THE FOLLOWING IS AN EXCERPT FROM AN EMAIL I RECEIVED FEW DAYS AGO FROM A SMG PT. HE SENT A TESTIMONIAL TO POST ON HIS BEHALF.

please feel free to post on any site, modify or circulate as required. Having had an OK experience but less than perfect result with my first HT, I'd being doing the balding community a great disservice not to tell them about my AMAZING experience with your goodselves. I am so very excited about the winter to hurry-up, and bring in the fruits of 1600 grafts! -- smg pt

TESTIMONIAL:
I am 32 and have undergone three hair transplants. In 2002, at the age of 27, I approached a London clinic run by Dr. May to reconstruct my hairline. The post-op photos demonstrate significant receding, especially considering my age. Circa 800 follicles were grafted in a treatment lasting only about five hours; however these were predominantly micro and mini grafts. If you look carefully at the photo, you can probably count most of them because of the large size!

The results were a significant improvement at 14 months post-op, however what I was unhappy with was the lack of a natural "soft" hairline which I desired. What was most troubling was that under certain conditions such as bright lights or when wet, it became very evident that the hair had been transplanted. I conducted a detailed and thorough research into the matter, and although the Proscar I'd been taking since the operation had helped significantly, I still sought further enhancements. It was at this time I stumbled across the hairlossnetwork sites. I waded through numerous articles about the various techniques and surgeons, and contemplated virtually every option available to me. Of all of the success stories I read about, the name Shapiro constantly and consistently kept cropping up. I was a tad cynical and cautious about the superlative laden testimonials I'd read, and especially considering that they're based in Minnesota, they didn't even seem like an option in any case. However, seeing what I'd read about Dr. Shapiro and having seen the before/after photos and the patient claims of his being the best, I thought I'd be cheeky and call for some free advice! I spoke with a chap called Matt Zupan who spent over an hour with me talking through the various options, and what I could expect from FUT surgery. He did a stellar job of selling FUT as a concept, however offered extremely objective advice about what he felt was best for me in the long term; so much so, he went as far as trying to ascertain whether I could achieve a near similar result to Dr. Shapiro's work locally, and not have to travel across the pond. He told me to have a good think about what I was expecting from the surgery and if the ??trouble' of travel etc. would afford me significantly better results. I again trawled through the forums and spoke to numerous people with the name Shapiro constantly being recommended, and with the thought of Matt's amazingly impartial and friendly advice, it all seemed to make for an obvious choice. I was already planning to be in the States in Dec 2003, and amazingly the surgery had a cancellation which allowed me to book a date on the 29th. I was booked into a local hotel which was within walking distance; however a shuttle bus delivered me in good time. The hotel and the surgery had a great rapport, and were used to dealing with patients, so they knew what to expect.
I met with Matt and Dr. Shapiro for photos and an overview of the procedure. They could see that I was far from home, a little nervous and went to great lengths to ensure I was happy and questions answered. After my lunch and films had been selected, I literally slept through most of the treatment and came out of my haze to be told that my thining hairline had been transplanted with 1947 grafts (4328 hairs): Strip size: 1cm by 28cm

1's - 322
2's - 997
3's - 500
4's - 128
Total grafts: 1947
Total hairs: 4328

What was most amazing, the Dr managed to transplant the hair in-between the existing hair. One of my major concerns was of the new hair damaging my native and previously transplanted hair. After about five weeks, I experienced significant shedding and panic ensued! I promptly mailed Janna at the clinic and she assured me that this was normal, and not to worry. By month three, the new hair had started sprouting and continued to grow for 18 months. I've read that it takes a year for most of the results to come through, but my hair were a little slower. The end results were astounding, with virtually no loss of grafts, and the end results transformed my appearance:

In 2008, you can see the massive difference Dr. Shapiro's work made. My hairline is much more natural looking and softer. The work carried out changed my appearance and my life, and this is no exaggeration. Eventhough I am on 1.25mg Proscar a day, I did continue to thin all over since my surgery in 2003, however the transplanted hair have remained. Earlier this year, I decided to go for another treatment because the hair in my temples had receded, and I wanted greater density. I first considered FUE surgery where no strip is required, as I work full time and didn't want to take time off work. I conducted some research and spoke to a local clinic about what I could expect. I also called Matt again to catch-up and ask his thoughts about FUE surgery. He stressed his concerns about the loss of grafts, and considering I'd already had two ops, this wouldn't be a good thing! I also looked at current research and found that even good surgeons can experience a loss of 30% of grafts! Seeing that one only has limited donor supply, this simply wasn't an option, and Matt had suggested that another FUT treatment would be the optimal solution. I decided to book myself to see Dr. Shapiro on 24th June 2008. I sent Matt some recent photos explained that I wanted greater density in the temples and at the front.

