Post FUE Minoxidil - is it essential?

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Hi All,

I hope this meets you all well.

I went ahead and got an FUE procedure about 11 weeks ago. For now, I feel like it would be unfair to share my feedback of the clinic/results as it is too early to conclude yet; it would be akin to judging a home decoration project half-way through!

That being said, I have a question around introducing Minoxidil to my recovery timeframe. Being 11 weeks post-opp, I feel it is a great time to start Minoxidil and I am well aware of the benefits this has on recovery and general results. However, is it essential to use Minoxidil for recovery? Once you start using Minoxidil you become reliant on it and the results quickly reverse if you stop using it. Hence, I’m hesitant to start something that I have to maintain on a daily basis – not sure how much I can adhere to that in the long run and thus run the risk of losing my gains.

Second question – if I do start using Minoxidil, will I go through a period of shedding? (I’ve already just gone through a round of shedding as per post-opp recovery).

FYI: I’m taking Finasteride 1mg daily along with Biotin and MSN supplements.

Thanks!

 

[Bigmac]

How many grafts did you receive out of interest and what area was transplanted?

Minoxidil is not necessary post op. It may or may not help the transplanted grafts to sprout quicker. Not everyone responds to it. It could cause you to shed native hair.
If you do manage to revive any miniaturised hairs while using it, they will be eventually lost if you stop.

The transplanted grafts will grow when they`re ready. I never used Minox post op and my grafts grew just fine. The regimen that you`re on now I`d say is sufficient.

How has your post op recovery been?

 

[Lockdown-Locks!]

How many grafts did you receive out of interest and what area was transplanted?

Minoxidil is not necessary post op. It may or may not help the transplanted grafts to sprout quicker. Not everyone responds to it. It could cause you to shed native hair.
If you do manage to revive any miniaturised hairs while using it, they will be eventually lost if you stop.

The transplanted grafts will grow when they`re ready. I never used Minox post op and my grafts grew just fine. The regimen that you`re on now I`d say is sufficient.

How has your post op recovery been?

Hi Big Mac,

Great to hear from you. I’ve had a total of 4,497 grafts (Soft= 322, 1= 689, 2= 1918, 3= 1568). The transplanted area has been the crown and temples as a classic ‘W’ formation (see the top-down photo for a better understanding of recipient areas). Also had a few hundred at the side of my temples to frame the final hairline better.

In terms of post-op recovery, things have been mostly as I expected. Shedding as already taken place as and when expected, and right now I can see a few sporadic miniature hairs trying to get through – very early stages. The only things of concern are my right temple, that appears to be thinner vs the left. Secondly, I have visual scarring (faint redness on the hairline). Thirdly, there is a random bare patch (approx 1.5cm in diameter) in my donor area i.e. hair has not regrown (clinic said it is likely to be shock loss). Not sure what I can do about these three issues at this stage?

With regards to Minoxidil use, I was advised to use it on the crown area to maximise the native hair that can be saved, as the transplanted hair in this area alone will not completely cover up this area.

Does the Minoxidil effect the transplanted hairs and existing native hairs, or only the native miniaturised hairs? If I were to use Minoxidil, and then stopped years later, will the transplanted hairs be lost permanently, or will they simply just shed and then regrow? Same question for the native hairs – upon stopping Minoxidil, will native hairs be lost permanently? Or perhaps I am completely wrong and it is only the miniaturised native hairs that are lost - confused!

 

[Bigmac]

Hi Big Mac,

Great to hear from you. I’ve had a total of 4,497 grafts (Soft= 322, 1= 689, 2= 1918, 3= 1568). The transplanted area has been the crown and temples as a classic ‘W’ formation (see the top-down photo for a better understanding of recipient areas). Also had a few hundred at the side of my temples to frame the final hairline better.

The transplanted areas should fill in nicely with the number of grafts transplanted. I can see the crown whirl pattern in the picture.

In terms of post-op recovery, things have been mostly as I expected. Shedding as already taken place as and when expected, and right now I can see a few sporadic miniature hairs trying to get through – very early stages. The only things of concern are my right temple, that appears to be thinner vs the left. Secondly, I have visual scarring (faint redness on the hairline).

Good to hear the post op was ok. At 11 weeks seeing new hair sprouting is a good indicator for early growth. When you say the right temple is thinner. Is this from the day of the op or how it looks now?
Redness can linger for quite a while before completely disappearing. The skin should heal fine over time.

Thirdly, there is a random bare patch (approx 1.5cm in diameter) in my donor area i.e. hair has not regrown (clinic said it is likely to be shock loss). Not sure what I can do about these three issues at this stage?

