Scott Bender

Hello, I wanted to tell you about my experince with a getting a hair transplant. I am not writing to tell you how satisfied I am. No, people who are happy want to pretend like they never had it done. Likewise, most people with bad results would prefer not to talk about it. I have been trying to come to grips with what was done to me over 5 years ago, and still can`t. It seems like no one really cares either. I have contacted lawyers, medical boards, the BBB. I finally started reseaching the internet. I was both relieved, but also very saddened to see that I was not alone. There are people all over the United States that have had the same thing done to them. You see, a hair transplant doctor can do a plain lousy job time after time. Yet, as long as there is no infection, there is no law suit. You have to sign a `no guarrentee` release form before they will opperate. I understand, this is to protect the doctor. But, too many doctors are just plain taking advantage of this. They do not have to put any effort into there results. By the time the patient knows they were taken, they doctor has already been paid. I checked out message board postings on www.hairlosshelp.com and www.thebaldtruth.com I read story after story that was all to close to mine. Why no one will step in and stop this amazes me. I have tried every resorce I can think of, all I have heard is, "I am sorry." Let me tell you my story.... I am 34 years old right now. I started to lose my hair in my early twenty`s. In 1996 I went to see Dr. Stephen B. Anderson www.800theface.com and his Northwest Hair Transplant Center in Bellevue, Washington. I told Dr. Anderson "I want to have my hair look like someone in there 30`s, not 50`s. I want it to cover". He did not say he could cover all my hair loss, but he said "You will be happy, we can make you look good". I was quoted by Dr. Anderson`s assistant that the cost would be around $6000. I went to Dr. Anderson for four procedures, including a `scalp reduction`. By the time it was done, the total was over $10,000. I was told at that point to wait while the transplanted graphs came out of there `dormant` stage from the shock and started to grow. It has been 5 years now, and at best maybe 10% of his transplants grew. Doctors have been doing transplants since the early 1970`s. The only problem they had back then. was making the hair not have the `corn row` or `doll` look to it. They have come a long way since then, but the transplanted hair growing was never a issue. For Dr. Anderson it seems to be. If I was the only one this had happened to, I would write it off as my body `rejecting` the grafts. But, as it happens my friends brother went to see Dr. Anderson about the same time as myself. He was told basically the same lies that I was, that it would cost much less and have far greater results than either of us had. The only thing either of us have to show from his work is very bad scars. When I go out in public without a hat, I often get asked if I have had "brain surgery". So why have we not gotten are money back? Well, Dr. Anderson hides behind his lawyers and his `no gurantee` release for everyone must sign before he performs surgery. This allows him to say "Well, I do the best I can". If I got his best, I would hate to see his worst! Scalp reductions (aka "male pattern reduction" etc) are OLD technology. The idea is that the doctor will surgically remove large areas of bald scalp, and pull the rest of the hair-bearing scalp together, instantly resulting in a smaller bald area. Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, the reality of scalp reductions is not so appealing. Scalp reductions create big, serious scars on your scalp, in the bald area, where there is not any hair to camoflage them. Since there is not enough donor hair to totally cover a fully balding head, the guys who need the scalp reductions the most are the ones who wind up unable to get their scars covered with hair. Scars can sometimes be difficult to transplant grafts into, and often the guys with scalp reduction scars have not been able to completely hide these long, serious scars on top of their head. Scalp reductions are done in the crown and mid areas. In a regular hair transplant, these areas are considered less critical for grafting (the frontal hairline is #1) so after the hairline is finished, there is often not enough donor hair left for the crown, or it is only thinly covered. If you have scalp reduction scars in your crown and can't cover them, you are in big trouble. Lots of scalp reductions result in "stretchback". This is where the scalp stretches back into the original position, leaving you with no cosmetic benefits, and large scars all the same. Scalp reductions increase tension on the scalp in the donor area, meaning that you will be able to harvest fewer grafts using the traditional strip excision. Your scalp is tighter, so less grafts can be harvested. You get less coverage and less density, because you have reduced the number of potential grafts. Scalp reductions are serious surgery. It is much more invasive than a typical hair transplant. The doctor methodically separates the scalp from the skull. Then there is the unpleasant "pulling" to stretch the scalp together so it can be sutured. In other words, it is a gruesome procedure that doesn't accomplish anything except create massive scars. The guys who could benefit from a scalp reduction (small balding area, well defined) can be satisfied much more simply and successfully by a standard hair transplant. Thankfully, fewer and fewer doctors are willing to perform this procedure.

