MikeTPA

I’ve been an admirer of his work for some time now and feel like he is a natural addition to the coalition. I particularly like his involvement in every aspect of the surgery/process including placement of the grafts.

Hi Butterscotch 7. I’m so sorry that you are having to deal with these unwanted side effects from your surgery. I’m glad to see that you are taking the time to let things heal. I agree with the advice you have had so far. In the interim, while you heal, I’ll suggest two different resources that may be of help. First is my dermatologist, Dr. Jill Waibel in Miami. She is a pioneer in the use of laser therapy to help scars heal optimally. She has helped me with some scarring and the lasers she uses don’t cause further hairloss (like some lasers do). If you are interested, make sure you tell her office that you have a fresh scar (early intervention is the best) and they will hopefully fit you in. The second resource, once your scar heals, is Priscila Iwama in Boca Raton. She is a medical dermopigmentation tattoo artist who specializes in using flesh-colored tattoo ink to cover face scars. Her instagram shows many examples of how she has made bad facelift scars disappear. She doesn’t have any examples on African American or dark skin, but I would guess there aren’t any differences other than the color of ink. I hate hearing of unexpected results like you are experiencing and hope that you find some resolution!

So glad that I could be of help. Keep me posted with your consult!

I think that Dr. Ben Paul in Manhattan may be worth a consult. He is a facial plastic surgeon who practices with Dr. David Rosenberg. He does both facelifts and hair transplants, so may be a good one to help with your problem. He's on instagram as @drbenpaul . Hope this helps.

Thanks for your kind words and encouragement, Matt and Spex - that helps a lot. I have a lot of faith in SMG. I like the way you look at it, Spex - the sooner they fall out , the sooner they can grow back!

Hi guys - I know that a lot has been written here regarding the growth timeline, but I'm curious about the timeline that most here began shedding their new grafts after HT surgery. The reason I'm curios is that I just had my second procedure with Shapiro Medical Group. My first time around, I kept virtually all of the grafts until about 3 weeks, then about 1/2 continued to grow and didn't shed at all.This time (surgery 13 days ago), about 1/2 the grafts seemed to be gone by 7 days and most of the rest, minus a few strays, seem to be gone now. I'm not really worried enough at this point to call them, as I know it will be a waiting game for the next few months anyways, but nonetheless curious enough (and just worried enoug) to ask you guys what your shedding experiences have been like? Anyone else loose a lot by one week but still get excellent regrowth later? This go around, I had about 1200 to the frontal hairline just to thicken it up. Both experiences at SMG have been really great btw - I obviously loved my first work enough to go back, and am hoping that my slight worries are needless. Thoughts?

Dr. Rose in Miami was on my short list of surgeons to consider. He was in Tampa, but moved to Miami. From what I've read here, Dr. Glenn Charles in Boca is great, too. If your list is confined to FL, these two are a must to consult with.

Check out Dr. Paul Rose in Miami and Dr. Glenn Charles in Boca Raton, about one hour north of Miami.

Thanks- will keep you all posted.

GuitarBoy- I'm early along in the process (one week post-op), but I had a wonderful experience with Shapiro. You can see the thread I started last week and follow the first week of my experience, including pictures. It has been extremely easy for me so far.

You'll be in the best of hands with Dr. Rose. He's a good man and a great doc. Very skilled, and since I last saw him, I think he's devoted 100% of his time to HT. Before he was also practicing general dermatology. No doubt the extra experience has made him even better. Good luck!

Thanks- and age appropriate was another of my stated goals with him, so I agree with you there. I'm not sure of the centimeter measurements. He didn't mention it to me. The three docs that I saw and liked (Shapiro, Arocha and Rose) all suggested nearly identical hairlines and graft #'s.

