hairthere

This quote would concern me. taking meds has absolutely nothing to do with graft survival rate. and if only 50% survived your results would not look too great. you'd probably have large gaps in the hairline. regarding the "free" touchup offers, you are wise to decline those and rational in your thinking. best of luck and keep us updated on your progress.

A lame promotion from a lame clinic.

I waited 2 months before doing any heavy lifting. started jogging after 2 weeks and did cable work. every doctor provides post-op instructions which will include info on when to resume exercise, so you should follow them as closely as possible.

Rule #1 with HT surgery: DO NOT LET TRAVEL RESTRICT YOU. You are about to spend a lot of money on this procedure, so why not spend a bit more to go with a doctor that has a great reputation? Also, most top docs will reimburse you part of your travel expense. My top choices for docs were: Feller, H&W, Rahal, Alexander, Shapiro. All but one of those docs were in my state. Had Dr. F not been in New York I would have gladly traveled to see him or any of these other docs because I felt certain they would give me the best results possible.

gtl, the side effects from finasteride are temporary and will go away when you stop using it. i personally never had a problem with loss of libido when i was taking it.

It is all dependent on how many donor grafts you have and on your scalp's laxity. I have heard the average total grafts is between 8-10,000. The good news is that once you have stripped out your donor you can use fue as an adjunct.

well, glad to see you back on the forums. i thought you had some useful contributions and didn't understand just going cold turkey. finered, you should check danny's ht out, he had really nice results.

If you are looking to support H&W you would have been better off leaving that thread alone. as maxxy points out, it's 7 years old. and most of us know H&W do amazing work.

rahal is a great choice. best of luck with your surgery. dannyskywalker, i thought you bid these forums adieu?

no worries gtl! keep us updated on your progress.

I agree, you look like a fine candidate for an ht. i would suggest you get on meds to hold up the vertex/crown but it looks quite strong. a good way to see into your hairloss future is to look at your genetic history, too. i'd say 3-4k grafts (depending on your donor characteristics) would give you an awesome result. My top choices were feller, h&w, rahal, alexander and shapiro. do as many consults as possible and make sure to see as many patients in person as you can. also, you seem to be a tad impatient. if that's a personality trait please keep in mind that an ht is a long process in which growth takes anywhere from 6-8 months before you see significant cosmetic improvments and a full 12-18 months before you see the final product. best of luck.

You're looking at some big bucks for an ht. 3k grafts will run approximately $12k. you can always get a loan so start building some credit for yourself. just make sure to make your payments on time and don't abuse it.

I had very similiar results from my first HT with Joseph Karamikian in New York. Dr. Feller fixed it for me by surrounding the sparse minigrafts with densely packed FUs. I would definitely consult a top doc as I think that's totally fixable.

I would say the mighty dollar probably played a role in his career path.

here are two other posters with poor armani results: http://hair-restoration-info.c...60861/m/83610517/p/2

Yes, I agree with the others. First shave your head--not completely, just try buzzing it down with say a #3-4--and get on the meds. if you experience side effects you simply stop the meds. if you don't like the buzzed look you grow it back. that being said, with your level of loss, i wouldn't completely say no to getting an ht. if i were in your shoes i'd probably just get a megasession and do as much of the front as i could. i would also plant where there is some hair just in case that hair falls out (from future mpb). remember that you'll likely need at least 2 surgeries which can be quite costly. but again, try the meds (for at least 1 year) and buzzed look first. then start consulting with ht docs (i'd recommend h&w for your level of loss).

to answer your question ron, fue is a much more delicate procedure than strip. it takes a lot more care on the doctor's part to remove the donor grafts. as dr. feller says, the physicality of having to remove so many grafts can often lead to the use of "brute force" where the grafts can be damaged. he has also reported a much higher yield with strip growth than fue. not quoting but i think it was almost 15-20% less in some cases. if you do some searching for fue vs. strip i'm sure you will find plenty of explanations from the doctor himself as well as feedback frmo actual patients.

those are definitely the grafts as you can see the bulb at the end. not good for the grafts, but the good news is that in the grand scheme those five grafts won't effect your results/density. just try not to dislodge anymore and good growing to you!

wow, it's amazing to me that they were able to excise that scar and still get that many grafts. you must be really psyched! looking forward to seeing your progress.

congrats bullitnut, the work looks great. any post-op shots of the scar?

sorry, you're right. my bad.

PGP, Firstly, you are wrong to just assume the doctor ron d went to is epstein, no matter what you think of him and his work. What you're doing is slanderous. Secondly, we should keep this thread on topic. Regarding the first poster's question, I'm not sure there is a valid explanation as to why people have slow growth. Everyone has different physiology. That being said, I think when we talk slow growth it's usually sprouting at say 5-6 months. 12 months is an extreme and I'm sure very rare case. In ron d's case, he's not a slow grower, he's a no grower. unfortunately there are no guarantees with plastic surgery and when you sign that waiver you basically affirm this. getting a lawyer will likely do nothing but drain more of your hard-earned money. this is not a medical malptractice case so there's not much a lawyer can do. i would do my best to get some reimbursment from the ht clinic. DO NOT take an offer for more free surgery. they didn't do it right the first time so why would you expect better results the second time? best of luck to you.

I was going to mention the very large gap in your hairline. you have reason to worry because armani's mega fue sessions are experimental, imo. however, you must give an ht the full 12 months to mature. also, fue is somewhat notorious for growing slower than strip. i'm sure lots of people will weigh in on this matter. all i can tell you is to be patient and hope for the best...

You can no longer mention Armani's name on HLH. There is an explanation from farrel on the site. Armani also has a lawsuit against this site for slander. in case you didn't realize it, armani is a hotbed of controversy.

The problems with HTs is that you have to have realistic expectations. Unfortunately i think often what the patient deems acceptable is not in line with the doctor. that's why i think it's imperative to see as many patients in person. you can get a better idea of what the doc can realistically do for you. in your case i think those 600 grafts would have been better off being placed in the front. you could have then done a 2nd surgery to address the crown later on. that being said, it does look like you had a good yield from the surgery with this doc. i agree with other posters, however, without seeing better pre, intra-op, and post op it's a bit tough to tell if it's truly worth going back for a 2nd, reduced-rate op with him. (knowing who the doc is would help.) best of luck with whatever you decide and please keep us updated.