Hello, I wanted to tell you about my experince with a getting a hair transplant. I am not writing to tell you how satisfied I am. No, people who are happy want to pretend like they never had it done. Likewise, most people with bad results would prefer not to talk about it. I have been trying to come to grips with what was done to me over 5 years ago, and still can`t. It seems like no one really cares either. I have contacted lawyers, medical boards, the BBB. I finally started reseaching the internet. I was both relieved, but also very saddened to see that I was not alone. There are people all over the United States that have had the same thing done to them. You see, a hair transplant doctor can do a plain lousy job time after time. Yet, as long as there is no infection, there is no law suit. You have to sign a `no guarrentee` release form before they will opperate. I understand, this is to protect the doctor. But, too many doctors are just plain taking advantage of this. They do not have to put any effort into there results. By the time the patient knows they were taken, they doctor has already been paid. I checked out message board postings on www.hairlosshelp.com and www.thebaldtruth.com I read story after story that was all to close to mine. Why no one will step in and stop this amazes me. I have tried every resorce I can think of, all I have heard is, "I am sorry." Let me tell you my story.... I am 34 years old right now. I started to lose my hair in my early twenty`s. In 1996 I went to see Dr. Stephen B. Anderson www.800theface.com and his Northwest Hair Transplant Center in Bellevue, Washington. I told Dr. Anderson "I want to have my hair look like someone in there 30`s, not 50`s. I want it to cover". He did not say he could cover all my hair loss, but he said "You will be happy, we can make you look good". I was quoted by Dr. Anderson`s assistant that the cost would be around $6000. I went to Dr. Anderson for four procedures, including a `scalp reduction`. By the time it was done, the total was over $10,000. I was told at that point to wait while the transplanted graphs came out of there `dormant` stage from the shock and started to grow. It has been 5 years now, and at best maybe 10% of his transplants grew. Doctors have been doing transplants since the early 1970`s. The only problem they had back then. was making the hair not have the `corn row` or `doll` look to it. They have come a long way since then, but the transplanted hair growing was never a issue. For Dr. Anderson it seems to be. If I was the only one this had happened to, I would write it off as my body `rejecting` the grafts. But, as it happens my friends brother went to see Dr. Anderson about the same time as myself. He was told basically the same lies that I was, that it would cost much less and have far greater results than either of us had. The only thing either of us have to show from his work is very bad scars. When I go out in public without a hat, I often get asked if I have had "brain surgery". So why have we not gotten are money back? Well, Dr. Anderson hides behind his lawyers and his `no gurantee` release for everyone must sign before he performs surgery. This allows him to say "Well, I do the best I can". If I got his best, I would hate to see his worst! Scalp reductions (aka "male pattern reduction" etc) are OLD technology. The idea is that the doctor will surgically remove large areas of bald scalp, and pull the rest of the hair-bearing scalp together, instantly resulting in a smaller bald area. Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, the reality of scalp reductions is not so appealing. Scalp reductions create big, serious scars on your scalp, in the bald area, where there is not any hair to camoflage them. Since there is not enough donor hair to totally cover a fully balding head, the guys who need the scalp reductions the most are the ones who wind up unable to get their scars covered with hair. Scars can sometimes be difficult to transplant grafts into, and often the guys with scalp reduction scars have not been able to completely hide these long, serious scars on top of their head. Scalp reductions are done in the crown and mid areas. In a regular hair transplant, these areas are considered less critical for grafting (the frontal hairline is #1) so after the hairline is finished, there is often not enough donor hair left for the crown, or it is only thinly covered. If you have scalp reduction scars in your crown and can't cover them, you are in big trouble. Lots of scalp reductions result in "stretchback". This is where the scalp stretches back into the original position, leaving you with no cosmetic benefits, and large scars all the same. Scalp reductions increase tension on the scalp in the donor area, meaning that you will be able to harvest fewer grafts using the traditional strip excision. Your scalp is tighter, so less grafts can be harvested. You get less coverage and less density, because you have reduced the number of potential grafts. Scalp reductions are serious surgery. It is much more invasive than a typical hair transplant. The doctor methodically separates the scalp from the skull. Then there is the unpleasant "pulling" to stretch the scalp together so it can be sutured. In other words, it is a gruesome procedure that doesn't accomplish anything except create massive scars. The guys who could benefit from a scalp reduction (small balding area, well defined) can be satisfied much more simply and successfully by a standard hair transplant. Thankfully, fewer and fewer doctors are willing to perform this procedure.

