harryforreal

Hi, Nick - Yes, I have looked at their website, and I think it is great - wish I had looked at it BEFORE I had my surgery, but I was a bit naive about medical practices. I must say that my opinion of medical professionals has dropped to just about whale sh!t on the bottom of the ocean, even though it's not fair to regard all medical professionals in this manner, but it's my initial reaction now. I still am interested in knowing how far back from your hairline your doctor started using 2-3 hair FUG's?

Yes, that is what I am saying at least. And I only wanted to thicken up my hairline at the front really - I don't feel the doctor listened to what I wanted or just didn't care - was just interested in making his minimum cost procedure. It's interesting to me by contrast that Dr. Feller and Dr. Lindsey have a "200 FUE" option - I probably would have been fine with something like this, but then maybe Dr. Feller/Dr. Lindsey would have said differently....I had 1000 grafts done - don't know how many hairs that was, or how they were divided or if they were divided at all. Also don't know how they were placed or where. I find it interesting Nick that you know exactly where your 1-hair, 2 hair, 3-hair, and 4-hair FUG's were placed: How far back from the hairline did your doctor start using 2-3 grafts if I may ask? I don't quite agree - it may be more dense on top where the hairs spread out, but at the bottom of the FUG if all the hairs are coming out of the same follicular unit then there is no density at "ground level" - which is what I see in my hairline. That is also the reason I think so many docs do pictures from above so much - looks more dense from above. But who is looking at people from above like a bird??? But I agree with your original point that doctors should break down the FUG's by number of hairs AS WELL AS indicate where those graphs are placed/dispersed across the recipient area on the scalp.

Oh, and Dr. Lindsey, I did check out Tafoya's training page - similarly pathetic before and after pictures... I just don't know what to make of this unregulated field...Can anyone literally just cut out hairs, make new slits, and implant hairs without state monitored training, licensing, and regulation? If so - where do I sign up?

Too bad you had to take down so many examples, Future_HT_Doc. It didn't look like there was any additional dissecting of grafts in the first Sean Rima video that was posted and now is removed. Interestingly enough, the Neograft video on Mickey85's link boasts "No Additional Cutting Needed" at 1:47 seconds: http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/169281-ultimate-manual-versus-motorized-fue-thread.html Regardless, it is pretty shocking to see Doctor Jeffrey Hall doing nothing more than administering anesthetic in the Rima video. Even the hair line is drawn in by the techs - and that's the only line they draw! No additional lines are drawn for dividing the scalp into different regions like I have seen in videos posted by some of the highly respected doctors such as Shapiro and Shapiro. I guess that's partly why the results posted on Dr. Hall's Austin Hair Graft website look so poor.... Honestly, it seems like these techs were drawn from some "Nails by Design" boutique....wonder if Dr. Hall provided Rima with a pedicure and toe painting while Rima waited....

Whoa, Cant Decide - I'm not a math person!!! The last math class I took was as a junior in high school! Ok, so, let me make sure I understand: Can't Decide: On average each implanted FUG (Follicular Unit Graft) has 2.2 hairs supposedly; but you believe the average number of hairs per FUG is closer to 2.0. Nick: You believe that the lower average number of hairs per FUG results in an appearance of lower density and in contrast a higher number of hairs per FUG results in a higher appearance of density - if strategically placed. I agree that surgeons need to post the graft breakdown AS WELL AS a diagram of where those grafts are placed. I love how Shapiro and Shapiro have on their website a diagram showing the dispersion of FUG's based on the number of hairs in each graft. I also love how some surgeons on here break it down even further into "fine hairs," so some say 156 fine 1-hair FUG's, 204 coarse 1-hair FUG'S, 233 fine 2-hair FUG's, 275 coarse 2-hair FUG's, and so on. It's interesting Nick that you believe that FUG's with higher hair count increase the appearance of density. I feel if my surgeon had used only 1's in the front of my hair the appearance would seem more dense because the hairs would be spread out more evenly across my head and lay down more easily thereby covering more of my head, In my case, all the 2-hair FUG's in the front of my hair line and in the front part of my hair I believe results significantly in a less dense appearance than 1-hair FUG's. They are too coarse, stand up rather than lay down, with no fine hairs in between - it looks like a sickly, old forest with thick tree trunks covered on top by growth but nothing in between the trees grows on the forest floor. Probably looks fine if you are a bird flying above looking for a nice target to bomb; but from the front it looks freaky. Micro-plugs essentially, but still very pluggy and not natural looking... I can't brush my hair back and find it absurd that after my hair transplant I'm still doing the "comb over" in order to hide these sickly tree trunks. Also the 2-hair FUG's looks like a bunch of little analog TV antennas sticking out of my head. Makes me think of the Saturday Night Live skit series "The Coneheads"....only I'm envisioning a new series entitled "The Antenna Heads"....

