nobuzz4me

B,

Thanks for the response, the scar stuff scares me even though as you guessed (note my alias), I am not ever going to buzz it short. I have a bit of a baby face which looks much better with hair above it! Good point on the length of the strip vs width, still scary though to think of those 2cm wide jobs!

I by no means have scheduled two surgeries and have no qualms with going to someone else. This year as it turns out between kids home for college, familt etc., I have to fit it into a certain date and cannot travel. Vogel is my best option and I need to get started. Next year will be different and I may do a large session with someone like Feller or Shapiro. I am not locked in for two sessions and price is not my biggest concern although nobody likes to throw money away. I am in this for the long term so a two year stint doesn't bother me.

Check out my photo album and give me your opinion (which I value, the hard, honest truth) of what you consider, dense packing, strengthen temples or corners, mid scalp, etc.

Vogel wants to resore the forelock and add density on top. He is throwing in some minor plug reduction at no extra.

Thanks for your insights,

B Spot,

As always, you bring it strong which I like.

I am not defending Vogel or any other Doc who has a more conservative approach. I think several guys on board I read have gone to Feller since they felt Bernstien was too "conservative".

Mega sessions require more donor tissue removed. Granted, some guys will be better candidates, with more laxity and donor density but would you agree there is a greater risk to scar stretching with mega sessions?

MAK,

I have had a consult and am scheduled for Jan 11th with him. I checked with Pat (who moderates this site) and he says that Vogel does very good work but just does not like to do large sessions (this is one of the requirements to become part of the coalition). Many docs do this for various reasons, they may feel dense packing is risky to the grafts or more risk of shockloss, tension issues with the scar, limited staff, etc.

With Vogel, it is not staff size or ability, I sensed it was some of the other reasons, being more conservative. He does Tricho closure on the scar which is up to date with the best. As far as pricing he is above average and as you know hard to book with. I take that as a good sign. I checked and could not find any lawsuits against him or any negative feedback about him.

I am OK with his business procedure and did not feel pressured at all to sign up. I trust you will not lose your money.

Good Luck with your upcoming surgery,

Hairbank,

I am in on Jan 11th with Dr. James Vogel who while not a coalition doc is a HTN recommended one. Only going to do 1200-1400 grafts along with some minor plug reduction (he has extensive repair work experience), I know they are hard to see but they were camaflaged in HT #2 sometime in 2001. Dr. Richard Halford who was with Elliott and True did that one and did a pretty good job using about 1000 FU's.

I know I will need more grafts to really acheive some density on top and think I have enough for a mega session after this one and I plan on maxxing out my donor next time.

Vogel does not do mega sessions (I asked Pat about him and he said he does very good work but just not large sessions.) but says my donor is average density and laxity is good.

How about you, I saw your photos and see you have done over 5k grafts, do you have any troops still in reserve? Are you happy with the coverage or will you succumb to hair greed!

Bill,

I know the plugs are hard to see but they are there!

I will most likely hit the crown next go round, I plan to strengthen the front and top and see how the crown responds to the regimen.

I know it does not look great yet, but I think I am going to be a good responder to the finasteride. I have only been on one month and my hair back there is strengthening and I feel something different when I rub my fingers thru that area.

I tried Propecia when it first came out but anly a few weeks and I stil had a good amount of hair so I stopped. I wish I would have stayed on it, who knows how I would be right now? Anyway, I am sure it will not completely fill up the crown and we will address that next after the meds have had time to work.

If donor allows, I will go after it heavily, but if not at least spinkle in a few back there. My donor is in density is average and laxity is good.

Thanks, I will post regularly my results, good luck with your upcoming date with the knife!

Now that is a website the way it should be done! Great hairline work. Thumbs up!

l

Two days for a strip procedure? Never heard of that, how did that take so long? Did you stay overnight at the clinic?

Also, my donor healed pretty well in a week with the pain subsiding in a few days. Some people just heal faster than others, maybe I am just fortunate in that respect.

After four weeks, I would still be a bit concerned if you still need a painkiller. Did you use ice packs the few days following the procedure? Did you or do you still have any swelling? Just glad you are on the antibiotics, I am sure in time you will heal just fine.

Gibraltar,

I hope you are feeling better, Pat and Nervous have given you great advice. I agree that minoxidil is bad advice here since it looked like you had infection in that area. The antibiotics are the most important in that case and the healing lotions will assist too.

Get better my friend and try not to lift anything heavy or do anything which could cause scar stretching. You say your scalp is tight, just curious how large a session did you have? How was you laxity going in? Who was your doctor? PM me if you like.

IMO, Fue has a place in only special cases, use of body hair into a strip scar is probably the best one.

For restoring a head of hair, it is very expensive and the success rate is risky vs strip. I agree with Hairbank on the point that if you plan to buzz down why the heck even get a HT.

