Grouse

May I ask how you got in touch? Zarev seems to be too busy to respond, no?

Thanks all! Yeah I was surprised how optimistic H&W and Eugenix were given my donor looks not great in harsh lighting + short. Maybe I'll optimize for an in person consultation first if at all possible. Donor is thick and seems great when grown out a bit. But short and under direct lighting it seems not the best. Maybe I'll also reconsider doing topical Dut or something too... Thanks everyone!

Both have said I’m a candidate for 3.5k - 4k grafts, may need a second surgery for the crown later. I’m 30 and on minoxidil only. Had really bad sides from liposomal fin (Farmacia Paratti) @ 1% in the past. May try topical dutasteride thru FUE clinic first to stabilize and hope for the best with sides… Interesting! H&W didn’t mention FUT, said donor was average to above average. Maybe I’ll ask them about this option. Thanks!

Thanks to this extremely helpful community, I've gone from overwhelmed with options to deciding between 2 surgeons: H&W and Eugenix. Any advice for how to decide between these two? Pictures of my situation included - I have fine, straight hair and am on my way to NW6, so not ideal characteristics. From what I can tell, the pros / cons look like: H&W: Pros: Less travel time, can tell they're detail oriented (Dr. Hasson called out my sides from topical fin in the past may have been due to micro needling via my long email! good eye), extremely well respected and long track record. Cons: Don't use beard hair as much Eugenix: Pros: Best in class for high NW cases, liberal use of beard hair, extremely well respected here Cons: Longer travel time, less years to see how cases age over time (not too worried about this though) Anyone had to make this decision before and have some advice?

Wow that's great to know! Thanks for sharing. If Eugenix signs off, is that typically a sign that you're "good enough" to operate on, even if others won't?

Can you share pictures of your donor here? Curious what some clinics think is reasonable and some think is not possible. Freitas doesn't really do BHT from what I understand, so that could be part of it.

Following. Your hair appears to be very similar to mine! Dirty blonde and maybe on the thin side. Your donor looks thick. Do you have any pictures with it cut more closely?

Thanks! I've been consulting with well known names thus far, but haven't explicitly asked for this info. Wasn't sure if it was standard info or not to ask about.

Sounds like you got the highest end package. May I ask how far out they're booked? Did you do a video consult with them before pulling the trigger?

Full of questions recently, hope that's alright! Such a helpful community, its hard not to ask these questions as they come up

I see many members talk about hair characteristics on here. Many have even quoted an exact "micron" thickness of their hair. Are there any doctors that can give you information about your hair characteristics? For instance - I think mine is fine, but that's just my own self assessment. Any consults out there that can share more precise info like micron width, donor density / sq cm, etc.?

Surprising! This is the first non-stellar mention I've heard of Eugenix, particularly of their highest end packages. Common knowledge around here seems to be that they're best in class for NW 6/7. I'm high NW too and they're on my short list. Following to see what others say.

Quick update. Hasson quoted me at 3k - 4k grafts. However, I got a shorter haircut on the sides and am slightly concerned about my donor quality. Seems thinner than I thought… Photos are under the harshest lighting I could find (direct forward facing bathroom lights). Will send these pictures in to doctors and see if that changes anything.

This is extremely helpful, thank you Dr! I’d be thrilled with that much scarring. Hopeful that I’d never need to shave down fully, but it’s good to plan ahead for a worst case 👍

Thanks Rahal. I agree that planning to shave and having a HT is a recipe for disaster. Before I decide to do a procedure or not, I want to understand what I might reasonably look like if a transplant completely fails or otherwise doesn't take and I need to shave 10 years down the line. Trying to understand the risk / reward tradeoff a bit more!

Wow that looks fantastic @Melvin- Moderator! Its not shaved down fully, but I'm hard pressed to notice any scarring at all! Know its partly genetics, but I wonder what else influences whether or not scars are visible. Punch size? Would love to have the piece of mind going into surgery knowing I can shave down to zero in the future if things turned out disastrously...

