M&M

Your family doctor or nurse or you can visit a walk-in clinic if want to remain anonymous.

Steveph_S, Welcome to the site and congratulations on taking the big next step. You are lucky that you are close enough to such a top doctor to be able to drive up for an in-person consultation (vs. an online one). In response to your questions: 1. It's a good idea to arrive the night before surgery and spend a couple of days locally after surgery. The true benefit of this is that you can go back to the clinic and have them check everything out, "wash" the hair, take photos, etc. Plus, it gives you one more opportunity to ask questions in-person and get a feel for what 'gently rubbing' your grafts actually means (not that they will do that 1 day post-op, but still...). After that, you are all set! You can head home and no "follow-up" visits are required, but as with all coalition doctors, their door is always open and I'm sure they would welcome you to come on by, show off your hair, answer any questions, etc. 2. Waiting lists vary a lot by doctor, time of year, and if any cancellations have come up. So, I'd just give them a call and you'll learn everything you need. 3. I can't really comment on either of the financing options presented as I haven't heard of them before.

Congratulations on your HT with Dr. Rahal. I look forward to your photos. M&M

M&M, Dr. Bisanga has been invited to post examples of his work on our forum to be considered for recommendation. However, to date, they have not taken advantage of this opportunity. Thanks for asking, Bill Thanks Bill for the update. Let's hope he does indeed start to post on this site as I find it much more reputable than "Hairsite"! M&M

miked, What impressed me most about this HT so far is that you DO look like Brad Pitt! No wait... that's not true! What does impress me is that since you didn't have to shave down, your HT can truly be hidden from anyone around you allowing it to a subtle transformation over the next several months. Given the density (40/25/10 from front-to-back), it should be a very natural and soft HT that won't scream for attention. I wish you nothing but good growing! M&M

Mane Attraction, What a great write-up! Congratulations on truly not letting location determine your HT! You definitely traveled to one of the absolute best HT doctors out there, and you should feel very confident that you will see great things in the months to come (likely around month 5-6 to start seeing some significant changes), which will only continue through 12+ months. It's an exciting but frustrating journey, to be sure. Thanks for the detailed photos and I look forward to your updated progress. The hairline just looks superb. Any sense of what the density is? M&M

With no prior surgery and a likelihood of only needing a small number of grafts, it sounds like you are an excellent candidate for FUE. I would definitely steer clear of most UK doctors based upon what I've seen so far in my research. I'm not saying that there aren't some good ones, but just that I have yet to see much in the way of consistent results (not meant as a blanket statement in the event I've overlooked someone). For FUE, I'd suggest: - Feller - haven't seen a LOT of FUE samples lately (most are strip), but if you're thinking FUE, you deserve to at least have a consult (online) with Dr. Feller. - Dr. Bisanga - BHR Clinic - wow have I been impressed with his results lately. Pat / Bill - are you visiting this clinic at anytime in the future to review possible recommendation? Based upon what I've seen, it looks very impressive. - Next up - Shapiro Medical is doing more and more FUE, and with BSpot back on this site, I'm hoping he or Janna can start showing off some of their work. M&M

Bobman! I was wondering about that. I remembered and posted your story from HLH where you mentioned you were looking to work in the HT industry but I hadn't heard an updated and wondered if you'd chosen the clinic to work with yet or moved on to something else. Good to hear the update. Keep us posted. PS - I'm sure Bosley or MHR would pay a LOT if you'd just lie and say that they did your HT to prospective patients!! M&M

I'd love to see some photos of the work Bosley has done that has made you so pleased. I can attest that I went to Bosley and I *thought* that my "nearly undetectable" hair that actually "grew" and didn't look like the old "dolls hair" clumps from years ago was state of the art... but then I found this site and realized that there are doctors that actually do state of the art work, utilizing start of the art techniques.

Oonkar, Dr. Ochs... I did a quick search on this site as I knew this name sounded familiar ... and not in a good way: http://hair-restoration-info.c...481012493#4481012493 http://hair-restoration-info.c...751050313#1751050313 Now onto Bosley. Oh my. They do indeed charge premium prices in an attempt to persuade you that you are 'paying for the best'. At least, that's what I thought when I had my procedure done. I was more than happy to pay a higher price for something that was going to last a lifetime. Unfortunately, they are NOT the top doctors and they do NOT use the latest techniques. In fact, you are simply subsidizing their advertising and profit requirements (and perhaps their legal bills, but this is just a guess). Regardless, take your time, do your homework, ask lots of questions and as appealing as it is to not stray far from home, I think you should go through more of the coalition doctors, look at photos posted on this site by doctors and patients and then select the surgeon who is right for you and your needs. This site also has a great online consultation feature. Good luck!

