cargo65

 

Cargo65,

 

I get a lot of emails and phone calls and many of the people that reach out to me ask me about FUE. I think FUE is fine if one understands the reality of FUE. One of the questions I ask these people is why they are interested in FUE. The answer is the same, because they don't want a strip scar and so they can shave their head as short as they want to. This is logical. I then tell these people to ask the FUE surgeon of their choice if they will guarantee that they will be able to do as they wish, just like they told me, to buzz their hair as short as they wish. To date, no surgeon I'm aware of will guarantee this. Why is this?

 

I'm not aware of very many (if any) ethical hair transplant doctors that will guarantee a patient anything other than their best effort. Do you know of any FUT doctor that will 100% guarantee in writing (contractually) that their work will yield an imperceptible scar? I'm guessing no.

 

Cargo65, make no mistake about it, there is nothing misguided about my statement. You simply misunderstood as I was not laying blame on the surgeon. Rather, I was pointing out that this was not from a back room, no name operation. The blame does not go to the surgeon but rather rests solely on the technique.

 

The point I was poorly attempting to make is that by you saying "....and this was done by a well known FUE doctor..." it seems like a plain attempt to cast doubt on entire FUE transplant technique entirely. In other words, it's like saying "hey guys, look at these poor results, and this is from one of the most well known FUE doctors around. If that's the best he can do, what can you really expect?"

 

 

.......

Do you know if Dr. Rahal uses a motorized tool for FUE?

Yes, I have confirmed with Dr. Rahal himself that he does indeed use a motorized tool for FUE.

I do apologise Cargo. It was not routinely being performed as far back as I quoted, but I think that was when the first surgery was carried out.

No need to apologize at all.

Cheers!

I would say most of the guys I have seen that have scar repairs are usually from outdated techniques.

 

Remember strip has been around and evolved since early 1950's as far as I am aware.

 

There are guys now that do have scar revision from the latest technique but far fewer and even less from a world leader such as Hasson& Wong.

 

I not having an arguement about the two procedures, but anyone looking at potential hair restoration surgery should have an open mind towards both procedures, and not just be fully focused on one or the other as they both have their positives and negatives.

 

I also think that the topic that is not brought up enough is what would a donor area look like if it is completely exhausted from Fue, as baldness in general is progressive. I can imagine it would look thinned and shredded, but maybe I am wrong.

Absolutely, patients should consider the pros/cons of both techniques, and in my opinion FUT offers the best option of the two in terms of yield, cost and results.

Having said that, FUE is a viable method, especially for someone who wants to keep a very low cropped haircut. In my opinion, a lot of FUT practitioners and their patient counselors fail to grasp that. I believe they sort of think "if you're gonna go through the trouble of getting hair transplanted, why would you want to shave (crop) your hair off?" Obviously, there are number of reasons. For me, I have some diffuse thinning with a little bit of recession in the frontal-third. I have thought about the idea of getting FUE to restore/reframe my hairline with the idea of later shaving my head and getting scalp pigmentation once my balding progressed to the point that I couldn't mask it. I like that alternative much more than having a FUT procedure only to eventually be left with whispy thin coverage on top and an ear to ear smiling donor scar that would prevent me from shaving my head. That's just me though...

I don't believe the strip method has been utilized quite as long as you've stated (1950s). Ironically, I believe a lot of surgeons in the 1970s/80s were using a more archaic form of FUE (if it could be called that) that caused the doll-like, punch hole-sized, pluggy look we all grew fearful of.

FUT will leave a scar though. Now, because of advanced suture techniques, the scars have become more refined, but every ethical hair surgeon will tell you that you'll end up with a scar. For those who plan on keeping their hair at a longer length, it's not an issue and typically unnoticeable.

whats there to clarify?:confused: over time many FUT scars can and will stretch horribly. ive seen it for the last 10-15 years. they may look great at first but over time some stretch.

 

how often do you se FUE patients going to FUT surgeons to repair their scar after a HT surgery?

 

this thread isnt about FUT so try to stay on topic or create a new thread if u want a comparison. im simply looking for poor FUE result photos to give those a better understand of what poor results can and do look like.

I agree with you GNK. Are scarring issues related to FUT apparently new news to some in the world of hair transplantation?

No.

