The following is a description of a novel technique for placing follicular-units in front of a hair system in order to get the both of best worlds.

Dr. Raymond Konior is very "hands on" and performs microscopically-prepared ultra-refined follicular-unit hair restoration with great results.

From Dr. Raymond Konior:


In the patient committed to wearing a non-surgical hair system, the
integration of hair transplantation with the hair system can offset
the limitations of either approach and combine to produce an
aesthetically pleasing result. By utilizing the surgical and non-
surgical techniques together, a select patient with extensive male
pattern baldness can have the opportunity of achieving a more
satisfying result as compared to the one who wears a hair system
exclusively.

There are several inherent weaknesses of a hair system in those with
advanced balding. One can usually see a noticeable difference between
the high density of the hair in the system and the low density along
that person's temple hairline. Also, the front of the hair system
often appears too dense and abrupt to look natural, thereby requiring
the system to be styled so as to disguise or hide the actual frontal
hairline.

An inherent weakness of a hair transplant in someone with class VI or
class VII hairloss is the difficulty in restoring a full head of high
density hair comparable to what existed prior to the appearance of
hair loss. The donor hair in these advanced cases is often
insufficient for harvesting the number of grafts per centimeter that
would be required to restore the entire bald area to a pre-hair loss
condition. In other words, when the donor area is insufficient, the
results of the hair transplant will also likely be insufficient.

Blending the advantages of a hair transplant with those of a hair
system can eliminate the inherent weaknesses of each method. The hair
transplant can restore a natural appearance to a receded temple and
along the frontal hairline. The hair system can then be designed to
rest just behind the restored hairline to give the appearance of full
and natural density. While the results have been very promising, it
should be noted that this is a novel approach and should only be
utilized in properly selected candidates.

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Check out the results of my surgical hair restoration performed by Dr. Jerry Cooley by visiting my Hair Loss Weblog

How many grafts were placed in the hairline?
The patient has good, natural looks combining the HT with the hair system. However, its an option that should be adopted with great caution.
Dr. A mentions that any person who has not worn a hair system for a few years atleast, should be considered ineligible. I would be curious to know what guidelines other doctors adopt while taking up such cases.

While it may be a good approach for the select few patients, I think it increases the chance of unscrupulous doctors convincing newbies into adopting this approach. That aspect needs to be stressed.
If you have a HT hairline with a hair system, you can never go back. You can never, for your lifetime decide to give up the hair system.

Though I admit, the patient looks good, this approach would not be for me...I guess, perhaps, it's hard to vision because I haven't lost all my hair on top before the transplants...but I rather have a thin look than have to maintain a hairpiece on my head. That's one of the biggest affirmations for an HT, is that it's my own hair, and I don't have to worry about maintenance issues.

Just my opinion.

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To learn about how I restored my hair, view my my hair loss website.

Remember, true beauty radiates from within, not from the skin.

I am not a medical professional and my words should not be taken as medical advice. All opinions and views shared are my own.

Well put, Bill. I agree. Not only do you have to worry about the maintenance and cost of replacing the "piece"......what if you get tired of doing it? You've permanently put hair across your hairline.

I had a friend whose follically challenged as most of us on this forum are (or have been prior to HT). He went to Hair Club for Men in St. Louis, who I thought about trying before my first HT. I guess they are supposed to be pretty good at the "rug" thing. $1,500 later with the new piece he asked me for an honest opinion.....................it was terrible. I had no trouble telling it was a piece.

Now, my friend didn't have the HT for his hairline, but it wouldn't have mattered.......actually would have been worse for him since hed' have the HT hairline then try to go back without a piece! He likes to wear his hair short so there was this "ridge" across the back of his head where the piece met his real hair. And, talk about messy.........you were supposed to be able to leave this type of piece on weeks at a time. It was attached with an adhesive. My friend noticed that any perspiration and it slid. He tried getting his money back and they refunded only 1/2 of it.........thus, he was out $750 and shaved his head and went back to the hat. I've told him to try HT as he has excellent donor hair but he doesn't want to.

I'm not bashing those who wear a piece. If they like it and it works, great. IMO...I can't imagine using a piece unless it was my only choice due to insufficient donor hair or anything else that prohibits HT. Over time, I've heard maintenance on pieces and buying new one would rival any HT.

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Hairbank

1st HT 1-18-05 - 1200 FUT's
2nd HT 2-15-06 - 3886 FUT's Dr. Wong
3rd HT 4-24-08 - 2415 FUT's Dr. Wong

GRAND TOTAL: 7501 GRAFTS

current regimen: 1.25mg finasteride every other day

My Hair Loss Weblog

Disclaimer: I'm not a Doctor (and have never played one on TV ) and have no medical training. Any information I share here is in an effort to help those who don't like hair loss.

Hairbank,
Just trying to disagree with you. Playing the devil's advocate.
Your friend did not like the hair piece and decided to get rid of it and shave his head. He could do it.
If he got a hair transplant, no matter how good the characteristics, he will lose the option of ever being able to shave his head off with the strip that you advised him. No?
Hair systems, good one at least, have their plus points.
The biggest being that you can revert.

Finallyfree,

Good point for those who shave the noggin' full time. Again, definitely not trying to knock the "piece".......to each his own. In my friends case, I should have finished by saying my friend shaved his head on the sides and back to match the top since he had to shave what hair he had to try the piece..............He has since let it grow out to normal length though it's severely thin on top.

I guess it's still tough for me to figure why a person who "could" have a HT would opt for the piece but everyone has their preference and reasons for choosing. Personally, from what I hear about hair pieces, those who wear them and the costs involved, I wouldn't want the hassle when I can get the HT and go back to having permanent hair on my head.

__________________
Hairbank

1st HT 1-18-05 - 1200 FUT's
2nd HT 2-15-06 - 3886 FUT's Dr. Wong
3rd HT 4-24-08 - 2415 FUT's Dr. Wong

GRAND TOTAL: 7501 GRAFTS

current regimen: 1.25mg finasteride every other day

My Hair Loss Weblog

Disclaimer: I'm not a Doctor (and have never played one on TV ) and have no medical training. Any information I share here is in an effort to help those who don't like hair loss.

It is important to stress that this approach should be limited to a small number of patients. I restrict this strategy to mature men who 1) have worn the system for a significant number of years and 2) are committed to keeping the system for the remainder of their life. Proper planning includes evaluation of the donor region and discussion about what can be done if the patient decides to abandon the system. Ideally, the donor region will have an adequate supply to allow the creation of a natural frontal hairline. Because most patients in this group have a more advanced balding pattern, they need to know that any future restoration will only provide frontal, and perhaps midscalp, coverage. Ideally, my goal would be to graft the frontal region using a thinning transition to the midscalp. The thinning midscalp would be transitioned into a natural looking bald crown. This would result in a very natural appearance for someone of "mature" age. Again, patient selection and detailed planning are critical to achieve long-term satisfaction with this method.

RKoniorMD

In the photo it looks good but looks like way to much work in the morning....The whole thing gives me a bad feeling that is diffucult to articulate.....

Thanks for sharing Doctor Konior. It's a very interesting approach and it looks good on the model.