HK500

Very exciting .... Please remind us your game plan, how many FU's, crown or temples, etc ... Thanks Pushing40

Hi Barca, I have heard only vaguely positive feedback from Dr. Bisanga. To be absolutely safe I would probably go with a Coalition or a recommended Dr. but it sounds like you are confident about your research. I followed a similar route very recently and got my second HT from a surgeon who was only recently recommended by Pat and not on the Coalition yet. My full report is coming any day, I am just waiting for the pics from the clinic. It would help the forum if you could communicate Dr. Bisanga's price structure and your before/after pictures.

Hi Barca, Yes, the DHI prices are astronomical, they offered me $3.00 per hair and a free trip to come to Athens but it's still quite high. Where did you decide to have the HT done?

Pat, Thanks for personally jumping in and reaching the patient and the Dr. From Dr. Feller's post I am feeling relieved for this patient and I hope she will heal well and soon as he indicated. This reminds us all that this is not an exact science and even with a great MD there is always a risk, small but present. I am looking forward to the lessons learned from this experience, it will be interesting.

Don't worry so much about the negative effects of Finasteride, they are quite rare. A dermatologist or a good Coalition HT surgeon can give you a prescription. First you must get on top of this shedding and slow it down or stop it. Get several consultations with Coalition Dr.'s and compare their opinions. Where are you located Mrclean?

Bspot, I think I've heard many more negatives ...

The negative side effects of Finasteride are quite rare, I do not think we have any members here who have any negative side effects. I would say the first thing is to take Finasteride, you'll stabilize your hairloss and maybe regrow some as many of us, with no downside. Avocor and the rest are just snake oils, do not waste your money on them. Mopar and MrClean you have found the best community here, so take advantage of it, you have many questions and all the answers are here, take your time, read and learn from the forum posts and the learning center website. First go to: http://www.hairlosslearningcenter.org/ that's the multimedia site Then come back here to post your questions once you get the basics. We are here to help you, that's what we do.

Welcome to the forum Mrclean, Most people do not get the negative side effects of Finasteride although at your young age I would consult with a dermatologist first to make sure. I would think you could take Finasteride safely but check first. It sounds like you have done some research and Dr. Armani is a fine surgeon BUT he is quite controversial, if you run a seach you'll see that he tends to be quite agressive in his restorations without much concern for the patient''s future as in "aging gracefully". Sure you'll get instant gratification but what happens in 15 years when you have almost no donor area left and there is a thinning area or bare border between your transplanted hair and your native hair??? How bad is that going to look??? I would definitely get 3 or 4 other opinions from Coalition surgeons, this is the best investment you can make in your future right now, take your time and make sure you compare different opinions. If you care to share them with us we'll gladly help you and guide you.

Patience is golden. It's no fun waitinng but your reward will come.

Welcome to the forum Dazza.

Welcome Mike, I looked at the site and this seems to be a solid clinic, they do strip and FUE techniques. As usual some patient pictures look good, some fairly inconclusive. My first gut feeling is rather positive but this needs to be researched thouroughly, we'll have to wait and see if anyone here has heard of the clinic.

Salt-N-Peppa this looks like you've made the right decision in your choices regarding coverage and density. After 10 days I am surprised to see how quickly you have healed and you skin tone is quite even. Very nice.

IMO one pass should do the trick for now .... If you have good donor supply, etc, etc ... You could get very good coverage and be happy for a long time. But who knows where you will be in 30 years???? My personal regret regret is that I discovered this forum after my first HT, I just underwent my second HT and If I had the knowledge I have now I would made different choices and yes, I would have had only one HT. I am hoping this one will last me forever but I am afraid there is no such thing so if I need a small touch up in a few years I'll probably consider FUE, if indeed I only need a low FU count. I do my best to maintain what have.

Welcome to the forum Ashley, Yes, I understand generic Propecia is now available but the cheapest alternative is to get generic Proscar and to cut it into quarters. I take 1/4 Proscar a day and it does not get any cheaper that this. Stay on the forum, read, research , learn, ask questions, we are here to help each other. When you are ready, give us your stats; age, pictures of your hair and you'll get plenty of expert unbiased advice.

Yes, it can take several months even a year or so before it eventually matches the tone of the surrounding area. It's due to the blood supply in the scarring tissue, I had other surgeries (nothing to do with HT) and my Doc told me some people are more prone to redness than others, I still have some redness left in the scar tissue more than 6 months later, it's starting to blend in though but very slowly.

Call any clinic which requires shaving the recipient area, like Hasson & Wong, Joetronic should know.

AAAAhhh, girls don't get our subtle humor ....

Ok thanks pushing40, I'll call a couple pharmacies to get the generic names, also I'll try to establish a cost comparison between generic Propecia and Proscar. I suspect generic Proscar will still be cheaper by a mile though.

Hey Nobuzz, I was too slow, can't remember, I think Bill pressed the buzzer before me anyway ...

You are definitely on the right track, it's all very normal.

I just responded in the previous thread you posted.

Good questions. First we'll need your stats, age, Finasteride or not and pictures of top and sides and even back to make sure your donor supply is adequate. Then some of us will be able to give you some estimations as to how many FU's you'll need for good coverage. Density is more tricky, with curly hair you are likely to have a definite advantage and you might be able to achieve a good appearance of density with say about 30FU/cm2 or maybe even a bit less. Recently there was a post by Dr. Nakatsui with pictures showing a density of 60FU/cm2, I have not heard of more than this. The limitations being the instrument size, the increased risk of transection and also maybe the vascular supply overload. With coarser hair you can attain a good appearance of density with much less per cm2, in my case of thin hair, I was barely at 20FU/cm2 and it was too sparse but I know that I would have been happy with this density if my hair were thicker.

You're right Pushing 40, but sometimes I think I must be a little twisted or something ... It just was so satisfying watching this consultant figuratively rubbing his hands in glee as I was naively asking the right questions, and leading him gently to close the sale. In both cases they were so hyped up they just did not know when to shut up and kept overselling me and repeating the same things, probably thinking, this guy is perfect, what a moron . We should do a hidden camera sometimes for laughs ...

Sure, I guess, if you are ready and wearing body armor you can just go to listen to them. I did it and also another hairmill to feel them, I was mentally ready and I played along but for a new inexperienced member it might be a different story ... I just had so much fun listening to their BS, I was even encouraging them and playing along, but I realize that's not for everybody.

Not easy to answer. Keep reading on the forum, look at the list of Coalition AND recommended Dr. Post your pictures so we can give you advice in your particular case, with your stats, age, Finasteride?, etc .... I will be reporting very soon on a newly listed Doc who just gave me my last HT a few days ago, keep an eye out for this comprehensive report.