Welcome back B Spot! I'm not sure of all of the details - although similar to others, I remember a couple of exchanges... which I at least found entertaining! Regardless, echoing Bill's comments, I always welcome those who have experience to share ... and take the time to do so!

Life09, That is a terrific looking hairline that Dr. Rahal has designed for you. You should be very pleased as this begins to grow in and match your native density. Thank you for sharing your story to date and I look forward to the updates. M&M

Show us your mop of hair PGP!!

Hi Bobman, First of all, I look forward to your updates! Then, out of curiosity, did you ever find the right clinic to represent, or did you change your mind in pursuing a career in the HT industry? Inquiring minds want to know! http://www.hairlosshelp.com/fo...tid=5&threadid=82075 M&M

Bill can correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe what he's referring to is that only select patients who (a) have minimal hair loss, (b) have responded well to meds, © are of the right age ('more mature' perhaps?), and (d) their hair loss has stabilized and they are no longer concerned about future loss... are candidates for 'true density'. Perhaps the list doesn't need to be quite that long, but in cases like this, Doctors can plant at 'true density' in the thinning / receding areas with 60, 70, 80, 90 grafts per cm2. Those of us that can't afford such a luxury must make do with compromises - the illusion for density with the trade-off that you will have more donor hair for down the road if you need it. M&M

Slaps, Sorry to hear you are not fully satisfied at this stage, but do keep in mind that you are early on in the healing & growing process. Based upon the photos Spex posted, the work itself looks great and I must commend the overall design as well. Very nice framing! Based on these photos, the prior Norton work doesn't look that bad, but since I have yet to see any of their work that isn't downright scary, I'll assume that photos just aren't "representative" (ie. not showing the poor angles, pitting, etc.). As for laser hair removal - I would definitely not be that drastic until you can discuss one-on-one with Dr. Feller who did your surgery. If you are close to Spex, let him have a look at it, take some photos etc. as well. As for posting your concerns prior to discussing with your doctor, remember that nobody knows your situation as well as your doctor. However, once you've discussed it with your doctor, there is absolutely nothing stopping you to reach out to others to get their opinion on what you are thinking, what the doctor said, etc. In fact, that's what this site is all about. Just some thoughts. M&M

Flyby, I'm so pleased that you are on the road to recovery after suffering through Bosley's "care". I'm also a past Bosley patient and little did I know that they <STRIKE>likely</STRIKE> definitely created more baldness than they fixed! Your photos look really good and I'm particularly impressed with your 5-day post-op photos with some Toppik allowing you to go back to work so quickly. Was there any concern by Dr. Alexander on using Toppik on the grafts at such at early stage? I look forward to your updates going forward. M&M

Who's got your tonque PGP - my posts have been longer than yours lately!

Jotronic, I've told you this before but I may as well tell you again... it was your site (and this forum) that truly first 'wowed' me back in 1996 shedding light on the fact that Bosley was NOT state-of-the-art as I believed prior to that time. I am appreciate of your honest and detailed account of your hair restoration and how it has positively impacted you. As for Version 3.0 - I love it! Great work! M&M