The reality is FUE/FUT are surgical procedures that cause trauma to the skin and thus can leave scars dependent on any number of variables. It is accurate to say though that by in large, FUE allows for less noticeable scarring, especially for those who desire to have closely cropped hair. In other words, all things being equal, that if two patients with the same skin and hair characteristics received HTs (FUE & FUT), and both surgeries went as expected, the patient that had the FUE procedure should be able to cut his hair much with a much closer grade and higher up his scalp and sides than the patient with the FUT procedure.

It's also misguided to post a loaded description like "...this is from a well known FUE surgeon" as if to subtly lay some blame at the surgeon's feet. Every patient has their own unique physical characteristics that can affect the final results. It would be just as misguided to post a picture of a FUT patient with a stretched out scar due to poor scalp laxity or condition (ex: keloid) and simply say "...here's a result from a well known FUT surgeon in Canada..."

agenteye, thanks for the reply.

I'm actually "on-call" to possibly do a surgery with Dr. Rahal this December for 2,500 grafts. I keep flip-flopping between FUE or FUT. Dr. Rahal has some impressive FUE work, but he's also has had some recent less-than-stellar results that are well documented on this forum. The motorized tool makes me wonder, especially when he's doing these high graft counts. I know that no surgeon will bat .1000, so it's not a knock against him.

I agree with AJ, scar is a pain in the ass especially if the person is perfectionist. There will be a day when the patient cant be longer able to restore all of his hair in a certain age with a certain level of NW. What you see on the net is only one year post op but you wont imagine how would you look like when the final balding process ends. When AJ decided to do FUE he has a point which is to shave his head to look normal and good rather than looking weird with head of hair and balding spots because of being hesistant to show the scar to public and start looking weird. A person should always think how would he look like 10 years ahead especially if he isnt ready to take the finasteride.

 

Alix, i agree with you too, Motorized FUE tool in my opinion is very commercial, big risk of damaging the graft, many top clinic are using it to save time, dollars and efforts. All top FUE surgeon are using manual extraction devices like Lorenzo, Bisanga and Feriduni. Dr. Feriduni was using motorized tool and he found its not good enough so he went back to manual to achieve better results and patient satisfaction. I would never have a FUE session with motorized tool at all whether its motorized rotating punch or powered SAFE system..etc. Unfortunately most of North American docs are using them these days to meet the demand of the HT market, motorized FUE tools offer the ability to remove 500 – 700 grafts per hour, whereas manual punch grafts allow surgeons to remove around 200 – 300 grafts per hour. Its about production and time saving but not about quality.

 

"With using motorized FUE tool, HT doctors can't feel what's going on as well and may end up with more transections. Also that the motorized drill may generate heat which could be bad for the grafts" "Some types of work require slow and meticulous attention to detail like an artist with a small paint brush. Sure it takes longer but I don’t think you can compare it to the painter with a spray gun". :-)

Do you know if Dr. Rahal uses a motorized tool for FUE?

Mickey85. Its useless for him to write anything as Dr. Rahal is no longer a recommended doctor here plus he may reached a deal from Rahal in order to keep it low. Just forget about sugar and Sean and focus on your future session scar and hairline revision with Dr. Feriduni this January.

Wait.

Not a fan of Rahal anymore HARIRI? At best, you toned your comment in an unfortunate fashion. At worst, is sounds like you may have an axe to grind.

Not being recommended is vastly different than not being able to post due to local Ottawa law.

I checked out Dr. Gho's (HASCI/HST) website. While the procedure method seems to be a benefit to the donor area of the patient, I wasn't left very impressed by the results in the recipient area. Although, to be fair, most of the results shown (if not all) were taken from the nine month mark in the recovery process.

It was posted last week that Dr Rahal wont be able to post any of his work on here. Its some medical law in ottawa that doesnt allow Dr's to have an unfair advantage over other clinics in that area basically. I believe its a law only in ottawa.

I see, thanks!

I thought he was in trouble or something...

Wow, not a single bit of advice?

Easy to see why he's one of the great surgeons around.:cool:

 

Shame we wont get to see more of his work on here now :mad: That ruling in Ottawa sucks.

Care to elaborate?

Hey there guys (ladies?).

I'm getting ready to pull the trigger and go under the knife for my first hair transplant before the end of the year.

However, I've been thinking about the shortterm and longterm benefits of getting a HT for someone in my situation.

