Hello,
I wanted to post about my FUE procedure with Dr. Nader. Besides being an outstanding human being, he is unbelievably passionate about his work and my experience/results reflect this.
A Bit About Me
At the time of the procedure in March 2022 I was a couple months shy of 26. During my senior year of college I noticed my usual haircut started to look weird with how far back my temples receded. I knew I had to do something about it.
After some research I started with Finasteride/Minoxidil/Nizoral Shampoo/Derma Rolling in early 2019. I continued this on and off for about 3 years. None of them really did much for me, at the time I didn’t see value in maintaining vs. regrowth.
The Search
In late 2021 I started doing some research on hair transplants and ended up going with Dr. Nader after some virtual consultations from 7 different doctors, 3 located in Mexico. Cost, results and reputation were my criteria during the search. I was never considering a FUT and only considering North American doctors. I was able to get an appointment about 4 months out. Keep in mind his practice does zero marketing and still has a bit of a wait list.
Timeline
I flew into Mcallen in early March a few days before the procedure. I stayed at the Best Western - Mcallen Medical Center in a king suite. I decided to stay for 4 days post transplant as I work remote and wanted to recover in privacy. In total I was in Mcallen for about a week. The free breakfast across the hall and uber eats were my best friends. There was a Target within walking distance where I stocked up on snacks. I requested extra pillows for sleeping at an angle along with testing out my neck pillow the day prior to make sure I’d be comfortable the evening of the actual day.
Operation Day
Around 7:30 AM a private driver picks you up from whatever hotel you are staying at. Aaron was my driver and is an awesome guy. He completes daily trips across the border for his business or family which was very comforting to find out.
He took us to the border crossing which was roughly 20 minutes from the hotel. At the time you didn't need a COVID vaccine card or US ID to get into the country which I thought was interesting. You obviously need ID to get back into America.
About 10 minutes later we arrived at Nader Medical. Brenda greeted Aaron and I at the door and had me fill out some medical history. The suite is modern, clean and very secure. You are the only patient of the day and have a whole team of specialists supporting Dr. Nader to do the operation.
We went into his office for a 40-50 minute consultation. Here we reviewed everything from my history of hair loss, previous examples of his work, his background and story with hair loss and any questions I had. Nothing was rushed at all and his calm demeanor really helped ease my anxiety about everything. We took a look at my hair under some sort of optical wand which hooked up to his computer. We were able to get a good look at my donor area along with everything else to get a holistic picture of where my hair health is at/where it could go.
We drew several iterations of what the hairline should look like, and we ended up deciding on a conservative line with subtle imperfections that would look natural and age appropriately.
We then headed to the extraction room. I opted to not have any painkillers (have had some adverse reactions in the past). Local anesthetic is injected into the extraction sites and the operation begins. Music was playing the whole time - it was so painless I found myself drifting in and out of sleep.
When the extraction is complete you head to another room which the implantation is done in. This is also the break in the day where you can watch some netflix and have lunch. You MUST get the beef tacos, they are some of the best I’ve ever had. You can also opt for a salad.
Once you’re finished eating the implantation begins. This was also painless. You watch Netflix as Dr. Nader and his team complete everything. Dr. Nader is the one doing the extraction and implantation. Once complete you head back into the office to discuss post operation care and answer any additional questions you have. You square up with payment then head back to your accommodations in Mcallen with your driver - be sure to tip them! I was back in my hotel room around 5PM in time for a little dinner and movie before bed.
After recovering for the rest of the week, I flew home. For the next month and a half I was overly cautious about my head. It wasn’t until day 40 or so that I started working out again. Once summer really kicked into gear a couple months after the operation I was traveling and not thinking twice about doing any of my typical hobbies. For days I was out on the water I did wear a hat, but this was more to prevent sunburns. I was not worried about losing graphs or growth.
Towards the end of summer I had my annual full body exam with my dermatologist who was extremely impressed with the work. Only 3 of my ~10 close friends know I had the operation and no one has mentioned anything about the change in hairline after more than half a year.
Technicals
Follicular Unit Harvest Count
201 FU 1’s
940 FU 2’s
951 FU 3’s
127 FU 4’s
Implantation Zones
Zone 0 (forehead)
Zone 1 (temples)
Punch Diameter
0.8MM
Duration
7-8 hours
Medication For Recovery
Cefalexina (anti-biotic) every 8 hours for 7 days
Ketorolaco (anti-pain) every 8 hours for 7 days
Alin (anti-inflammatory) 2 in morning and night for the first couple days with a phase out period ending on day 7.
Spraying saline solution every 15-30 minutes (provided by Dr. Nader). I ended up doing this until all my scabs fell out.
Medication and Suppliments Post Transplant
1MG Finasteride - Daily
6,000mcg Biotin - Daily
Capful Minoxidil - 3x/week
Nizoral Shampoo - 1x/week
Regenepure Dr Shampoo - 1x/week (or as needed)
Regenepure Biotin Conditioner - 1x/week (or as needed)
I believe I was a Norwood 3A before prior to the transplant. I was originally going to post this at the 1 year mark, but I’m so happy with my current results that I am posting this 7 months post operation.
Want to thank Melvin and the team for keeping such a great forum running and all the contributors who help many people like myself with research and getting this done. More than happy to answer any questions.
TL;DR
I am extremely happy with my results and cannot recommend Dr. Nader enough.
Pictures
