   Suggested angles are…90 degrees left and right. 45 degrees left and right; face forward; face slightly turned downward to show hairline; Chin to chest to see overhead view; direct view of the back of your head to show the donor area; back of your head while looking slightly up to show your crown area. Remember, you don’t need to move the camera for these shots. Move yourself.

6. While taking photos indoors is more appropriate is does help to spice up your portfolio by taking some shots outdoors.
7. When taking close up shots of your hairline or any other particular area of interest make sure to turn on your macro feature on your camera. This should be used when taking photos from less than 1 1/2 to 2 feet away. If you don’t know how to enable this feature then look in the manual. If you don’t have your manual anymore then you can most likely download a new one from the manufacturer’s web site.
8. When you are finished taking your photos you need to review them. Ask yourself if the photos are what you would want to see from someone else. Are they clear? Are they consistent with previous photos? Do they give an accurate representation of what your hair really looks like?

The below photographs demonstrate the impact of flash photography on perceived end results of a hair restoration procedure.

Note how the density increases by several orders of magnitude with only the use of a flash. Be sure to click the thumbnail to see the larger image.

List of things not to do when taking before/after photos of your hair transplant.

1. Do NOT use a flash. The bright light from a flash can cause each hair to generate a strong shadow of itself lending to the illusion of more hair.
2. Do NOT allow lights in the background. It will cause an overall dark look to your hair resulting in an inaccurate view of what your hair really looks like. Some web sites employ this technique often to give their patients the look of having more hair than they do in reality.
3. Do NOT simply hold your camera in two or even one hand. This will lend to an increase in blurriness in your photos.
4. Do NOT be afraid to take photos of your hair with your face showing. You can easily block out your face or alter it so no one can see who you are. Even better is if you decide to go “full Monty” like I did. It adds a better overall depth to the hair transplant.
5. Do NOT take still images from a video camera. Stills do not have the resolution needed for showing good detail. They often turn out too dark or too grainy.
6. Do NOT use a web cam to take your photos. They never turn out good enough to see any detail. Investing in even the cheapest of digital still cameras is a drop in the bucket compared to the price of a hair transplant.
7. Do NOT allow even ambient light to enter the room where you are taking your photographs. If you are in your living room, kitchen etc. then close the blinds and/or curtains. If you are in your bathroom and have windows then close the blinds and the shower curtain. Ambient light will darken the overall look of your hair transplant.

Well, that’s it. Again, if you have anything to add or think I should change anything based on your experience then let me know. I am by no means an expert so I’m open to suggestions.

I hope this helps you to understand how to take good, clear photographs. If you can share them with others via your own web site like I have then you will be doing someone you may never meet a HUGE favor!

Peace,

Jotronic