I booked myself into the Country Inns and Suites just around the corner from the surgery again, and got in early enough on the 23rd to spend the day shopping at the Mall of America.
The following morning, it was good to see Matt, Jana and the Dr. again; and it was great to see that they had all of my records, photos, correspondence and even the technician staff remembered me! I spoke to Matt and the Dr. on the morning of the treatment and we worked out the "gameplan". The Dr. asked if it was OK to trim some of my hair at the front, which was fine as he'd ensure that I would still be in a fit state to go to the office on Monday. I again picked what I wanted to watch, my lunch and away we went. I must have slept through 90% of the treatment and felt absolutely fine. The Doc actually managed to remove my previous scar from 03 and yielded the following:

Total grafts 1668
Total hairs 2725
1's - 611
2's - 1057
And this was the result:

I popped back the following day for a wash and some photos. It was also really great to meet Janna again and discuss how things had progressed from 2003. I am now two weeks post op, flaking as expected but so excited about the sprouting of my new hair. If the results are half as impressive as the last treatment, I simply can't wait. The whole experience has been amazing. Looking back to my first treatment, I cannot believe that I've now twice travelled thousands of miles to who I consider the world leaders in hair transplantation. More than the results which I am ecstatic about, I have got to meet such kind, compassionate and thoughtful people, and it's this that really drew me back and would do in the future.

Watch this space...

__________________
I'm employed as the lead medical tech and surgical manager for the Shapiro Medical Group. Feel free to ask me any questions.

YouTube: Shapiro Medical Group's Videos

Follow us on: Facebook

Dr. Ron Shapiro and Dr. Paul Shapiro are members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians.

THE FOLLOWING IS AN EXCERPT FROM AN EMAIL I RECEIVED FEW DAYS AGO FROM A SMG PT. HE SENT A TESTIMONIAL TO POST ON HIS BEHALF.

please feel free to post on any site, modify or circulate as required. Having had an OK experience but less than perfect result with my first HT, I'd being doing the balding community a great disservice not to tell them about my AMAZING experience with your goodselves. I am so very excited about the winter to hurry-up, and bring in the fruits of 1600 grafts! -- smg pt

TESTIMONIAL:
I am 32 and have undergone three hair transplants. In 2002, at the age of 27, I approached a London clinic run by Dr. May to reconstruct my hairline. The post-op photos demonstrate significant receding, especially considering my age. Circa 800 follicles were grafted in a treatment lasting only about five hours; however these were predominantly micro and mini grafts. If you look carefully at the photo, you can probably count most of them because of the large size!

The results were a significant improvement at 14 months post-op, however what I was unhappy with was the lack of a natural "soft" hairline which I desired. What was most troubling was that under certain conditions such as bright lights or when wet, it became very evident that the hair had been transplanted. I conducted a detailed and thorough research into the matter, and although the Proscar I'd been taking since the operation had helped significantly, I still sought further enhancements. It was at this time I stumbled across the hairlossnetwork sites. I waded through numerous articles about the various techniques and surgeons, and contemplated virtually every option available to me. Of all of the success stories I read about, the name Shapiro constantly and consistently kept cropping up. I was a tad cynical and cautious about the superlative laden testimonials I'd read, and especially considering that they're based in Minnesota, they didn't even seem like an option in any case. However, seeing what I'd read about Dr. Shapiro and having seen the before/after photos and the patient claims of his being the best, I thought I'd be cheeky and call for some free advice! I spoke with a chap called Matt Zupan who spent over an hour with me talking through the various options, and what I could expect from FUT surgery. He did a stellar job of selling FUT as a concept, however offered extremely objective advice about what he felt was best for me in the long term; so much so, he went as far as trying to ascertain whether I could achieve a near similar result to Dr. Shapiro's work locally, and not have to travel across the pond. He told me to have a good think about what I was expecting from the surgery and if the ??trouble' of travel etc. would afford me significantly better results. I again trawled through the forums and spoke to numerous people with the name Shapiro constantly being recommended, and with the thought of Matt's amazingly impartial and friendly advice, it all seemed to make for an obvious choice. I was already planning to be in the States in Dec 2003, and amazingly the surgery had a cancellation which allowed me to book a date on the 29th. I was booked into a local hotel which was within walking distance; however a shuttle bus delivered me in good time. The hotel and the surgery had a great rapport, and were used to dealing with patients, so they knew what to expect.
I met with Matt and Dr. Shapiro for photos and an overview of the procedure. They could see that I was far from home, a little nervous and went to great lengths to ensure I was happy and questions answered. After my lunch and films had been selected, I literally slept through most of the treatment and came out of my haze to be told that my thining hairline had been transplanted with 1947 grafts (4328 hairs): Strip size: 1cm by 28cm

