1978matt

Oh dear..get ready for the backlash from the anti-FUT brigade! One thing I certainly agree with is that not everyone is a great FUE candidate. If your 2,3 and 4 hair folicles are not closely packed it's harder to extract and a bigger punch size may be necessary.

Awesome. As natural as you can get

These do not sound like credible doctors. Are they recommended through the HTN?

Looks better already. Early growth?

I think for the most part whether it is FUT or FUE, transplanted areas don't generally look that great on a close cut. (Grade 1 -3) Of course there are exceptions (dark skinned / asians seem to fair well). I think if you want a shaved look you have to design the transplant to cater for it, e.g.more even denisty and less requirement to dense pack at the front. But if you change your mind and want to grow it out it may look thin. You can't always have it both ways. Lets say SamSpade shaved all his hair off and the scar could still not be seen. The chances are it could still look quite odd even without the scar. So I guess my point is that you have to design for a shaved look or grown out look - one or the other but not both.

Very good. I'll give Naomi Campbell your number the next time I see her!

Must be a relief to have it done and it will be even more so once the sutures come out. Fingers crossed for a great result!

Keown appears diffused on top and wears a lot of concealer. Ricardo Carvalho had a nice conservative transplant. Gary Lineker has definately had a small amount of work on his hairline. Jose Enrique still has his own hair. I reckon Chris Martin wears a piece.

Who was Jason Gardiner kidding with that piece? He looked like one of the BeeGees. I noticed Frank Lampard's crown is starting to go a bit and he's starting to show a loss of density in the front.

If this is your natural hairline I'd be carefull about tinkering with it at all. You look like a Norwood 2 or 2A hairloss pattern if I had to guess. Hair transplants are certainly not 'Barbie Doll' style any more. That technique went out in the early 90s. In my opinion the latest techniques are not generally 100% undetectable to everyone. I think they can be to 99% of the population but to the informed eye you can usually tell, particularly on the big procedures and up close. Unless it really bothers you and is affecting your life I'd probably say don't bother. In my own particular case the front 3rd of my head has practically no hair left which bothers me no end!

Finasteride / Minoxidil in combination is recognised as giving the best results, but if you had to do one or the other I would take Finasteride. Use both of them religiously for 6-12 months and take photos to chart any progress.

I would run a mile if any of those clinics suggest you should have surgery. You haven't lost enough hair and it's not in a confined pattern. As JohnnyD says, Propecia / Finasteride is the way to go. Find out what the side effects are, understand that it is only 2% who get them, and give it a go. Get a prescription from your GP or a recommended hair doctor. The only guy I know who's credible in Philly is Dr Gregory Pistone. (although not recommended on this site)

Nice write up - enjoyed reading it.

Update. No real change.

Really nice and more to come.

That's fair enough but I contacted 4 other clinics and each of them got the Dr to review my photos, 2 of the coalition Drs replied in person. In each case they were cautious in explaining the limitations of what I may be getting into and recommending finasteride and minoxidil for at least a year. I do think you are producing great results though and am ok with the recommendation.

Looks great. Did Dr Rahal use the robot?

There is information out there on other forums: - He has been disciplined by the GMC for deception (RED FLAG) - He works for various chains both past and present (RED FLAG) - The results on the Vinci website look pretty average and not to a sufficient detail (RED FLAG) - There is little or no positive reviews which kind of suggests people who take time to research online do not go there (RED FLAG) If you like to live dangerously by all means get a transplant with Vinci. But when you have a Ferrari on the driveway (Farjo or the Belgium Drs) you don't want to drive a Chinqicento..

I've told a couple of friends but the family will not be told. They would go ape as that is the type of people they are - very critical of anything anyone does! I probably see them every 5/6 weeks so I'm aiming to stretch it to 7 or 8 before visiting with a 'bad haircut'. I have 32 days off between HT and work but it is a lottery as to how much redness or shockloss I will have.

There was no mention. He showed a few videos of the procedure, took a density reading and drew a hairline. Gave a few costs etc. If they hold consultations abroad they should get the Dr to attend, much like the top clinics do. Otherwise they just come across as salesmen.

The only issue I have is their consultation process. I met with a guy called 'George' from HDC about 18 months ago. He is not a medical practitioner but made the preliminary assessments as to whether I was a suitable candidate, the number of grafts and very little mention of maintaining my hair with meds. He also said that I wouldn't need to meet/interact with the Dr until the day of the surgery and that I didn't need to. He emailed me a few times offering 'discounts'. They should improve their practices in this respect.

The only Richard Rogers worth recommending is Lord Rogers the world famous architect. You would be better off going to one of the Surgeons recommended in Belgium.

Your hair is somewhat reminicent of mine back in about 2005-2007. I'm afraid it will probably get worse more than likely. Get on finasteride and minoxidil for at least a year. You could be a great responder and find that you don't feel the need for a transplant. After a year then some conservative hairline work would seem reasonable.