I'm a diffuse thinner, and I'm wondering what really is the best course of action for me. I've been on Propecia regularly for more than 10 years, as well as minoxidil (on again, off again) for about the same time.

Is a hair transplant even recommended for someone with diffuse thinning?

Thanks in advance for any info you can provide.

Thanks for putting that together.

Cargo,

 

Are you unfairly maligning JoTronic or trying to make a bad joke?

 

Nonetheless, your comments on this topic are not only inappropriate, but unfounded and untrue.

 

If you are going to post here, please stay on topic and don't make baseless attacks.

 

Thanks,

 

Bill

Please explain in detail how you would know of my personal interactions with Jotronic? After answering that, please explain how you've concluded a conversation you've never heard is baseless, unfounded or untrue?

If you believe it to be just a bad joke or innapropriate, then I will be careful not to make any further comments of that nature. If you think it's baseless or unfounded, then I'd love to know how you've surmised that.

What, no Jotronic to spread the SMP fear? Oh, that's right, he basically represents an SMP practitioner now. :cool:

Great stuff.

Looking forward to scheduling mine sometime soon with Dr. Rahal.

Hey guys, I'm super late to the thread, and instead of reading it in its entirety, can someone give me the summary of what's happened.

I'm gathering Sean got a less than desirable result with Dr. Rahal. Is Dr. Rahal balking at helping him with a second procedure?

Very nice hairline. Good work.

I've put it in my package when I've traveled for years now. I did have concerns like you when I first started doing it though; I was nervous security would think it was gun powder or something. Actually, I always have my wife put it in her bag in case we get stopped and asked what it is. I don't want to tell people that I use it to disguise my thinning.

FWIW, my understanding is that Asian hair can be ideal to work on in terms of shaft angle and straightness.

For what it's worth, take it as a good indicator of Dr. Rahal's integrity (but not necessarily a poor reflection on Hasson & Wong). Dr. Rahal has your best interest in mind and isn't just out to make a buck.

Cargo,

 

It is good when you say that the scar cannot ever be covered up 100%; that is a good dose of reality. My expectation is to reduce the contrast between the strip scar of the hair around it, realizing of course that the scar could still show in certain lighting/situations/etc. At this point I just want to cut my hair stubble-short and be at peace with the back of my head, eg.(tap a nap in the middle of the day, sleep at a hotel without rubbing dermatch all over it, a million other situations).

Lol, seriously, I know all about it. Toppik is worth its weight in gold to me, but it's such a hassle. Everytime I have to use it it's like performing a masterpiece before I leave the house.

dpeeze et al.........

 

I've also been researching SMP, though only for a short time. My main concern is two ear to ear strip scars (donor area) and possibly filling in some of the horseshoe (back of my head), where it constrasts from dense hair to less dense. Just sent an online consult to GLI and I will report their response in case anyone is interested. A lot of the concern seems to focus around the hairline. My hairline is thin, but I have had enough ht's so that it looks passable when using a 7mm guard or less. Just looking to cut my hair with a 3mm and lose the dermatch/gel nightmare my life has become due to the strip scaring.

 

Any thoughts??

Couple of things...

1) The fact that you've had multiple hair transplants (and I'm assuming you've had the work done to your hairline/frontal-third...) is a good thing. As you know, SMP only really works when the individual shaves their head. The more natural stubble you have the better the SMP can blend in and give you a very nice natural look.

2) HT scars cannot ever be 100% disguised, removed or completely masked (outside of longer hair covering it). I've seen some really nice SMP work done on HT scars that really muted the look of the scar, which I'm guessing makes a lot of folks happy, but I've never seen a scar completely "disappear."

3) In regard to hairlines... SMP is no different than HT work in that it's all about the artistry of the practicioner. It's in your best interest to research the different clinics and find someone with a portfolio of work that you're comfortable with. There is a clinic whose work with hairlines seems really good in my eyes. I won't give the name on here because I don't want to be accused of being a schill for their company. Bottomline, you have to be willing to go where the good clinic is. I'm in California, but I'm not in love with any of the hair transplant clinics out here, so I'm willing to fly to Ottawa or Vancouver to get work done when the time comes. It's not even a question in my mind. I think the same would/should go for someone getting SMP work done.

Anyways, those are my two-cents.

I don't trust any supposed patient who takes pictures laying down with a tiger.