OK.

I know everyone has their opinions about surgeons who excel at hairlines and those who excel at crowns.

That said, it appears to me that some surgeons most consistenly produce a hairline that is either "hard" or "soft".

Obviously there will be exceptions patient by patient, but would anyone proffer there is a "subset" of hairline surgeons who deliver the best soft hairlines.

I would contrast such to (what I perceive) as a typical "Armani" hairline.

I really prefer the maturing hairline look.

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a mature hairline and a soft hairline refer to two different things. a mature hairline has to do with the placement of the grafts. the appearnce of "softness" is achieved using single FUs, however your donor hair characteristics will also play a huge role. a mature hairline using single FUs can be achieched by any top surgeon. you simply need to spend time researching and when you find the right doc spend time going over your hairline design. best of luck!

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HT #1: Karamikian Unknown # of grafts Sept.2006

HT#2 Nov.23rd, 2007
Dr.Feller
Almost 3200 grafts via strip

HT#3 April 2010
Fue 200/side into temple points

HT#4 February 2011

My Hair Loss Website - Hair Transplant with Dr. Feller

There is only the "right" hairline for each individual patient---Great docs know this and plan/give results accordingly.

Some docs are known for producing a thick wall of hair.

Some docs do the "power fade" where they gradually increase density as you go back---this is usually referred to as the mature hairline.

Then there are a select few that know how to build a hairline that fits the patients needs and balances patients wants into a hairline that is undetectable and patient perfect.

Make sure you choose a doc can adapt to each individual patient and his or her features.

Take Care,
Jason

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Sorry, I very much disagree with the statement that there is only one "right" hairline for a patient. And even the great docs miss the mark sometimes.

There are so many variations and possibilities. I would say to pick a doc whose hairlines you like. You will notice stylistic trends in patients from one doc. The same patient goes to two differnt top docs and will get two differnt hairlines. Once the hairline is on your head and grown out you will realize it was man made and imperfect.

That said, I have heard from a reliable source and believe that the 4000+ megasessions provide the softest hairlines because the doc has the greatest number of 1's to use in reconstructing the front.

The ability to "see into" the hairline without detecting any plugginess is more important IMO than the wall of hair approach that you see some docs planting.

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My Hair Loss Web Site - Hair Transplant with Dr. Wong

I agree with Emperor about the "wall of hair" approach. As an HT patient, I naturally have a tendency to try to spot others, and the "wall of hair" patients are ones that I sometimes think I see. What I mean is that I see people with a thick band of hair for a hairline, and extensive balding behind. I don't think any quality docs do this. Indeed I did now a person who naturally balded in this pattern, but it seems to be quite rare. It's kind of like what I imagine a lot of Armani patients will tragically end up with. It is just a bit odd, and it catches your eye, and that is what we all want to avoid. It may be great from the front, but the problem is that in life people are sometimes sitting behind you, standing while you are sitting in a chair, etc. The people with the odd looking patterns like this are sometimes the last to know, because they only see themselves in the mirror from the front or sides (which looks fine). Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the "frame the face" concept, and I am NOT talking about the crown issue at all (you DO see people with full heads of hair and a balding crown). I am just saying the HT has to maintain a natural appearance even behind the frame, and a thick band with baldness behind it does not look very natural. I also fully understand the question you are asking about the "soft" hairline, and I would personally say H&W do really good (see weblog by Jotronic, I think he has a really good "soft" hairline), and also Cooley (see weblog by Bimmerick, he has a really good mature, and very soft hairline), but really I think any of the top surgeons could do this well if you communicate what you want. - Stimpy

I agree with all this. You have to look beyond the hairline to the overall design to include the supporting hair. Even hair that is 100% native density, you will see "into" it quite a bit and even see scalp under certain circumstances.

HT docs have shown the ability to plant at very high density in the hairline, but given the overall pattern of loss, do you really want full density in the hairline? And if not, how does the hairline look from differnt angles, when the hair is moving, combed different directions, etc?

The answer of course is the use of ultra refined grafts, exclusively 1's in the hairline as much as possible, and proper balance with other areas of head. Everything works together.

Check out H&W for examples of this.

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My personal preference is also against the "wall of hair" approach, at least as I understand it.

@Stimpson: Funny you should mention those docs, those were my two favorite hairline docs. In fact I think i notice it very consistently (at least in the work portrayed here, which is not as much as H&W) from Cooley. He seems to do a real nice 3V, IMO.

I think the best way I can describe it is a "hairline before the hairline". It's definitely a different commodity than the dense packed hairline, of which I am not a huge fan. It's almost like there's a larger transition zone? I can't quite quantify it.

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In general, along with proper contour of graft placement which will define the "line" of the hairline, which is designed uniquely for the unique facial and hair characteristics of each patient, in most "more mature" hairlines there exists an even greater zone of transition that embraces an even greater irregular character, which I best describe as "perfectly imperfect".
Hairline before the hairline is a good way of putting it-
Hope that helps-

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Dr. Timothy Carman
La Jolla Hair Restoration Medical Center

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Dr. Timothy Carman is a member of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians

Thanks, doc. It always helps to be better able to articulate it.

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Dr. Carman makes a good point. Everyone is an individual and having a good rapport with your doctor will get you a result that you want..for the right reasons. I see men all the time and have to convince them that although they are "buying the transplant" at age 30, they need to look normal at age 50 too, and to plan for some fronto-temporal recession in hairline design.

I am a "frame the face" doctor, and for most men of average stature, feel that the crown thinning is not a big problem...unless the patient "sees" that in every picture of himself and can't ignore it.

One final issue. God doesn't make straight lines on people. And if you don't believe in God, then straight lines simply don't occur on people. So we make a strong effort to draw a straight line hairline for the patient to approve the location, and then we irregularize it with protrusions and recessions of a few millimeters so that it looks natural.

One of the threads on this site discusses the pro's and con's of one of the political candidate's hair transplant results. I would suggest that it is a perfectly straight line, rather than the wall of hair in front of bald scalp, that calls attention to the previous procedure. I personally think its a good result, except for that perfectly straight hairline.

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA

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William H. Lindsey, MD, FACS
McLean, VA

Dr. William Lindsey is a member of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians