Dewayne

I can feel for you guys. Before Cooley fixed my scar, it was sore and tender even after 17 years. And I had some knots, bumps and pits on my head.

These aren't the best of pics, but you can see here my before and 3 day post op. Then, if you want do a search on Dr. Cooley 2500 grafts and check out my latest album and see the one year. http://hair-restoration-info.c...481012793#9481012793

He punched mine out. Personally, I wouldn't want mine lasered in case some breakthrough new drug came out.

16, I'm telling you man, the best advice you'll get anywhere is what I've given you: Go see Dr. Griffin in Atlanta and talk to him; or go see Dr. Cooley in Charlotte. But, yeah the can remove the transplanted hairs in your hairline. Dr. Cooley did for me. And the two "rows" in my hairline. I'm confident both of these doctors will give you straight up, honest answers to your questions. I've met both of these men, and was thoroughly impressed with their professionalism. I'm not saying you have to do what they suggest, but it'd be worth the trip, imo. Dewayne

Where have you been 16inchscar? It's been 11 months since you were here, and you had the same questions back then. Did you go see Dr. Griffin in Atlanta? If not, that's what I would do. I remember your posts, and I think you should just go see one of the top clinics. Although you might be distrustful, they can guide you more than most of us can. Griffin seems like a genuine dude as well. He almost talked me out of the whole thing, so I don't think he's in it for the money, etc.

I can recommend Dr. Cooley in Charlotte, NC. It's right on the border and he's considered at least in the top 10 in the world by most. You can put his name in the "Search Our Forum" above to see some of his patients. Dr. Griffin in Atlanta seems very good too, but it's difficult to compare prices on his sessions with the other doctors, imo.

"Hair now, hair forever......" This dude looks like Epstein from "Welcome Back Kotter". http://www.drshapiroshairinstitute.com/ Why do all the mini graft clinics claim to be the first? Mine did too back in '91. He was a "pioneer" yet practiced in North Alabama. LOL> -Dr. Shapiro was the first to do a "strip incision" and the first doctor in the Southern U.S. to specialize in "micro-mini grafts."

First thing, I'd recommend you call Dr. Jerry Cooley at http://www.haircenter.com/. Not because he is or isn't your best option, but I believe he would be one of the best to call regarding your medical condition. Or Dr. Feller, as he is trained in medicine as well. Although they do excellent transplants, I wouldn't care what a trained plastic surgeon says about my medical condition b/c it's probably been a while since he was in med. school. The reason I mention Cooley is he still has a dermatology practice and he has an impressive medical education, and stuck me as a very well trained doctor. For the transplant, I don't know the doctor you speak of, but if you've got $21k to spend I wouldn't be afraid to put $1k of that toward travel. Some of the best clinics offer travel discounts. Research Cooley, Feller, H&W, and some of the doctors who can do 3,500 + sessions. You should be able to get a session that size for under $15,000, plane tickets and all. Most of them include a hotel stay for two days as well.

That dude looks too much like a playha for me to let him operate on my head......

This is made by Spencer Forest, Inc. same as Toppik. I bought some today. Anyone heard of it or is there a difference between it and Toppik? Local place sells it for $17 for a 25 gram (.87 oz.) bottle.

Hello Dr.Carman 1. 5mg finasteride devided by 4 is 1.25 mg 2. Propecia is 1 mg finasteride. 3. Your recomendation is 25% more than the FDA aproved 4. If 1 mg and 1.25 mg predicate expressions that differ in their quantity extension, then the concept expressed by your recomendation of dosage is distinct. Patient question: 1.Why does your recomendation differ from the FDA aproved dosage? 2.In order to provide complete and correct accounts of the quantity of the dosage of finasteride,for hair loss sufferers, are you having knowledge,or at least have some understanding of a given concept,that the FDA doesn't or didn't? 3. How does one aquire (or as you say,purchase)5 mg finasteride?Is there a market for that? Only medicine,that I know of,other than Propecia,that is consisted of finasteride is Proscar which is prescription drug for prostate enlargement. 4. Can a doctor prescribe Proscar which is covered under health insurance plans to substitute Propecia which is not? Just curious...I want to be on the safe side. The best explanation I heard on this was in a post Dr. Cooley made a few months back. If you search his name you could find it. But basically, he said the 1mg was just the dosage that was tested and approved. They didn't test 1.25 mg or .75 mg and say that was too much or too little. So, some doctors believe a little more for younger patients might be applicable, less for maintenance, etc. But, he has definitely provided you with a cheaper alternative than the propecia.

At first I liked Shapiro's, but after thinking about it I'd go less aggressive with the Wong hairline; and fill in the crown. The way your hair looks, I'd be wanting to eliminate that spot on the crown; even if it meant a little higher hairline. I didn't have the same luxury, as a diffuse thinner.

What do you mean "Pat went to Dr. Cooley"? If so, I didn't know that. I went to Cooley and he is obviously very good. Charles was my #2; and he was the most accessable of any I was considering (four others). He'll give you his cell phone, and we even talked one night at 9 p.m. about my pics. I'm not as familiar with the other two, but you're heading in the right direction. Keep asking and you'll get some good feed back. Griffin in Atlanta is very good too.

I had some minigrafts with 4 - 8 hairs implanted about 18 years ago. Dr. Cooley removed a lot of those, recycled them back in and filled in for a more natural look. There are a lot of options as far as docs though. Check out the "Find a Surgeon" tab above and post one close to you and try to get the thoughts about his rep from posters on here.

I'd like to clarify that trichophytic closure technique does not mean a two layer closure has to be performed. In fact, majority of doctors performing tricho only use the outer sutures or staples. If a subcutaneous sutures are used (dissolvable sutures), the doctor can opt for either non dissolveable sutures or staples for the outer closure. There are instances where a doctor may opt to use dissolveable sutures on the outside instead of a nylon or others types that have to be taken out. I believe I've heard Dr. Epstein using dissolveable sutures for the outer sutures so his out of town patients don't have to worry about getting their sutures/staples out in 10-14 days after surgery. I think it's important to keep the donor area clean immediately following your ht surgery. The cleaner the site the easier and less pain there is when removing sutures or staples. I had my transplant with the same Dr. Cooley, but I didn't have dissolveable sutures. I asked him about these, but I think he said because of my previous procedure / scar, that he wasn't going to use those. But, I had them removed at day 14, and while it wasn't all that painful; I would have preferred some other activity at the time.

More importantly, imo, is what you ask patients. This forum may not be perfect, but I believe if you put it out there; you'll get the good, bad and ugly on any physician out there. That's what I would be more concerned with. And then, when you narrow your search down to 2 or 3 based on reputation. Then you can decide what questions to ask the doctors

I agree with TooThin. I had a couple of rows removed from my hairline as well as the crown. They'll recycle those mini's and trim them into FU's so you won't have to worry about them again. I'd get them out of there. And you can't see any scarring with mine either.

Can't decide, I don't think it's a different technique, per se. It's just that Bosley probably has 300 or more physicians working for them and I'm sure they've got their share of good ones. However, I do know that when most people sign up with them it might be a different doc than they had originally met with. And, maybe they do have good doctors who eventually leave because they've also got some shitty doctors. It's just difficult to hire a quality surgeon, train him and supervise his or her work effectively. They are a chain, and like someone above said - this ain't McDonalds. On the other hand, a 'sole practitioner' has his reputation on the line every day so you'd think that is somewhat motivating to do his best. Same thing with the technicians. Since the doctor is really just an employee as well, some of them might not be as diligent about supervising techs as an "owner" would, imo. A chain doc can have a bad day, and say the hell with it, and not be affected too much.

I didn't like it too much, mainly because of the red tint aaron speaks of. It didn't look natural on me. I'm going to try some nanogen.

Welcome to the board! I'd love to see somebody with their hair cut to a 1 comb whose scar does not show. That would be great. Wantego, I'm going to do an experiment in mid-July, as I am going to Yellowstone for a 10-day vacation. The day before I leave I'm going to shave down to a one and take some pics. I told my wife last night I'd like to see how the scar looks shaved down. So, I'll look forward to posting the pics. At that time, I'll be about 16 months out of my second surgery, so we'll see how a suture tricho scar looks. I just hope it grows pretty good for the couple of weeks before I get back in front of clients at the first of August.

I used sutures, and from a pain standpoint they appear better. But, like biscuit says that could override the pain. I actually didn't know that fact. BTW, biscuit's avator looks awesome.

sounds like you might not lose your crown so stay on the meds. That's a lot in the front. Post some pics...

Same ingredient: finasteride. Proscar comes in 5mg and Propecia in 1mg. I've found the Proscar is much, much cheaper. And yes it can be cut into halves or 1/3.

My hair seemed to look better at the two month to three month period; and I was starting to get stoked! But, at four to five months it looked thinner. And then it seemed like it depended on the day as to how it looked. Around month 7, I started noticing more, real growth. Possible I suppose, but keep in mind it might get worse before getting better.

I thought that was pretty funny......