thanatopsis_awry

I agree w/ Maxxy. And would absolutely go see an actual dermatologist -- ideally one with some type of expertise in hair restoration -- to get checked out. The advice you got seems like it may have been from someone without much expertise in MPB.

Looking at your pics....I first would have to agree that you have a very nice, strong hairline and head of hair right now. So, congrats on that -- I was a balded bozo at your age. At the same time, I do detect what seems like some gradual thinning/recession that seems to be in the vein of MPB.

I wouldn't even think about a HT, eithr, but going to a Dr. with some expertise in MPB and potentially getting on finasteride would be wise, IMHO.

The thing with fin is that its primary efficacy is for your crown and vertex, and that it takes several months to build up its potency. It's also best at preserving the hair that you have, vs. actual regrowth (though it can do both); so, it's really optimal to get on it at the first detection of true MPB.

Just to clear the air, I have *not* been rigging the election by passing off free dermmatch dishes to various members -- just Rogaine Foam 5% solution....

I do appreciate the generously kind votes of confidence; while I have little clue who has expressed interest in the position, I am sure they are all capable, and whatever is decided will be that which will be making the most sense for both parties involved.

Looking good! I'm sure he has a good deal more thickening to come, too. His hair caliber doesn't look thick, but in turn everything is growing in nice and really soft.

The more I think about it, HTNO, even *if* you can't seamlessly replicate your pre-MPB hairline, a good repair session should still *improve* your current level of naturalness, *while* also giving you a true density boost.

Julius, it's a numbers game PLUS your hair charachteristics -- which play a role in even people without MPB, but exponentially so with people who do.

I get what you're saying about the metric for what it really means to be able to "expose" any HT. The question is, which you pose, is how difficult and what is means on an individual to be able to "expose" thinness. As you said, it's one thing to deliberately go about making the HT look bad, which really can be done for most any.

I think many HTs, however, fall on the other side of the spectrum, which you referenced, and not a whole lot has to be done to make their hair look good and be OK to go out and not be "see-thru".

When Spex posted "Tubs" result I thought of you, as his afters are shown top-down/sunlight. And Tubs *wasnt* an easy case, either, in that he had a lot of real estate to cover and he has gone about attacking it in but one procedure.

When you deal on people who are NW5+ it becomes increasingly difficult, IMHO, to achieve the density/coverage that you desire over an entire scalp. Unless, of course, you are dealing with people with great donors and they get enough grafts, and don't have bad hair charachteristics.

Going NW5+ can, in turn, be greatly delayed through fin, assuming your pattern even goes that far, and also assuming you don't quite have the donor to achieve "non-see-thruness" all over, crown included.

edit -- speaking for myself, if i spike my hair up all over i have a bit of see-thruness these days, as i have continued to thin within my native hair over the past year...since i began to style my hair extremely texturized and going forward (which i actually now prefer as a look as a whole), however, I have no "see-thruness", and it's quite easy to maintain.

There was a recent dude who went to Rahal that got a sweet hairline and he had thin/fine/light hair. He posted this week.

Thx for the cool perspective, for sure! I think you're fundamnetally right -- that if we as men get a HT and consequently look *and* feel good/confident about it.....it shouldn't be a problem at all for any woman worth anyone's time.

Excellent. I also agree that the whirl pattern really looks perfect, and though I'm sure he's already happy with his result, as the density increases he will truly be mint.

No prob, John. Just keep at it. Ultimately, thank your stars that you didn't go to the Armanis of the world -- if you think you've been stressing now.....I bet you would be disgusted to the point of insanity if you were dealing with them.

John,

Many/Most (maybe All) told Balb to chill if possible and wait things out. He knows because he got told it a lot when he was really stressing and posting a lot about it. Many like myself, still told him to be realistic and his issues of scarring/pitting/hairline monstrosity are entirely seperate issues from growth.

The backdrop is that Armani is a known butcher, so of course that is taken into account by ANYONE as the backdrop setting.

But everyone I can recall told him not to fret over growth at 5months. The fact his growth has hardly changed, yet his pitting/scarring/hairline design still remain, is a testament that the forum was astute in their analysis, all-around.

Re: being at 11 months...when you actually get there, and still have the same issues, I am sure everyone will treat you likewise.

He clearly looks much better. But to most accurately appreciate the 3500g and work, it would be very beneficial to see before and afters that mimic each other, and offer some variety. (top-down, tilted head, frontal hairline, etc.)

I'm impressed by Dr. Madhu's work, but also his attitude. His response in other threads to curiosity, if not skepticism, was strong yet professional.

My one request, at least going forward, would be more close-up post-op photos, especially on cases where, admittedly, meds likely could be helping out in non-surgical areas.

But end-results and attitude are what matter the most, and he looks to deliver those in spades.

Julius, there are for sure many people who have had HTs who fit that criteria and can be seen overhead, under lighting, and be fine. It's a numbers game over the backdrop of your hair charachteristics, and for some the result of the permutation is a totally full look.

