Shadow of the EMpire State

Of course there's a reason. First, donor supply is limited. Second, significant early-onset baldness tends to be a harbinger of an advanced Norwood pattern. Demanding things "NOW" is a root cause of failure in all endeavors. I've no doubt of it; you're the same age and appear beholden to the same quick-fix illusion. A course for regret if ever I've heard one.

Is there any proof that he's even doing the extractions? The poster said he was "knocked out."

Give Doganay a chance to explain? Isn't the obvious insufficiency of his last explanation the very reason for this thread? Let's review: 1. There was an incident involving suspicious posters. 2. Forum members complained. 3. The moderators demanded an explanation from the clinic. 4. The clinic provided an explanation that forum members consider ridiculous, and now . . . 5. The clinic is being given another chance to explain? This reminds me of an old story from philosophy class in college: A new water well opens up in town, so a few of the townspeople line up with their buckets, each ready to get a taste of this clear, cold delicious water. So the man who's first in line drops his bucket down the well and pulls up a bucket full of sparkling water. He takes a drink and then immediately drops dead. So the man who's second in line steps over his body and drops his own bucket down the well. And like the first man, he pulls up a bucket of cold, crystal-clear water. And he takes a drink. And then then, a second later, he drops dead, as well. Now, seeing that the two men in front of him each dropped dead moments after drinking from the new well, the third man steps over both of them, eagerly drops his bucket down the well, and declares, "Boy, I hope I don't get any of THAT water!"

At $20,000 for a 2,500-graft procedure, I expect the doctor to be there. Sorry. I mean, you could do two of those a day and gross $2 million a year. Just how much money does he need to make? I'm not going to be part of any assembly line. Also, I can't help but feel that allowing non-MDs to do this critical work is unethical. If I get a spare minute, I'd like to do some research on the unauthorized practice of medicine.

You've gotta be f*****g kidding me. Are you serious? Technicians involved in he extraction? If that's true, he's going off my list.

Are you sure about that? Options were pretty dismal back then.

Isn't all surgery at his clinic performed by him?

Respectfully, it's not an improvement. Before he looked bald. Now he looks strange. And that's because he's got armpit hair on his head. Pause a moment and consider that in isolation: he has armpit hair on his head. Of course, my aim is not to insult anyone, but I think honest assessments have to take precedence. I disagree. Some people have distorted perceptions of reality, and frankly, that calls for some independent judgment. I've been on hair forums (off and on) since 2003. And there's an 800-pound gorilla that no one dares acknowledge: mental illness. In particular, I'm talking about body-image-related mental illness. Simply put, the fact that some men are so afraid of being bald that they'd sooner staple armpit hair onto a Norwood 7 pattern is a fair indication that they've come loose from their moorings. And in fact, this is precisely how so many of these Hollywood women wind up with duck lips, cats' eyes, and triple-H breasts. Their fear, anxiety,and insecurity pushed them into a desperate circumstance that clouded their judgment. The human eye is so discerning that it can often tell that something's awry *even* when the transplant consists solely of scalp hair. And that's because hair taken from the donor area does not have the finer properties of the hair that naturally occurs at the hairline. So it takes great surgical skill to make a hair transplant undetectable even when dealing with scalp hair. But when you're dealing with body hair, it's infinitely more difficult to achieve a natural look. And where, as here, you have to cover a large expanse with body hair, I think you really have to stop and ask yourself what you're doing.

If you think that looks good, God love you.

There are exceptions to nearly every rule. But the rule is the rule for a reason. And the rule in this case is that early-onset baldness is a very ominous indication. Granted, there are some people who experience significant pre-25 loss and then stabilize, but again, they're the exception. The majority of men who experience significant loss at age 22 are headed for an advanced NW category. Of course, I haven't met this patient, haven't seen his head, and haven't read his file, so I have no idea whether he's an exception. But having read these forums since 2003, I know that there can't possibly be as many exceptions as claimed. The majority of pre-25 patients are headed for advanced baldness and are not good candidates for surgery. Also, I have to ask you: If you could press a button and go back to 18, would you have gotten that surgery with that doctor? Or would you have waited and gone to someone else?

OK. So he's 24, and you say that he's been researching hair transplants for "at least" two years. In other words, he's been noticeably balding since "at least" 22. Perhaps even earlier. "Might" and "If"? He's had noticeable hair loss since "at least" 22 and maybe even before. So the question isn't whether he'll need another procedure; it's whether he'll have enough hair left at 30 to justify it.

I think it's probably safe to conclude that he wasn't happy with the final result. I know that some forum members like to convince themselves that people who post initial-surgery pictures and then disappear are "off enjoying their hair," but that never made much sense to me. More likely, they're depressed and prefer not to revisit the issue.

This is a Beta/VHS debate that has an obvious, inexorable conclusion: FUE will prevail, and strip will be recalled with the same horror and disbelief now reserved for stories about flap surgery.

This won't end well.

Very marginal.

Are people still willing to go to Ankara?

Follicular Unit Strip Surgery: the only corrective cosmetic procedure that requires a corrective cosmetic procedure. It'd be laughable if it weren't so sad.

Looks terrible.

Yes, it is. But you need to see how effective the drug will be for you. The more aggressive your balding, the less effective it tends to be. And I don't think you can determine its long-term efficacy after being on the drug for a few weeks. Some, sure. Most? I don't know. Heh. We play the hand we're dealt. There's no other choice.

Bad Result - Los Gatos, CA - Hair Transplant review - RealSelf

I'm not sure that's necessarily the correct interpretation. Recall that these are not native English speakers. I take Erdogan's email to mean that he's not promising to move forward with the surgery and that he wants to see you first. But I'd imagine that if you passed the test, they would go forward with a procedure before you left the country. Might want to clarify.

You're thinning in a NW5 pattern at age 26. That's a fairly ominous indication. Frankly, I think any transplant at this stage is too risky. If you are tolerating the medication, stay on it and then reassess at 30.

FUE obviously produces better scarring on average. That this is even a debate is a testament to the lengths to which self-interested people will go to make money. Shame on those who do it, and my condolences to those who believe it.

He doesn't look so great for 3.

Good result, but that's a lot of grafts for a relatively small area.