recedingboy

You had aggressive hairloss and should have been on finasteride and should not have risked it.

I agree that if someone has aggressive hairloss they should be able to commit to finasteride if they wish to slow it down or stop it. Hair transplants help but should be combo'd with the meds.

For someone that does not want to be on meds for ever and wish to keep their doors open, they should consider FUE transplants so that they can buzz their hair down in the future thereby reducing the difference between bald and non bald areas which minimizes the appearance of hairloss.

Now you are on 2 mg of finasteride daily - TOO MUCH. You either take no finasteride or go overboard?

Take 1mg or less per day. Most studies have shown .5 mg to be about 80% as effective as 1mg finasteride (which was tested and showed 83% or so success).

good luck

Questionmark,

Hope everything is going well. I did see your pictures from September. The density looks really good, you have quite a bush growing there!

You still have another 5 months of potential growth so that is pretty amazing considering.

When you get a chance, if you could take some closeups. Based on my previous response you know I probably over analyze things but the reality is 99% of the population does not. At some point there can be those that sit and do nothing that continue to obsess looking for the "perfect" solution (like me) and then those that go and do it and even if not 100% perfect, they are 99% and at least those get it done, and move on in life and - as you said, stopped obsessing over their receding hairline.

It is sad on one hand that such high economic burdens are attached to hair transplantation at the same time heartwarming to hear of doctors such as Dr. Bhatti who still keep it reasonable. That actually gets "brownie points" from me. To compare anyone's hairlines to those of Dr. Konior (who charges at least 12x as much as Dr. B.) is illogical. I do hope those that run this site consider recommending Dr. B. and give him a fair price considering he does for so many.

the work looks like it will turn out well, but man a lot of hair has been shaved considering its a strip procedure. That will be impossible to conceal without looking strange. I though with FUT's, minimal shaving is required?

I know associations with the various organizations (I believe this website too) carries with it what can be a hefty price tag in terms of membership or affiliation fees.

I sincerely hope that some of these organizations will give Dr. Bhatti's clinic some consideration that he charges such reasonable rates.

It would be disadvantageous to many users who cannot afford higher priced tag clinics to have to pay more due to Dr. Bhatti having to recoup his affiliation/membership fees from patients. I hope he is able to maintain a lower cost structure.

This is my 6-month update post with progress pictures. (pictures were taken on the exact date, but the this forum post is 3 weeks delayed).

 

I have let the hair continue to grow, with no haircut. The thickness of the sides is certainly still in sharp contrast to the entire frontal & crown area. With 6-months elapsed, I do now see and feel a noticeable difference in the amount and thickness of the hair along my front hairline. This is where we placed the most focus during the entire first day of the procedure.

 

My present feeling is... I am unsure. I see the results of the procedure coming to fruition. But with my hair loss still so significant, I may cut my hair short again, to better balance the thickness of the sides and the sparse coverage on top.

Looking at immediate post op photos, it looks like few, if any grafts were placed at the vertex. Your situation seems complicated as you appear to be a diffuse thinner. Based on 6 months and the location of the grafts, you are probably in line with what is expected. More and more hairs will grow as time continues. For your situation I think you would look best buzzing your hair down to like a number 1 or something

pm me if you need any advice traveling in India.

Hi guys thanks for all your interest. Graft proposal is to correct my hair line as my previous attempt was less than pleasing. Then a general pass from front to back to create more density. I feel very at ease that Dr Bhatti will be able to achieve this.

 

Cost

 

This plays a very strong factor in my decision as i feel we all pay to large of sum to gain our confidence and lifes back. This proved by my previous procedure costing 6k with very little back to me. I want to keep you all as interested as i can with as much info i can possibly give back to this community, so feel free to ask as many questions as you would like. I will be updating weekly so i appoligise for any replys that may not be right away.

 

Travel

 

Right guys the boring bit but i did say i will let you know everything i can.

Flights are with virgin atlantic flying premium economy as it is around 9 hours air time. I leave late at night 2200 to be precise. I land in Delhi 1100 i then catch a connecting flight to chandigarh at 3.45 arriving 1 hour later.