I consulted with Dr. Rose when he was living in Tampa. I liked him a lot and felt that he would have done a good job on my case. I don't have as much experience as others on here on examining before and after's of other docs but I liked what I saw in his office and also have an acquaintance who had HT done by Rose and he looked great. Once Dr. Rose moved to Miami and I moved away, as well, I decided to broaden my search since I would be traveling anyways. That search led me to the Shapiro group in Minneapolis, who coincidentally, worked with Dr. Rose for some time.

Hey Spanker- Thanks for your nice comments. I agree with you, the hairline could probably go a bit lower, but i'm not worried about going back for more if needed, but i think i'll be happy with what i have. To answer your question re: Propecia- i've only been on it for a few months. I wish i had started sooner, but too late for that. Part of my decision on how aggressive to go on the hairline (including Dr. Ron's guidance): 1. I had/have a very tight scalp, so we got just about the limit we'll get from a strip procedure right now. As far as FUE, i really didn't want to shave my head. I went into this deadset that this would be done (if at all possible) in a way that i can disguise the healing phase and keep it confidential. So far, so good with that, as i've been able to conceal the donor scar and lightly brush my existing hair over the grafts. 2. I have a little more thinning in the crown area and the area behind the hairline than i'd like. In terms of planning for the future, i really want to save as much donor hair for potential hairloss in the future and kind of just "wait and see" for now.

Thanks, guys!

Janna - thanks so much for posting those for me. You all were great, and the process was so easy. My only regret is letting myself stress out so much before hand. It really was a walk in the park. StaggerLee- it is amazing how clean the area is at day three. I saw my grandpa today and didn't tell him about it, and he said "it looks like the barber screwed up a little on the front." It's so clean that it just looks like a close shave or something. The good news is that I left my pre-existing hair long enough to gently brush over the grafts and I really don't think anyone will notice. Thanks for the comments. I'm hoping that the majority of my hair loss is behind me at nearly 44 and this will hold me over (along w/Propecia) for some time. Dr. Ron didn't want to go too aggressive on bringing the hairline down to allow for future planning if need-be. I wholeheartedly agree.

Awesome advice--thanks! I have one at home waiting for me when I get back tomorrow. I had forgotten that I had it!

Night one went pretty well. I felt just a bit loopy, but came back to the hotel and ate some dinner then camped out in front of the tv. I'm staying at a nearby Embassy Suites, and I ended up sleeping on the couch-- wanted to stay on my back instead of sleeping on my side and rolling over on my grafts. Since I'm a side sleeper, the couch forced me to stay on my back. Pain-wise, there has been very little. They gave me Vicodin, and because I was sleeping on my back and therefore on my incision, I woke up in the middle of the night and took a Vicodin because the back of my head was sore. Other than that, everything has been easy. I just got back from visiting the clinic and Janna washed my hair and took some pictures. She is going to post some here for me when she gets some time later today. I can't stress enough how easy this process has been for me-- easy physically and because the staff there is so nice, it has been easy emotionally. This place really is the world-class clinic that I'd previously read about and they are all exceedingly kind and patient-oriented.

Hi all- thanks for the encouragement and well-wishes. The procedure was MUCH easier than I thought it would be. In at 8 am, review of the game plan with Dr. Ron, then the numbing. After that, he removed a strip big enough for 1800 grafts and the techs went to work dividing them while Dr. Ron made the incisions. All-in-all, very easy and pain free. Just a few moments of slight pinches and a one minute span that felt like a headache. All were VERY quickly remedied with numbing injections. It really was a very easy day surrounded by great/friendly people. Right now, just feeling a bit loopy from the Valium and relieved that it all went as well as I suspected it would. I snapped a few pics, but can't figure out how to post with an iPad- that's all that I brought with me. Thanks again for your support and the valuable info that you all have contributed here.

