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I had surgery with Dr. Pinto a few years back, also from the UK, and yeah I had to pay I think it was £500 for the same tests. Don’t think there’s much of a way around it, my surgery was coming up though and I’d left it last min, so I didn’t really shop around too much and just paid for it. You could just get the HIV and the two Hepatitis tests done at an STI clinic, which I would assume will be free, and then pay for the rest through a clinic, which I would think will be a fair bit cheaper. Still probably gonna cost a few hundred quid though I’d imagine.

Hahah, nah, I wouldn’t leave you all hanging like that! Sorry though guys, my bad for the cliff hanger… Melvin is right though, just been doing my thing and haven’t been thinking about my hair all too much to be honest, hence the lack of posting. Been really busy working, and more than that, what was once something that I would constantly think about is no longer something I really give much thought to! I’ll always be knocking about here though from time to time though, so I won’t disappear - apologies again though, I know it’s frustrating when someone disappears, so my bad. I’ll wash my hair in a bit and come through with some pictures, but in short, looks the same really, I grew in fairly early so there’s not been much change in the latter months. Overall I’m very happy - I think I’ll want a little touch up at some point, and my main (only) gripe would be that ideally probably just implanting an extra 5-600 from the get go would have made it perfect, but if anything I respect pinto’s call to keep it on the more conservative side and add a bit more density later if needed. It’s the best call when you’re young realistically. Plus I have very fine hair and pale skin, and HT’s aren’t miracles after all! thanks for all the kind words and interest - pics to follow shortly I promise.

Thanks man!

Thanks man! Yeah, it’s solved the main issue. I think a small touch up in the future for density and perhaps also have my right temple point brought out a little bit and I’ll be pretty content! Sure - I took these pics this morning as I read your comment when I woke up, so excuse the bed head! But to answer your question, couldn’t be happier with the donor area - certainly no overharvesting or particularly noticeable scarring. I had a zero guard (with a foil shaver so really down to the skin) skin fade 2 days ago, so this is how it looks a few days after that. It’s pretty hard to tell. Pics are in different lightning sources, some inside by the window and some outside.

Its really hard to say from just pictures, but if the doctor was reputable and used the correct magnification, then It’s likely to just be the camera angle. Your hair is short in the pictures and you’re taking a photo from directly above. Your hair on top is going to be seen from an angle pointing more straight upwards in relation to the hair on the sides from this position, with that hair growing more straight out from the sides of your head obviously. As a result, from this point of view, the hair on the sides is going to be seen as layered on top of each other a little, with the hair on top analogous to looking down on a forest of trees from above - you can see the gaps a lot more clearly from directly above. It’s pretty common I would say for the top to look kinda thin when people shave their heads, to some degree at least. But as I say, if the surgeon who said he can see no notable miniaturisation is reputable and used the proper tools to inform that statement, then it’s unlikely you’re thinning to any major extent. It’s very easy to see even slight miniaturisation under proper magnification and he’d notice. if he just used his eyes, however, then it means next to nothing and he really had no idea if your hair was thinning or not in the midscalp and crown.

I know - not trying to misrepresent the result, hence why I wanted to make it as clear as I could in my post and state that this is not the result in it’s completely natural state. Just saw the numerous requests for an update and didn’t have time to wash my hair and take pics, so this was just a bit of an update for right now as I said. I’ll be sure to update in the same conditions I did with my previous photos for a fair comparison very soon

Cheers Melvin - hope you’re well! Been following along with yours in the background - looking good as well mate.

Yeah, I know man - don’t get me wrong, I’m really happy with how it’s turned out and am grateful for the result I’ve had! Just that I think 300 ish grafts either side without really lowering much/at all to boost the density will pretty much give me exactly what I want. you realise the extent to which even the best transplants are truly only an illusion of density only after you’ve had one I suppose! I was certainly very well informed prior to my HT and knew all of this, but it’s one of those things you really only grasp fully when you have one I suppose! would be nice to not have to use concealers at all and literally just get out the shower ready to go, even if my routine of doing so only takes me 30 seconds or so! But to be honest I can more than live with doing what I do now indefinitely, so I’m no rush. Will probs give it a few years until I’m in my 30’s and assess from there. thanks for the kind words, appreciated!

No problem man. Thanks for the kind words and for following along! I’ll come back with a better update and more detailed pics soon.

Sorry for going missing - hadn’t forgotten about updating my thread/wasn’t going to just disappear. Just been really busy and to be honest I don’t really think about my hair much anymore and haven’t spent much time on here as a result! Full disclaimer - I will have a little bit of residue of concealer (toppik spray) on my transplanted area in these pics… not freshly applied or anything but I hadn’t shampooed my hair since putting some on the day before. This certainly will be making it look a bit thicker than it is in reality, plus the photos aren’t the best lighting wise etc I know. Just a disclaimer! Apologies - I will come back and post better quality photos with freshly washed hair soon, but for now this is just a quick way to give you guys an idea of how it’s turned out (albeit a bit better than it is in a completely natural state…) i’m pretty happy with it, I’ve sort of forgotten about hair loss now and all of my issues with it. Definitely changed my life, but I think I will need a small touch up at some point to be 100% happy, just to add some density. I currently spray my hair very lightly with a bit of toppik spray every other day or so (which usually stays on enough for a wash or two inbetween) and this makes it look pretty much as good as I could ask for. I only use a little, mainly to just paint the scalp a little for the appearance of density, maybe 2 seconds of spray each side and I’m done.