Dr Bhattis driver will be waiting for me to then deliver me to J.W Marriot hotel which seems to be the perfect hotel with everything i need to feel as comfortable as possible. With its own living/sitting area a complete sq feet count of 480sqft. My procedure is on the 25th so plenty of time to have a look around and enjoy what ever the misses wants to do. More than likely spa time. BORRRRING. Never mind i am sure i can find some kind of alcoholic beverage to keep me from commiting spa suicide. After the procedure i will be catching a flight into delhi a day before my flight home as there was no connecting flights for that tuesday. The marriot hotel was my choice as i expect i will still be wanting comfort. Departure is on the 30th at 5 past 1 arriving uk time at 1745. I will update weekly apart from when i am in india as i think i will have plenty of time and experience to share with you all.

 

Thanks all who have a general interest i will try to do my best in helping this comunity.

Hey Denny,

Found the thread. Thanks for the detailed post. Very useful info for many of us.

Your question re: reimbursement of travel costs, is that a yes or no, and if so, what portion of travel costs are reimbursed?

Also, where can i learn more about his one step process.

And do you think he is steadfast about the bank transfer/credit card accruing 18-20% tax? I can't imagine people carrying cash of more than $10k around.

Also, how did the political situation seem? I'm thinking of going nov./dec. possibly... thoughts?

I agree with recedingboy - if the guy looks this good at only four months? He's look great at month 7, and amazing at month 12 and beyond. I think this is a home run for a guy with a receded hairline.

 

Questionmark: Can you snap a few close-up, well-lit, well-focused, hi-resolution pics of your actual hairline and post them here in this thread? The HT Journal/Blog site shrinks the pics down to tiny size. I'd like to see some more detail to get excited over, since I'm almost exactly one month behind you in the waiting period of my most recent procedure, which was also all about the hairline!

I want to clarify I think you have misunderstood. I think Dr. B offers tremendous value in terms of cost to density. I do not think he is a "home run" for receded hairlines. I think his hairlines require a bit more artistry, thought and close examination of how hairlines actually look on guys with no hairloss.

That being said, I believe Dr. B is a standup guy (ANYONE with those kind of rates for FUE must not be greedy), and his density looks, to me, as good as the best from Europe. Artistry, softness of hairline, not so much.

Regarding the poster stating it is rude to talk in 3rd person, I certainly did not intend it that way. I don't think most Westerners would either. Sorry if you felt that way anyways.

Thanks for the posting, and please keep the progress coming. The more information and options for all of us, whether we be Eastern or Western, wealthy or cash strapped, whatever or wherever we may come from, the better. No one surgeon is the right choice for EVERYONE.

With only 2300 grafts to fill in that much receding and lower your hairline substantially, I'm not sure I would expect it to get too much thicker. You definitely look like a new man, but I would expect a follow up surgery to fill it in more. Maybe I'm wrong, but those 2300 grafts were stretched quite a bit. You seem like an early grower. I usually have awesome growth at 4-5 months too.

 

How do you like the hairline? Hard to tell from the photos... Is it soft? Does it have macro and micro irregularities? How do your friends and family think about it?

I think he will have noticeably more density in the next 8 months. This is usually the case.

Even if you look at guys 10 months post op, then 24 months post op, their hair looks to get better and better.

Thanks for your comments!

 

@recedingboy: I don`t know if I have that amount of salt in the house ;-) But you`re right mate, me too I am yet thinking about some hairline touch up in order to make the hairline softer. I asked Dr. Bhatti about that, and he said he could add some nape or arm hair f.e..

I think every surgeon has fields in which he is better, and maybe some in which he still can learn.

I guess Dr. Bhatti obviously reaches incredibly low transection rates, which is awesome. So far, I think Dr. Bhatti is at least one of the best to go to for larger sessions (NW4+) and BHT. After my fancy, his hairlines could be a little bit more irregular.

I am sure that if the patient talks with him about that prior to the procedure, Dr. Bhatti will create a hairline according to the special wishes of the patient. But he is also very ambitious and always wants to improve, at least that`s my impression of him, so I guess if one talks with him about that, he may take a little different approach in his future clients considering the hairline design. I guess I will talk with him about that. Nobody get`s born a Konior ;-) Actually I anyway wanted to talk with him about that, and ask him if he will perhaps pioneer in placing nape or arm hair in the hairline for every client`s hairline or at least offering that to the patient explicitly. I think that would be great and he would get unbeatable in every field ;-)

 

Having said that, it is not that my hairline is pluggy or looks somehow artificial. Not at all actually. People I meet that don`t know about the HT don`t look at my hairline at all, even in a close conversation. Also if I look at it from a distance or the other way, very close, I am not 100 % satisfied, but I am totally ok with it. It doesn`t look unnatural, it is like a natural hairline, but not as soft as it could be. But I`ve seen people having such hairlines by nature. Of course a hairline with more irrgegular elements looks somehow better..