But the case will almost always be this with hair restoration -- unless you restore *true* density (i.e. basically what you had pre-MPB) you will *always* be able to work your hair in such a way that will expose your MPB.

It is just determining where on this continiuum you will find yourself, and then asking yourself if the improvement is worth it.

Get checked for Male Pattern Baldness; then inquire into getting on finasteride (aka propecia, aka proscar)

Proscar is the same as propecia but it is less expensive, the drawback being you have to cut it up into like 1/4's I think to get the daily dose. Lot of people, especially younger guys, do this.

That is really the lone med out there worth considering. It is truly as close to a cure as we currently have, outside of hair transplantation, which can be debated as to whether that is truly a "cure".

You can look into getting on minox/Rogaine 5% Foam, too; but as I think I mentioned earlier in the thread, if you aren't willing to commit to it long-term, you are best off just avoiding the hellacious sheds that can occur and just stick to fin.

Fin is the only thing you'd need a prescription for.

Aside from that, I would just hone your own personal hair care regiment -- styling products, how you style it, etc.

Keep on the fin, see how things progress, and just enjoy life as much as possible.

I definitely see your problems, though it seems you can hind them alright by being careful; as far as repair cases go, you are as close to a slam-dunk as I've ever seen.

IMHO, no reason why 1 world-class HT won't give you a really great density restoration, and also improve the naturalness of your existing head of hair.

Cal,

I myself have never held the perception that it takes Drs Hasson and Wong 4k to do what Dr. Reed can do with 2, but if you can post/link a case that you have in mind I'd give my precise feedback, as I'm sure others would.

It might be that the cases you are referencing of H+W are of higher density, due to the sheer number of grafts, and that from pics a case from Dr. Reed (e.g.) is able to produce a comparable looking result through the oft mentioned "illusion of density". How much you value true-density vs. perceived-density and the grafts it takes to achieve both is something you'd have to decide for yourself.

If I had to guess, I would say this might be the root of the discrepency you are wondering; hair charachteristics, and comparable before and after pics (lighting, angle, etc.) could also be a factor when evaluating a result.

Well, every one of Dr. Madhu's posted results have looked great to the point of being superhuman; superhuman results don't actually exist, IMO, and I think part of it has been ideal patients with "favorable" before/after conditions.

I wouldn't go so far as to actually say Dr. Madhu is tainting his results, though at least one other person came to that conclusion; nonetheless, I have a dose of healthy skepticism, just because the results have all seemed so "superhuman", and I know very little of Dr. Madhu's practice.

Immediate post-op pics I think would be very beneficial to see in this and other cases.

moss, a few things:

Being charged for a consultation is *not* the norm, and being charged over 200 bones is pretty far-fetched.

There's a good chance your GP doesn't know anything substantive about hair transplantion -- this is the case for most GPs in my experience, and even many dermatologist specialists. Likewise, an otherwise "highly qualified" doctor can be a truly pitiful HT doctor, not capable of performing hair restoration on a world-class level. Many expensive and glossy doctors working out of seemingly classy places perform sub-standard work.

Which three doctors reccomended FUE for you? 1500 to 3000 is a pretty wide range to begin with, and for FUE even more so.

If you don't mind gambling 200 on a long-shot, I would still consult with Williams; just to get more info. But if you just stick to the most proven, elite clinics you won't be doing yourself any disservice.

Best of luck! Look forward to seeing your pics and in due time your new head of hair!

This really should be a nice n' thick beauty -- how often do we actually use those adjectives when describing "beauties"....

Post-ops really do look ultra-refined.

I would love to see even more of Dr. Feriduni's work, as most everything I have seen from him has been excellent from top to bottom. The fact that he has been thoroughly vetted and screened by this community is a real nice plus, too, even from a basic accountability perspective.

I think Feriduni would be a great choice, and given your research into both, if you find yourself leaning towards Feriduni you really couldn't go wrong.

That said, I'm on the books as being a fan of BHR, but it's really been his megasession FUE work that I've paid the most attention to.

If you haven't already, you might want to specifically inquire into the type of hairline they will be designing...like, not just the general density, but where they will be allocating certain levels of density which can lead to a slightly different "type" of hairline. Things like that.

I echo the sentiments of Dr. Charles, and Maxxy. I'm glad to hear that the determination and love of your family is being met with positive results -- wish you the continued best.

Haha, I think I'll have to take some outside shots this week with the new doo in full swing.

Bill, do you think we can integrate some cryogenic technologies into our hair styling regiments so as to "freeze frame" our best hair days?

Great result! The transplanted hairs really have transitioned seamlessly with his native for a totally natural-looking result, even with short hair.

When your pics finally get the pics uploaded we can know for sure; but from the descriptions you've given I think BHUK could be an *excellent* comparison for you based on NW levels, quality of work, and issues to henceforth be dealt with.

Actual blame should *only* be hoisted upon the doctors performing horrorshow work, but with the right resource of information given to you yourself, as a patient, you can end up getting past these docs even if you were already unfortunate so as to fall prey to their abuse.