Have you a picture of this bare patch? It does sound like shock loss which again, can take a few more months to fully recover.

With regards to Minoxidil use, I was advised to use it on the crown area to maximise the native hair that can be saved, as the transplanted hair in this area alone will not completely cover up this area.

Does the Minoxidil effect the transplanted hairs and existing native hairs, or only the native miniaturised hairs? If I were to use Minoxidil, and then stopped years later, will the transplanted hairs be lost permanently, or will they simply just shed and then regrow? Same question for the native hairs – upon stopping Minoxidil, will native hairs be lost permanently? Or perhaps I am completely wrong and it is only the miniaturised native hairs that are lost - confused!

If you stick with Minoxidil and see results you have to continue using it to maintain any gains. Other alternatives could be Topical Finasteride or Oral Minoxidil.
Any miniaturised hair that the Minoxidil helped will be lost over time if you stop unless you use an alternative medication as mentioned above.
Native hair could be lost without the use of meds.
Transplant grafts should be ok but even our donor hair can be susceptible to DHT.
Without taking any medications, patients are at risk of their hair loss progressing.

 

[Lockdown-Locks!]

The transplanted areas should fill in nicely with the number of grafts transplanted. I can see the crown whirl pattern in the picture.



Good to hear the post op was ok. At 11 weeks seeing new hair sprouting is a good indicator for early growth. When you say the right temple is thinner. Is this from the day of the op or how it looks now?
Redness can linger for quite a while before completely disappearing. The skin should heal fine over time.



Have you a picture of this bare patch? It does sound like shock loss which again, can take a few more months to fully recover.



If you stick with Minoxidil and see results you have to continue using it to maintain any gains. Other alternatives could be Topical Finasteride or Oral Minoxidil.
Any miniaturised hair that the Minoxidil helped will be lost over time if you stop unless you use an alternative medication as mentioned above.
Native hair could be lost without the use of meds.
Transplant grafts should be ok but even our donor hair can be susceptible to DHT.
Without taking any medications, patients are at risk of their hair loss progressing.

Hi Bic Mac,

Firstly, my apologies for a delayed response – I’ve been so swept under over this last week with work, I haven’t had a chance at all to log on here. But thank you very much for your guidance from my last post – highly appreciated.

Regarding the Minoxidil, I just want to clarify my query – Minoxidil affects miniaturised hairs – therefore it will affect my transplanted hairs (as they must go through a miniaturised phase whilst sprouting). Consequently, am I at risk of losing those transplanted hairs in the future, if I start Minoxidil now but then stopped it later down the line? Because I see it as there are two scenarios: Option A – don’t use Minoxidil, the transplanted hairs will grow and stay in the long term; or option B, use Minoxidil now to help the transplanted hairs grow faster in the short term, but if I stop using Minoxidil later, all my transplanted hairs will fall out (because they were subjected to Minoxidil during their miniaturised phase). Hope that explains my question better.

Yes, I’m quite excited to see the transplanted area fill up – I have good faith in the team who performed my procedure and was happy to accept their number of graft proposal at the time of my consultations.

Regarding my right temple, I mean that it is thinner now – noticeably thinner compared to my left temple. I’m hoping it’s just aggressive shedding and nothing more serious.

See below a picture of this bare patch – taken around two weeks ago.

 

[Bigmac]

The transplanted hairs will not be minoxidil dependant. It could help them grow quicker but not guaranteed. If you start minoxidil, then stop, you won`t lose the transplanted grafts. This is assuming all the transplanted grafts are healthy and not miniaturised
Time will tell regarding the temples. They should even out eventually.
That small bald spot in the donor still has time to recover. If not, you might need a few grafts placed there.

 

[bullitnut]

Never used Minoxidil post op for any of my transplants dude and it didn't affect my result or cause any issues with growth. Tried it numerous times and personally I think its overrated.....or at least it is for me as it did next to nothing for me....Finasteride is my saviour.

 

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Thanks for your response’s guys. My main concern is losing transplanted grafts later down the line if I use (and then stop) Minoxidil. So, it’s good to hear your words Bigmac; thinking about what you say, I’d have to use Minoxidil constantly until the transplanted grafts pass the miniaturised phase – I’ll be happy to do that.

To be honest Bullitnut, I wasn’t going to use Minox at all either. However, the clinic recommend I do for the crown area, since the grafts placed there are not designed to completely fill out the area. This was also something another clinic advised me to do when I was shopping around the various clinics. Hence, I’m inclined to use it to save the miniaturised hairs on the crown; just doing so will also impact the transplanted grafts.