Tuja, Good work creating a detailed summary of your research so far, along with posting some photos of your situation. Although they are a little dark, it does show the area of work needed. For the benefit of others, I'll repeat myself a bit here as to the range of grafts quoted by the Doctors. Graft counts can vary widely depending upon some of the following information: - Same photos shown to each doctor (I trust this was the case) - Same description sent to each doctor about your thinning / balding, family history, age, etc. - Description in detail provided to each doctor on your desired goals (ie. hairline only, hairline and crown together, hairline density with 'dusting' in the crown, etc.) - Agreement by the Doctor on your goals (ie. if you are 21, ethical doctors may be less aggressive than you desire) - Did either doctor show you with markings on your photos as to where they would restore your hairline, temple points, etc.? Some may bring it lower than others, some may keep it higher but more densely packed. Lots of choices here! - Density - - Doctor's ability - this is a huge one! Some of the top doctors can do session sizes of 5,000+ in one sitting. I'm pleased when I see the top two doctors (in my opinion) that you have received estimates from come very close (Dr. Rahal at 3750 and Dr. Hasson/Wong at 3500). These two (okay, three really) are so good at what they do and can do very large sessions, so if they thought you needed more, they would quote more. If they thought you needed less, they'd quote less, but they do prefer to minimize the number of passes. Based upon your photos, though, you may need one large procedure or two smaller procedures. Now, on the other hand, some Doctors perhaps can only do 2500 in a single session and therefore, they are saying that is all you need... but then you'll require another procedure. To put it into perspective, I had 1662 grafts in my hairline - about the first inch only. There is no way that 1850 - 2500 is going to give you the density you require to cover all of that area. Did these doctors say that this was ALL you'd need... or that this was 'HT one' only. Now, onto the next topic from Dr. Mahadevia, who I have honestly never heard of. Taking a conservative approach with the crown if you are new on the meds certainly makes sense. Is this something you've discussed with the others? Have you responded well to Propecia / Rogaine? Overall, this is good advice. But, when he says that 30-35 grafts per cm2 is the most you should ever get, I do disagree. Have you seen what that looks like? Typically, what Dr. H&W and Dr. Rahal will do is plant the hairline at a thicker density (say 50-60) and then taper back the density ensuring you have nice framing for the face, while not wasting any precious grafts (like some who receive 70-90 cm2 in the hairline). I hope others chime in here as well, as I am certainly no expert! M&M

HairHair9, I haven't heard of this doctor, but I took a quick look at the photo album and here are my thoughts: - Every patient seems to have a thin wispy comb-over in the after photos - not impressive - There is no data on number of grafts, number of hairs, photos of scars to demonstrate solid closure technique, etc. I would suggest you start a new thread as you will generally get more visibility this way. You should also complete an online consultation with some of the coalition doctors on this site. Whatever you do - do not let travel be a factor for you! Your HT will stay with you for a lifetime and costs a lot of hard-earned dollars, so take your time, do your research and ask lots of questions. Good luck! M&M

Hi Tuja, I think your post isn't getting many views here, so I would suggest you start your own thread with a clear title and then list the following estimates you have received from Doctors and then also post a few photos. You can definitely crop out your face to ensure that nobody recognizes you, but this will help us a lot. As for your quotes, I'm pleased when I see the top two doctors that you have received estimates from come very close (Dr. Rahal at 3750 and Dr. Hasson/Wong at 3500). These two (okay, three really) are so good at what they do and can do very large sessions, so if they thought you needed more, they would quote more. If they thought you needed less, they'd quote less. On the other hand, some of the others perhaps can only do 2500 in a single session and therefore, they are saying that is all you need... but then you'll require another procedure. Now, onto the next topic from Dr. Mahadevia (never heard of him). Taking a conservative approach with the crown if you are new on the meds certainly makes sense. Is this something you've discussed with the others? Have you responded well to Propecia / Rogaine? Overall, this is good advice. But, when he says that 30-35 grafts per cm2 is the most you should ever get, I do disagree. Have you seen what that looks like? Typically, what Dr. H&W and Dr. Rahal will do is plant the hairline at a thicker density (say 50-60) and then taper back the density ensuring you have nice framing for the face, while not wasting any precious grafts (like some who receive 70-90 cm2 in the hairline). M&M

DeDom, Your hair is DeBom! Seriously - that is fantastic looking hair that would make 100% of everyone on this site jealous! But, in all fairness, you had tons of hair prior to surgery as well, so I suppose I should just say that your hairline looks very natural and thick, especially for only being 6-months! I had about 65% of the grafts of you (1662 vs. 2557), and based on these photos I know what I'm aiming for now - another 1,000 to bring my hairline density up to something like yours. Very nice photos showing different styles, by the way. M&M

This just got me thinking - do you have photos posted? I'd love to see how everything is going for you. M&M

TOS7581, Definitely, you will want to spend the night after surgery. In fact, I highly recommend staying about two nights in the area to allow for the clinic to wash your hair following surgery. I find this a great opportunity for them to inspect everything, for the Doctor to look everything over, and for you to ask lots of questions. As for your doctors, I'd be biased, as I traveled to see SMG after some lengthy research (see my weblog for more details).