@HairKlapto: You`re right, on that area with that amount of grafts I think I can`t expect much much much more, I realisticly think that I am about 60 % or so. If that`s right, I`m gonna be a very very happy man after 8,9,10,11,12 months. Yet can`t wait to see the end result

 

Please keep in mind that it is still a very early stage, and considering that, I actually can`t expect more than what I have now. I surf the net a lot looking for progress reports and results, and I`ve seen such bad results and yield rates from surgeons who charge you 3x, 4x, ... 10x than Dr. Bhatti. If I look at most of the other hairloss websites here on the HRN, with patients having paid prices per graft that me as a student couldn`t even think about, I think my progress is at least in the upper third.

I completely agree with you on this thought. And Konior is at least 9x as much per graft FUE btw, I spoke with him!

The fact that your growth rate is good is what is most important imo, because donor supply is limited it is a tragedy to lose that!

Even though the pics are not ideal, some of your earlier pics did not indicate a pluggy hairline. Just not as soft or irregular imo as it could be. If I went with Bhatti I would probably ask for a conservative hairline, fill in the density, then later on go to a [high priced] euro clinic for fine tuning the hairline. Like I said, best value approach.

The reality is I have seen guys who have had FUT procedures from "average" clinics and could not tell they had work done, so I doubt anyone can tell you did.

This is consistent with my impressions, great density, but so so hairlines. It would not be inconceivable to have the majority of the hair transplanted with Dr. B, then go on a later date to get a fine tuning of the hairline from a small, higher cost per graft, hairline specialist. This is the best of both worlds approach.

Questionmark: it does not look bad though, please take my comments with a grain of salt and someone obsessed with hairloss. Your average joe wouldn't notice anything.

Hey Recedingboy-what did you end up doing for concealment. I'm in a similar situation, scheduled for an FUE and thinking of shaving my head until month 4 or 5 when it starts growing in.

HI,

Have not done it yet, so bump for those that have.... is continually shaving/buzzing super low until MONTH4/5 the best way to visually conceal you had hairloss?

Tripadvisor is your friend:

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Looks nice

my take on Dr. Bhatti:

Fair. Everyone knows FUE procedures are more time consuming (even with motorized) and require more careful handling than FUT procedures, yet he still charges a bit over $1USD per graft. That is amazing. He uses the motorized SAFE tool, that FUE masters in Europe do not use (they use manual). At the end of the day, though, the results I have seen and growth yields have been impressive (i'd eyeball them at an easy 90% plus from what I have seen). Hairlines are not as soft as they could be.

In terms of getting that poor bald chap into a new look with hair at the lowest cost and still able to shave/buzz down your hair and have no scar, there is perhaps no better bargain from my research. Are there more artistic surgeons out there that can produce more natural or appealing hairlines? Yes. But be prepared to spend 5x as much. He serves the market of the 99%, which I respect him for doing.

Please do that once u have it !

I had discussion with Dr Radha once though she sounded knowledgable I thought after a point she becomes a little irritable to prove who is the Dr kind of thing, I started asking questions to her and though she said I don't mind answering it but she said reading on the Internet will give you what only about 5% knowledge about HT with that you cannot compete with a HT surgeon on what best practices does she adopt ! Which kind of disappointed me a bit. I thought she was not open with someone getting too much in detail about the HT Procedure !

I spoke with Dr. Radha before. Knowledgeable, pleasant. She probably gets many calls a day from people like us that think we know everything about hair transplants. ALL doctors I have spoken with have some degree of confidence/arrogance (imho, Radha was confident though, and did not cross that line into arrogance).

The only fault I could find in my communications with her, if any, was that she is pro strip by far. Kind of like Hasson and Wong. Does that make them any less than a world class clinic? no. This is something that a lot of clinics push (strip) including Feller, who performs both.