B-Spot is right that there are many top Doctors like Shapiro and others who could perform FUE, but maybe in keeping to their own principles of what is best for the patient keep them from doing it. Graft transection is serious business when you don't have a large supply.

Gibraltar,

Did you check back with your doctor, it looks pretty red still, could be some sort of infection? Also, has it been itching? It looks pretty bad, who was your doc?

Maybe one of the coalition docs can comment if you are not comfortable going back to your doc.

Sounds like a plan. It is good you have troops in reserve!

I doubt you will ever look bald at 50, Keep us posted.

Michael,

I looked at your album and it looks like there may be a small change from 10 to 11. Its probably the hair dye or the recent cut or even the lighting conditions ffor the photo.

In any case, everyone hair goes thru stages of natural shedding, maybe you had a recent shed? No worries I am sure, you have plenty on top so it is not even really noticable.

I think your hairline looks really natural, great work by Doc Feller.

I am not a sideburn guy myself, but you can pull it off!

Are you done or planning another for even more density? You know, hair greed!

Yeah, do not hold your breath waiting for that call . I sent you a PM about Doc Vogel. Take you time and do your research.

Glad it working out for you DD, nice point about starting these meds with an open mind, if you think it will give you a side effect, it probably will. Placebo effect.

Davpas,

Welcome to the this forum. I have never heard of this Doc but that does not mean he is capable. Is he independant or with Bosley or MHR? Where is he located?

OK, I just searched him and it appears he is with MHR and his training included a 12 month fellowship with MHR. He looks very young and inexperienced so you would be taking a big chance with him.

I question that he has performed 3000 HT's? 300 a year for ten years? It does not appear as though he has been doing it that long. My guess is he sat in on some (not performed personally) during a 12 month training stint with MHR as an observer and inflates his resume this way. MHR is a HT factory mostly concerned with pushing out volume and revenue.

If he is that good a Doctor, which he may very well be or become, he will most likely leave the corporate hairmill and become independant. He might be a great guy, but if you had to have open heart surgery would you go with someone whose trainig was just 12 months?

You will notice that the coalition of recommended Doctors on this site are heavily scrutinized before they make the elite membership. They are also all Independant, not Corporate.

You should look at Dr. Haber in Ohio and do some online consults which are free.

Do yourself a favor and do not leave a deposit, be patient and continue to research.

Good Luck,

Nervous,

No problem, my plugs are probably around the same size and I too was a moron in the early 1980's and got some. I had no idea what they would look like, just wanted hair like everyone else. Lucky for me, mine are high enough and not that many. I hd a second HT to cover them up with decent results but I still want to thin them out and get coverage on top.

Bill, no problem, you deserve it.

Nervous Nelly,

I think your previous work can be hidden with new work. What size were those plugs, I barely see them. If they bother you I would have then thinned a bit via FUE if your Doctor can do this type of work, total removal does not look necessary since they are far enough back.

Your donor look good but only your Doc can tell with close inspection of density and laxity.

You can stop being to nervous IMO! Your not in bad pre-HT shape at all.

Good Luck,

Originally posted by Pat - Publisher of this Community:

 

Any opinions on whether I made the right choice in doing surgery with Dr. Ron Shapiro ten years ago and again two weeks ago? Or should I have waited to for "hair cloning" :-?

Pat, those were nice photos of your Father, you look alot like him. Ooops, that was YOU! sorry !!!

Great transformation, you look great. With my luck, cloning will come to fruition when I will need a nurse to help me comb my hair!

All great comments above, I can only add that you should do not be fooled by the deceptive names (biomatrix, single strand, etc.) for the hairpiece.

I never wore one nor would I consider one but from all the negative comments I read make me glad I never went that route. That being said, if someone is NW 6+, with no other options I think it is OK for that person as long as they know the maintenance and cost involved.

A HT is the closest you will ever come to regaining a natural result. I can spot a piece 95% of the time. The best thing to do is check the posts from the veterans wearers of hair replacement systems (systems, another fancy term for a piece).

Sounds like a plan! Is your donor area up to it?

I agree with Cousin, why take a chance while the research is still pending, also, why pay all that extra money as well.

If you are a bad responder to Finasteride, my guess is that your chances of success with Dutasteride would be slim. If however, you are a good responder, either one would probably be successful.

I would be careful on advise as to how great Dutasteride is without recommending guys start with Finasteride first. Younger guys may decide to skip the Propecia altogetther and go for the stronger stuff. IMO, I think that is risky, maybe not necessary and very costly.

Thanks for the response Repair Guy,

It sounds expensive 280 X $75 = $21,000 but I know it will be worth it to get your natural look back. I have about 50 of these which I may just be able to thin out and camoflage around rather than core out and suture. Each repair case is unique which is why you are good to be with Bernstein.

Good Luck,