MachoVato

As I see it, your hair is already looking quite good, especially for only 6 months. You will get more improvements everywhere, I have no doubt. I too wish I could have lowered my hairline and closed my temples even more. Truth is, at my age (50) it's actually pretty aggressive. But there is no way to really know how it will look after 12 months when we're sitting in the chair with shaved hair and marker lines on our head. We make the best decision we can and agree to it. In my experience, they were quite ethical. I asked for my crown to be included but they advised against it because I was already at the 4000 graft mark. They could have taken more money, and I would have paid it. But they convinced me to do 2 procedures. I don't know about your friend. I'd like to see those pictures. To be clear, not being a trichologist doesn't disqualify an experienced clinic from recognizing a compromised scalp. And certainly, a trichologist isn't automatically a great HT surgeon. I wish you the best outcome on your transplant. No matter where you go for your second one. 👍

Dr. Rahal does nice work. Calls himself the Hairline King, too. 😁 I don't see many reviews these days, but I loved Dr. Keser's (Turkey) hairlines. He does small procedures, limit of about 700 grafts per day. He was the first surgeon I wanted to go to, would have been a 4 days procedure! I like the hairlines from Dr. Ferreira (Portugal) too. Soft and natural. Lately, I'm most impressed with De Freitas (Spain), too. If I hadn't already had my hairline done, he would be in my top 2 or 3 options. My hairline was done at HLC (Turkey). I'm only 9 months in and if give my results a 9.5 rating (humble brag). I love it and it's slowly getting better. 👍 I just completed my second HT with Dr. Bisanga (Belgium). Worked on my crown and a touch up on my temples. Too early to talk about results, but his hairlines are also beautiful. From experience, his attention to detail was excellent. He would also be in my top 2 or 3 today. You'll get lots of opinions on the subject. Expect to spend more money for this level of surgeon. Do you own research. Best of luck!

Yesterday I had my transplant with Bisanga. I was there today for a check up and to pick up some oral minoxidil. I had a great chat with the doctor, too. He's very friendly and so is the team, very accommodating. Best of luck!

After a long trip from Texas to Florida to Spain to Belgium, I arrived last night just in time to order a pizza and go to bed. Bright and early I made it to the clinic for my second hair transplant. Now I'm back from my procedure with Dr. Bisanga in Brussels. The objective was to cover the crown and touch up my temple points. Estimated 1,500 grafts, ended up with 1,528. Singles: 100 Doubles: 978 Triples: 450 The grafts were pulled from the back and my right side, not my left. Under magnification, my left side, above my ear, is weaker. Bisanga said there were mostly singles and doubles there, so leave them in place. His focus on donor management is impressive. I'll add more about the experience late. But for now, here are some pics. I'll leave my hair like this for a week, until I can shave it at home. Crown Before (month 8 after first transplant) Temples. Single hair grafts only. Something I didn't really notice before. I had some scar tissue in the back on my head. In the middle was a fat multi-graft. Dr. Bisanga punched it out with a 2mm punch. And then decided it would be best to cut out the scar and seal it with a single suture, which I'll have to have removed next week. I thought it was a very "pro" move. There was nothing wrong with it other than it looking a bit funny when shaved. I'm thrilled with this unexpected level of service. And funny... some clinics give headbands, some hats. Bisanga gives this crazy thing. Now I look like a grandma.

Welcome, Troy! There's a list of recommended surgeons on the site. I don't see any in NM but take a gander anyways. It'll get you started in your journey! https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/Consult-a-Physician/hair-transplant-surgeons.asp?sr=HRN

It's really coming along nicely! Yup, the next few months are nothing but good news!

I agree. It's understandably rough at 5 months. I'm certain it will improve over the next 5. Happy growing!!

Before I fly out to Brussels to meet Dr. Bisanga, here are a few quick pictures from my car. Month 9 Dr. Bisanga will be filling in my crown. But I'm also going to fill i my temples. How does this look?

If that's the same, the donor doesn't look particularly strong. Maybe 2000 grafts, if your sides are good? Not sure if a transplant makes sense for you. Sorry.

This is really great work! I love these hairlines!

My point is, with so many transplants his hair should be better than that. I mean, @mustang has had about that many and he has one of the best heads of hair on the forum!

9 transplants?!

When the bulbs create a new hair, the old implanted hair gets pushed out. Expect lots of them to fall out once the shedding starts. That said, some hair does just start growing right away.

Yeah, Bisanga is about 5 Euro (including 21% Belgian VAT).

I'll be there in 5 days. Can I ask how many people are in their office? I was planning to bring some small treats from Texas. I want to make sure I bring enough for them all to enjoy.

Yes. The critical part is the incisions, which determines the pattern, depth, angle and direction. This is Bisanga's process... "Dr. Bisanga will make the placement sites in the recipient area. His technicians will then place the grafts. The doctor monitors all aspects of your procedure, from checking the grafts before placement, to instructing where the grafts are placed in the recipient sites."

Between here and India are a bunch of highly qualified options. What clinic did you go to?

The truth is, only when you are sitting in the chair and are drawing lines on your forehead will you really know the number of grafts needed. Here's what it'll look like at HLC. My hairline was 34 cm2 and behind that was 64 cm2. We agreed with 50 grafts/cm2 (considered dense packing) in the hairline and 40 behind that. (34 x 50) + (64 x 40) = 4,260 That lowered my hairline about a whole inch. So you see why we are not sure why you would need more than 1500. But again, you'll know when you're in the chair.

Best of luck!!

Can't see your donor area but I assume it's in good shape. I'd guess you're in need of 2,500 - 3,000 grafts to fill in your temples and add density behind your forelock. You might even be able to lower the hairline 1/2 CM or so. You have some good doctors listed. Think about your budget. Demirsoy and Bicer are €1.25 per graft. I think Pekiner is €2.25. HLC is €2.5-2.7. Ferreira is €3.

Any update? I'm very curious about your progress.

The "pain free" injections are not really pain free. They say it's less pain, similar to being snapped with a rubber band. You can search on YouTube for "painless hair transplant" to see some examples. My experience was mixed. Some injections were tough, others I didn't feel at all. I was stressed out about this, too. I hate needles. But really, it's very short and next thing I knew I was falling asleep from boredom. They do give you an IV so they can give you medicine to for pain. If you ask for something to calm you down, they can give you a valium (I didn't take that). I didn't enjoy the injections... but I'm still getting a second transplant next week! Here's a short video of someone that went to HLC a couple months after I did. He talks about paint, too.

Super natural looking! And it's only going to get better. Congrats!

Yeah, I haven't heard any case where a European hair clinic was taken to court. At the same time, a hair transplant isn't exactly a high-risk procedure. You will be given local anesthesia to numb the skin, but you won't be put to sleep. With clinics at this level, you will be dealing with doctors not assistants/technicians. Nothing is risk free, but it's low risk. And these doctors all have the ethics to offer free fixes in the case of a poor result. That said.... I don't want to scare you but this story is a great read. This patient @Doron Harati almost lost his life and is now an advisor for Dr. Maras in Cyprus.