1's - 322
2's - 997
3's - 500
4's - 128
Total grafts: 1947
Total hairs: 4328

What was most amazing, the Dr managed to transplant the hair in-between the existing hair. One of my major concerns was of the new hair damaging my native and previously transplanted hair. After about five weeks, I experienced significant shedding and panic ensued! I promptly mailed Janna at the clinic and she assured me that this was normal, and not to worry. By month three, the new hair had started sprouting and continued to grow for 18 months. I've read that it takes a year for most of the results to come through, but my hair were a little slower. The end results were astounding, with virtually no loss of grafts, and the end results transformed my appearance:

In 2008, you can see the massive difference Dr. Shapiro's work made. My hairline is much more natural looking and softer. The work carried out changed my appearance and my life, and this is no exaggeration. Eventhough I am on 1.25mg Proscar a day, I did continue to thin all over since my surgery in 2003, however the transplanted hair have remained. Earlier this year, I decided to go for another treatment because the hair in my temples had receded, and I wanted greater density. I first considered FUE surgery where no strip is required, as I work full time and didn't want to take time off work. I conducted some research and spoke to a local clinic about what I could expect. I also called Matt again to catch-up and ask his thoughts about FUE surgery. He stressed his concerns about the loss of grafts, and considering I'd already had two ops, this wouldn't be a good thing! I also looked at current research and found that even good surgeons can experience a loss of 30% of grafts! Seeing that one only has limited donor supply, this simply wasn't an option, and Matt had suggested that another FUT treatment would be the optimal solution. I decided to book myself to see Dr. Shapiro on 24th June 2008. I sent Matt some recent photos explained that I wanted greater density in the temples and at the front.

I booked myself into the Country Inns and Suites just around the corner from the surgery again, and got in early enough on the 23rd to spend the day shopping at the Mall of America.
The following morning, it was good to see Matt, Jana and the Dr. again; and it was great to see that they had all of my records, photos, correspondence and even the technician staff remembered me! I spoke to Matt and the Dr. on the morning of the treatment and we worked out the "gameplan". The Dr. asked if it was OK to trim some of my hair at the front, which was fine as he'd ensure that I would still be in a fit state to go to the office on Monday. I again picked what I wanted to watch, my lunch and away we went. I must have slept through 90% of the treatment and felt absolutely fine. The Doc actually managed to remove my previous scar from 03 and yielded the following:

Total grafts 1668
Total hairs 2725
1's - 611
2's - 1057
And this was the result:

I popped back the following day for a wash and some photos. It was also really great to meet Janna again and discuss how things had progressed from 2003. I am now two weeks post op, flaking as expected but so excited about the sprouting of my new hair. If the results are half as impressive as the last treatment, I simply can't wait. The whole experience has been amazing. Looking back to my first treatment, I cannot believe that I've now twice travelled thousands of miles to who I consider the world leaders in hair transplantation. More than the results which I am ecstatic about, I have got to meet such kind, compassionate and thoughtful people, and it's this that really drew me back and would do in the future.

Watch this space...

__________________
I'm employed as the lead medical tech and surgical manager for the Shapiro Medical Group. Feel free to ask me any questions.

YouTube: Shapiro Medical Group's Videos

Follow us on: Facebook

Dr. Ron Shapiro and Dr. Paul Shapiro are members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians.

Nice writeup . The work looks solid as ever.
When I saw a pic of Matt and Doc I gave my monitor a big hug.
So sorry you missed out Janna , unless of course that was you taking the pic .

First congrats on findind Shapiro. He's one of the best with hairlines as he understands the varies stages of the frontal vertex core. A natural hairline has a soft look and transition zone back into thicker (or appearance of thicker) hair. If you look a natural hairline zone the initial hairs are 1-2 hairs, then as you go back few mm then you get into 2-3 hairs, ect.
Most doctors understand this, but applying it is a different story as this takes a true artistic ability beyond great surgeon ability. Dr. Shapiro has this. The best in hairlines !! (I had several previous HT from reputable surgeons--considered TOP 10 quality and referenced on this forum; but my last w/Shapiro made my hairline look 100% natural including the temporal zone areas -temples.)

SMOOTHY
Shapiro
Propecia/Rogaine
MSM/Saw Palmetto
Nioxin Shampoo
Zrii Daily