Hi all-- I really haven't done much posting on this great site, but have used it as a research tool. You all have been a wonderful source of information for me in helping me understand the HT process and, most importantly, finding a fantastic surgeon, so thank you all for that. I'm having about 2,000 grafts placed tomorrow by Dr. Ron Shapiro. We'll use the strip/FUT method and the grafts will mostly be used along my frontal hairline, with some being reserved to cover a scar within my hairline above my ear. I'm nervous as hell, but also very assured that I've chosen the best doctor and the best clinic for my needs. He has multiple hairline examples that are exactly what I'm looking for, so he's a great match for me IMO. I'll keep you all posted (maybe too tired to post tomorrow afterwards) during my recovery and see if I can get them to snap some pictures. I can tell you that so far, everyone at the clinic has been amazingly nice. They are definitely very customer focused. Janna, Matt, Dr. Ron and the rest of them are top-notch in my book. I'm looking forward to being another one of their success stories.

Thanks, Matt and the others who replied. Matt, I'll look forward to talking to you in the near future and meeting with you all in person. Thank you for your reply!

I'm looking to consult in the near future with the Shapiro group. I'm curious--when I call for a consult, will they set me up with Dr. Ron, Dr. Paul, both, or is it my choice? If it is my choice, is one a better choice than the other? Is there any difference between the two as far as their "subspeciality" (i.e., is one better with hairlines than the other)? Is there a price difference between the two ( I know that Dr. Ron has been doing HT for longer)? BTW, I'm a Norwood II-III and looking for about 2,000-2,500 grafts to my frontal hairline and probably want to create sideburns. Thanks in advance for anyone who's able to answer-- I know that they are both extremely good surgeons and I would feel confident with either-- I've seen beautiful work from both.

Hey TampaMan- Congrats on your results. I sent you a private message if that's ok. Thanks for sharing your results. Your pictures on Dr. Rose's profile page look excellent. Mike

Thanks for the responses, guys. Your feedback means a lot. I figured that Rose and Shapiro worked together in the past, as they have written articles together and Rose also wrote a chapter in a HT book that Shapiro either wrote or edited. RCWest, you said it well that he is an underrated surgeon. I kind of felt like he was a rare find in Tampa, where any other talent is difficult or impossible to find. I will at least set up initial phone consults with the others mentioned to get a feel for them. After all, I guess knowledge is power, as they say and the more the better. Even if I end up going to Rose, it will be good to speak with as many others as possible to help me feel comfortable in my decision. I will keep you guys posted. Any more input from others would help. Thanks again.

Hey guys. I'm new to this site and glad that I found it. I am a 40 yr old Norwood 2a or possibly 3 and am really only losing hair at my temples with a fairly typical receding hairline that I can cover pretty well by brushing my hair slightly forward (which I am getting tired of doing as it looks like I am a 40 yr old trying to copy Justin Beiber). I am just beginning to research surgical options and becoming familiar with the lingo, surgeon names, etc. I recently consulted with Dr. Paul Rose in Tampa. His office is literally five minutes from where I live. The consult was great. Before hand, I spent about 15 minutes on the phone speaking with his coordinator who was very friendly and patiently answered all of my questions. The consult with Dr. Rose was also very good. He was very friendly and personable and not pushy or "salesman-like". He proposed 1000-1200 FUT grafts using the strip method for me (the thought of a scar doesn't bother me and his after pics of scars were nearly undetectable). He spent a lot of time very patiently answering the multitude of questions that I had and answered them all to my satisfaction. All in all, I left with a good feeling about Dr. Rose and feel like I would at minimum be safe under his care and at best could possibly get a great result from him. With this all in mind, I also don't want to limit myself to choosing him just because he is close and would consider traveling if there is a doctor who would give me a better result. That being said, I dont want to exclude Dr. Rose just because he doesn't have as many patients on here as some of the other popular docs do. Some other docs that I would consider, based on my research, are: Hasson, Wong, Rahal, the Shapiros (R & P) and Dr. Charles in Boca. Any thoughts/opinions that you guys are willing to share would be greatly appreciated, especially any Dr. Rose patients who have had long term results. Thanks, Mike