Does anyone have pictures they could share of what FUE scars look when someone has to razor shave their head? Google images is showing wildly different pictures on how noticable scars are... I'm planning for a HT and am trying to think about worst case scenarios where I'd need to shave my head in 10+ years. What might I look like if I ultimately needed to share after surgery? Think this is important to know so patients can better account for the risk / reward of surgery, but haven't seen many topics on it. Thanks all!

Excited for you @Gatsby!! I’ve been a lurker for a few months now and followed your story closely. You deserve a tremendous outcome and I’m sure you’ll get it with Eugenix and all your knowledge and research. Hope you’ll stick around here in 12 months when you have a luscious set of Fabio locks 😜

The man, the myth, the legend! Your temples look great. Did Ferreira do those for you as well? Hoping I get 50% of the result you did! Same fine, dirty brown hair. For anyone watching this thread. I was quoted ~3k grafts with Eugenix (2500 frontal third, 500 crown). Think I’d need more but it’s hard to tell with pictures. Bisinga said he’d need to see me in person. Was added to the list next time he’s in the US. Ferreira said he’s not taking new consultations at this time Will report back with findings from other clinics as I get them. Hopefully this helps others just starting their process.

Have you consulted with Eugenix? I’m far from an expert, but I find it hard to believe you’re inoperable. If folks like @Zoomsterand some other NW6/7 with repair work can come back, I don’t see why you can’t. You may need to over harvest your donor like crazy, get SMP, use beard hair, and fit farm your donor - but couldn’t it be possible? I’m new so maybe I’m wrong - just thinking out loud

This is an AMAZING transformation, congrats to you sir! You must be thrilled to have ditched the system once and for all! If you see this @captaincalico - did you consider any other surgeons besides Mwamba? I've seen incredible results from him, but his name shows up more in repair cases or fit farm cases from what I've gathered. This is a 10/10 no-repair case and is making me seriously consider him over Eugenix (who I see recommended for advanced NW cases like yourself and I)... Thanks for your time

When you add the "Fast Track" to your cart, it says "item is out of stock". Emailed them and a rep said Ferriera not accepting any new consultations now, including fast track! Was put on a waiting list for a consultation. Thanks Gasthoerer! When you say visit 3 clinics - do you suggest visiting in person? Some, like Eugenix, I'm not able to visit easily as they're a 12hr+ flight away... But I'd also hate to book an appointment and then find out I'm not a candidate when I actually fly in. Any suggestions? Thanks Melvin! Temple peaks definitely would be nice, good to know not everyone does them. Thinking I'd like to visit a surgeon that specializes in hairlines first, and then go to one that specializes in graft yield / illusion of density for the back 2/3's kind of like how you appeared to have done yours. I'll keep this thread updated on where I end up.

Wow this looks incredible @gimpoli! You’d have no idea your donor was even touched based on these pics! Would you consider another transplant if your top thins out in the future knowing you can “fit farm” an overharvested donor pretty well with Dr. Mwamba?

Hey! I’m on my way to a 6, and trying to book a virtual (maybe in person, I live close) with him. Not sure he’s even up for taking on NW6’s, happy to report back.

Hi DrT! Crown I’d be ok mostly ignoring or addressing in a future session. I’m open to a low dose topical fin, albeit a bit scared 😳 I’ve tried! He’s so busy they are no longer allowing fast tracks. On the waiting list, but not too hopeful. I’ll report back if it opens up. Yeah length is hiding a lot. I’ll shave it in a week or two and share (want to see if bald is as bad as I think before I commit 100% to surgery). I’ll order a 0.25mg or less equivalent topical maybe. I’ve lost pretty steadily since my early 20s I’d say. Yep, ok with leaving crown alone for #1. No issues with multiple surgeries either. I don’t think a NW1 is feasible with my level of loss. I’d be estatic with a strong NW2, probably could live with a NW3 if dense enough up front.