After pics at Hall Plastic Surgery.....a bit thin? **outside link removed by moderator**

The original video published on Apr 28, 2011. The below video published Feb 14, 2013. Is this really two years post op?

When was this video made? How does his procedure look now?

Shampoo speaks gospel.

It looks great - super clean and very dense - much better than what I got. If you're taking propecia even if it was harvested above the safe zone, then I wonder if it's really such a big deal?

I sympathize with you, Aramis. I, too, am dealing with weirdly angled hairs, as well as multiple unit hair grafts in the hairline. I would like to know if others think what Daska writes is correct in regards to hair angles improving by molding to the direction of combing:

At 2:24 seconds in the Neograft machine video, does the surgeon/tech suction up a 2 hair unit and implant it at the front of the hairline???

What is "permanent shock loss"? In this case Dr. Feller doesn't think it's an issue - or in any cases, for that matter. Is it a real concern after a hair transplant? Why does the other doctor think it's an issue?

Hi, Dr. Cooley, Again thank you for replying so quickly. I have been so emotionally distraught that I just needed to take some time off before returning to this forum. I think I meant 3 or 4 follicular unit grafts. I find your statement that it would be pretty rare for a doctor to use microscopic dissection to make 3 or 4 follicular unit grafts of interest. I have a 4 unit follicular unit graft at the very front of my hair line almost directly above my right eye. This doctor claims to use "Advanced FUE" - and indeed the extraction process was with FUE; however the implantation technique seems primitive at best - the front part of my hair line is made up with many 2 unit grafts that make my hairline look tufted, harsh, and overall unnatural. Whereas a natural hairline is made of single hairs (I guess?), mine has a bunch of little "V" types all along the front (as well as further in); or if the 2 follicular unit grafts don't separate into a "V", then they stick together and look like an extra thick tree trunk. Either way it looks unnatural at the front, doesn't match the hairs on the side of my head, doesn't really lay properly either. As for discussing my concerns with my doctor, no, I have not done this yet. I will, of course, but I want to gain insight as to what techniques constitute current medical practice in hair transplants. For example, might it be common medical practice for doctors performing FUE to NOT use a microscope to dissect hair units? Is there any "theoretical" or "practical" basis for using 2 unit grafts at the front of the hairline? And I see that on this sight you are listed as performing "Ultra Refined Follicular Unit Transplantation" - is this the description/qualification for using only single hair FU's at the front of the hairline? In other words, is it common medical practice for doctors performing FUE who are not described as performing "Ultra Refined Follicular Unit Transplantation" to place 2, 3, or even 4 FU grafts at the front of the hairline? I am also curious how you can select donor hairs for individual placement at the front of the hairline to create a soft hairline (that is, thinner, finer hairs), especially if the donor hairs are shaved down during the FUE process - or is the type of individual donor hairs that re-grow after transplant pretty much a crap shoot: some thin and fine, others thick and stiff? Also, when using FUE to remove grafts on the hairline, what type of scar is left? And when using electrolysis how often does it kill all the hairs in the graft? Is electrolysis so precise as to only target individual hair units and not accidentally kill all of the surrounding hair units? Lots of questions, I know Two last questions: I feel like I might like to travel to your clinic for a personal consultation. How far in advance is your clinic booked in the summer? And the second question is in regards to my prescription for Finasteride 5 MG. About 7 months after my hair transplant I asked my doctor to put me on Finasteride as I was concerned that the ingrowing transplant didn't look "proper" or adequately dense (he had told me originally that he didn't think it necessary as he didn't think I would have any more hair loss). The prescription says "Take 1/2 tablet by mouth everyday" - or 2.5 MG. But I have been reading on this forum that the standard dosage is 1.25 MG/day. Is there any danger to taking 2.5 MG daily for roughly 9 months now? Thank you. Sincerely, Harry