Do not go to KSL - they’re awful, have had multiple lawsuits against them in the past for butchering peoples heads along with unethical practices and generally do not do good work, at all. High pressure sales tactics from what I’ve heard, combined with ‘celebrity’ endorsements as with the love island people you’ve pointed out, is their whole business model. if you do some more research online you’ll find a lot more about it, I think there’s a page called KSL truth or something on Facebook. Anyway, I’ll say this: you’re clearly at the stage of just finding out about transplants and what they have to offer. You need to do some more research for a while so you can find out what makes a good doctor, learn more about the progressive nature of hair loss, meds, and so on. Use the site to do so before you think about booking in for a HT.

Thanks for the shout out, man. Looks like a clean job and you made a good choice in Dr. Pinto! Strap in and enjoy the process - I’ll look forward to following along

You’ll be absolutely fine, you’re worrying for no reason. I would imagine you’d have to seriously damage your skin deep into the dermis to affect the hair follicle. More like severe burns that would lead to scarring rather than a hot scalp from a hair dryer. Think about even when you burn yourself badly in the sun - the hair on your arms, legs, chest or whatever doesn’t fall out and the follicles are left completely undamaged even though you’ve actually caused quite a bit of damage to the skin.

Looks really good for 4 months, man! You’ll be in a good spot in the next couple of months, I’d let it grow out a little on top now. Congrats - you can relax and enjoy the rest of the ride now

Hope you’e well mate! Yeah, apologies, I didn’t even realise I’d hit 6 months until I saw your notification here - been a bit busy the past couple of weeks interviewing for a new job and stuff so was a bit preoccupied, I’ll get an update out in the next few days

Haha, thanks for the shout-out, man. Glad to have been of help, you’re a good guy and you deserve that NW 1 coming your way! Work looks impeccable as to be expected from Dr. P and as you already know, your starting position combined with the work done has put you in pretty much the best position anyone could be in to come out looking like you’ve never lost a single hair in your life. Surprised to see you went for the full shave in the end haha, but I think it was a good shout tbh as you’ll just look like you’ve got a short hair cut in a months time. Very happy for you mate, and I’ll certainly be following along! Congrats man.

You’re in Europe I think? I know that Dr. Mwamba definitely offers a complete no shave procedure. Dr. Pinto has cases where he has done the same in the past, but when I visited him last year for my surgery he said we had to shave the area transplanted into, so I’m not sure if he has stopped doing so. I've also seen cases from Bisanga in the past where has left the recipient completely unshaven for smaller touch ups, may be an option as long as it’s a small number of grafts

Thanks a lot guys, kind words are much appreciated!

Yeah he described mine as the same, very thin/fine, although he didn’t tell me to manage my expectations around density or anything. He knew I was fairly educated around hair transplants to begin with so I think he knew that I know what the deal is anyway, but he actually just said it should look good and pretty dense etc regardless when I asked how much of a problem it is in his opinion (having fine hair that is). I don’t know what your situation is exactly, but my area to fill was relatively small in the grand scheme of baldness at I believe 38cm2, so I suppose even with fine hair it’s not too tall of an order to provide adequate density. Maybe if your case is a bit more area to cover (again i don’t know, I’m asking really) then it makes sense to temper expectations? Also, it is coming along nicely and it’s only 5 months so still pretty early, but as I said in my update there are conditions where it doesn’t look so great and lacks density, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I require a touch up of 4/500 grafts to be completely happy, but who knows at this point.

Cheers everyone! @Melvin- ModeratorYeah, Dr. Pinto said it was around an average of 50 microns or so overall, I assume a little less in the sides/above the ears/nape areas and maybe a little more in the occipital etc, but around about that, so quite fine really.

Cheers guys - thanks for the encouragement!

Some more pics from the past week or so where I have some concealer applied and how I generally leave the house with my hair looking:

5 months and a week update: pretty happy with where things are up to, it looks full in certain lights and lacks density in others, but I’ve just been using a little bit of toppik spray as concealer which makes it look pretty good in any situation and takes me 30 secs to apply after a shower. Hopefully in another 5 months I won’t need to do so anymore, but I think it’s possible I’ll need a very small touch up to be completely happy as my hair is very fine, but it’s far too early to tell at this stage. The first 5 pictures are my hair completely soaked/dripping wet out of the shower and combed back, the 6th is damp but nearly dry again just combed back and the rest are my hair dry in the same room but some are right by the window with the light shining directly on my head, so as harsh and can be, with some a few steps back and as you can see it looks much fuller. Trying to be as transparent as possible and show the realities of how it looks in different situations. It’s easy to make it look great or pretty awful depending on how the picture is taken.

No need to worry, and I can tell you from experience having just hit month 5 myself in the past week myself and also having been in a similar looking position that you’re in at month 3. its probably the period I began to get the most stressed as it felt like crunch time during that period of month 3-4 as you expect big things at that point and feel like it’s gone wrong, but it’s all working out now and I’m sure it will for you too. I’ll post a 5 month update tomorrow, but here’s me at month 3 and me today at just over month 5. For clarity, in today’s pictures I do have a little bit of concealer toppik spray in the recipient area behind the hairline, which certainly makes it look fuller than it truly is in reality, but it’s all I have right now until my update tomorrow and you get the idea regardless. Hope that helps to ease your concerns.

Hi mate - yeah things are coming along well, things are thickening up and looking pretty good. I think by month 6 I'll be pretty satisfied. To be honest, I'm already satisfied in that I can style my hair and it looks really good already and I pretty much have already forgotten about my hair troubles now. I generally just use a bit (a very small amount) of Toppik spray about half a cm behind the hairline at the moment when I go out and it looks pretty much like a full result now. I'll post a detailed update at the 5 month mark to show where things are at. Still a little way to go, but I'm pretty much sure it's smooth sailing from here.