I think the hairline design is good, but I find Bhatti's hairlines to sometimes not be as soft or feathered as they could be. That being said, I'm being picky and the value certainly cannot be beat. "normal" i.e. non hairloss obsessed individuals of the general public won't look as closely as we lot would.

what do you know of an HT recommended doctor in New Delhi?

the only one people talk about on here is Dr. A's clinic. Between the two, if I was okay with having strip, I'd probably lean towards Dr. Radha.

Dr. Radha has a good rep in India and abroad. She does strip procedures though. Presuming you are okay with that I think the results posted on here speak for themselves. Very small scar, very clean work, and I read patients writing how she has a "team huddle' and strategy drawn up on the chalkboard. Seems to be a professional approach. Price can't be beat of course either, but in addition results seem good. One patient per day. Personally involved, these are what I have read.

Most FUE surgeons can partially shave an area in the donor to avoid shaving the whole donor but the quantity they will be able to extract will be fewer. Don't expect 2,000 grafts that way. I have seen actual examples of the partially shaved donor from Feriduni, True and Dorin, Feller etc. True and Dorin don't need to shave recipient areas but most other surgeons do advise it especially if implanting into weaker areas.

 

Thanks for the compliments too

The intent of not shaving is obviously about keeping one's hair as similar as possible post HT. Even if the doctors perform a smaller session and strategically trim hair, will it matter if we are bound to lose hair anyways due to shockloss? In other words, is the limiting factor in maintaining similar hair post op the shockloss "wild card" - is shockloss guaranteed to occur?

If one does not experience shockloss and they go for a smaller session, I would think the chances of them preserving largely the same look pre op and post op is doable. Thought?

Great thread Mickey.

Which, if any, doctors are able to do an fue procedure of say 1,000+ grafts with minimal shaving of donor and no shaving of recipient areas?

Of the following docs who do you think is best for providing an attractive looking (good aesthetics) and dense hairline:

Bisanga, Feriduni, Koray Erdogan, Keser?

Thank you

I will email Stephen directly. I have brought this issue up with him before, but feel further discussion on this public forum will only serve to leave negative impressions of how communication is with their clinic and that is certainly not my intent.

Thanks

I found Stephen to be incredibly quick to respond to any concern that I had, be it at the initial consultation stage, or later pre and post op. My emails were answered within minutes.

 

I think Dr Bisanga is often in the US so hopefully you can arrange a consult in the future.

 

Regards

ejj

I wasn't aware he was in the U.S. often. In fact from the impression given, i gathered only 2-3 times per year (even though I understand his family lives in the DC area). I feel a lot of traction as far as my direction of hair transplantation was lost in not being able to meet a top fue surgeon (apparently none in the U.S.). I have already had a meeting with a top FUT surgeon.

I'm meeting Dr. Bisanga in 3 weeks for a consultation. Having done a lot of research on many docs.......there is a remarkable consistency in his results, in both FUT and FUE. There are very few docs who can make this claim from what I have seen.

 

So far I have obviously only dealt with his rep Stephen, but again I'm impressed at his response times as well as well as the information included in each response.

 

From the extensive results that are available online, to the procedures of the clinic/staff, it would be a definite yes from myself.

The communication with them has been pretty good, but one time I requested to be informed of an upcoming consultation but somehow it did not happen. I lost some time on that as far as getting my HT performed. Otherwise the communication has been fast.

Sugarhighs, when I was 17 and didn't have any hairloss, I was on top of the world. I started to recede at 18 and became very conscious of it. By the time I was 24 people started to point it out. That really made me conscious of it. I started to date a girl when I was 26. At 30, She broke up with me and I was devastated. With the hairloss, it made me feel more insecure and led to depression. I had difficulty getting dates. Im not sure if it was from the hairloss but it probebly showed in my level of insecurity. Today I feel more sure of myself and my confidance is back. I feel much better about myself and to answer your question Im on 5mg avodart daily. Good luck to you.

 

Receding boy, I can only comment on Fut with Rahal. I'm very confidant that if you get fut with Rahal you will achieve a nice result. If I would have chosen the fue route, I would have gone with Bisanga.

Holy crap bro. 5mg Avodart... isn't that quite strong? Many people say that .83 or otherwise 1 mg reduced finasteride performs almost as well as 1mg. Youre on 5 mg of dutasteride...