Another question, Dr. Cooley (one of many more to come no doubt), Is it possible to see pics of the transplanted hairline from straight on instead of at the 45 degree mark? I would like to see more pics of this gentleman's hairline from various angles. I have wavy/curly hair like this gentleman, but dark, sandy blonde. From the front I feel that hairs in my hair transplant hairline don't really match the color or calibration of the still intact finer single hairs on the sides of my face - but part of that is due to the many 2 unit grafts that look like a thicker, dark haired single. Very angering. I only came to this realization last Thursday after more than a year of plowing through the Hair Restoration Network forums and feedback from several other members.

Thank you, Dr. Cooley. My hair transplant has many 2 unit grafts along the hairline and in the "1-zone" you've designated in the attached picture. I am not happy about it. Makes it difficult to part without looking a bit off, and the overall look is a bit pluggy and not nearly as dense as I wanted. I was very specific to the doctor: "I don't want to be able to see an inch into my hairline". My exact words. I'm trying to gain insight into why my doctor chose to use these 2 unit grafts at the front of the hair line so extensively. Is it possible that if a tech implanted them, the doctor might have thought upon examination they were all 1 unit grafts? Also, is there a medical standard for what constitutes mini-grafts? Are 3 and 4 unit grafts mini-grafts? Or FU's? Or both? And finally how might you go about making surgical adjustments/repair? I know that's a bit hard to comment on without a pic to look at - and they will be coming. I just want to upgrade my iphone 3GS to an iphone 5 sometime this week to take advantage of the superior HD camera in the iphone 5 (and, no, I am not promoting the iphone 5!). Thank you.

very nice - looks very natural - and she looks very happy.

nice.

Very nice. I see the pictures of the original hair transplant, doctor, but could you please describe in your own words the problems with the original hair transplant and why you opted for additional density rather than any corrective surgery? Thank you.

I would like to see photos without the hair pulled back and down so tightly. Also, can't really tell how it blends into the rest of the hairline...

Nice, would like to see very close up of the hair line.

It looks quite good, but I would also like to see a picture without hair product, just dry hair.

Thanks, Mickey, for the clarification!

I have thought about my comment stating that this industry is sick since posting it yesterday - wondering what replies it might generate. I agree that with any industry there are good and bad guys; I also agree (from what I've seen of some doctors' photos such as Feriduni and Bisange) that it appears there are some truly great surgeons out there who can really make a significant improvement in people's lives - with the caveats that I have not actually seen in person their work, spoken with their previous patients, or been able to assess their ratio of satisfied clients to non-satisfied clients. Perhaps even my EXTREME dissatisfaction with my own hair transplant by the doctor who did mine is a fluke (even though since 16 months ago I have come across two other negative reviews - still, maybe the three of us are less than 1% of my doctor's clients and the remaining 99% run the gamut from mildly satisfied to totally elated). Nonetheless, it seems that the number of dissatisfied hair transplant clients on this site is quite high (perhaps satisfied clients are too busy out enjoying their Saturdays at the golf course with hair blowing in the wind to make social calls at hair transplant sites...). That this industry appears to me to have a significant number of dissatisfied clients and yet continues to saunter on with minimal regulation or oversight suggests the industry as a whole is indeed sick and in need of "treatment". But more importantly, I want to convey to Logan the gravity of making such a decision as a hair transplant - especially for someone who in my honest opinion needs nothing more than propecia/generic finasteride to live out his days happily at the golf course with his hair blowing....hmmm well....assuming that he keeps his military hair cut, let me rephrase that: live out his days with the wind blowing though his hair.....

Dr. Cooley, I am trying to learn more about surgeons' techniques for implanting follicular units. May I assume that you are implanting follicular units of 4 or less hairs? If not, what is the largest number of hairs in a follicular unit you would implant? And what type of pattern do you use to implant follicular units? For example, in Mickey85's post about hair transplant basics, he has a diagram entitled "Simplified graft placement protocol" which shows dispersal of FU's of 1, 2, and 3 hairs in three distinct regions. http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/170490-hair-transplant-basics.html Also on Shapiro's website there is diagram with a slightly different dispersal pattern: Recipient Sites Thank you for any input and insight you can offer.