Hello, I wanted to tell you about my experince with a getting a hair transplant. I am not writing to tell you how satisfied I am. No, people who are happy want to pretend like they never had it done. Likewise, most people with bad results would prefer not to talk about it. I have been trying to come to grips with what was done to me over 5 years ago, and still can`t. It seems like no one really cares either. I have contacted lawyers, medical boards, the BBB. I finally started reseaching the internet. I was both relieved, but also very saddened to see that I was not alone. There are people all over the United States that have had the same thing done to them. You see, a hair transplant doctor can do a plain lousy job time after time. Yet, as long as there is no infection, there is no law suit. You have to sign a `no guarrentee` release form before they will opperate. I understand, this is to protect the doctor. But, too many doctors are just plain taking advantage of this. They do not have to put any effort into there results. By the time the patient knows they were taken, they doctor has already been paid. I checked out message board postings on www.hairlosshelp.com and www.thebaldtruth.com I read story after story that was all to close to mine. Why no one will step in and stop this amazes me. I have tried every resorce I can think of, all I have heard is, "I am sorry." Let me tell you my story.... I am 34 years old right now. I started to lose my hair in my early twenty`s. In 1996 I went to see Dr. Stephen B. Anderson www.800theface.com and his Northwest Hair Transplant Center in Bellevue, Washington. I told Dr. Anderson "I want to have my hair look like someone in there 30`s, not 50`s. I want it to cover". He did not say he could cover all my hair loss, but he said "You will be happy, we can make you look good". I was quoted by Dr. Anderson`s assistant that the cost would be around $6000. I went to Dr. Anderson for four procedures, including a `scalp reduction`. By the time it was done, the total was over $10,000. I was told at that point to wait while the transplanted graphs came out of there `dormant` stage from the shock and started to grow. It has been 5 years now, and at best maybe 10% of his transplants grew. Doctors have been doing transplants since the early 1970`s. The only problem they had back then. was making the hair not have the `corn row` or `doll` look to it. They have come a long way since then, but the transplanted hair growing was never a issue. For Dr. Anderson it seems to be. If I was the only one this had happened to, I would write it off as my body `rejecting` the grafts. But, as it happens my friends brother went to see Dr. Anderson about the same time as myself. He was told basically the same lies that I was, that it would cost much less and have far greater results than either of us had. The only thing either of us have to show from his work is very bad scars. When I go out in public without a hat, I often get asked if I have had "brain surgery". So why have we not gotten are money back? Well, Dr. Anderson hides behind his lawyers and his `no gurantee` release for everyone must sign before he performs surgery. This allows him to say "Well, I do the best I can". If I got his best, I would hate to see his worst! Scalp reductions (aka "male pattern reduction" etc) are OLD technology. The idea is that the doctor will surgically remove large areas of bald scalp, and pull the rest of the hair-bearing scalp together, instantly resulting in a smaller bald area. Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, the reality of scalp reductions is not so appealing. Scalp reductions create big, serious scars on your scalp, in the bald area, where there is not any hair to camoflage them. Since there is not enough donor hair to totally cover a fully balding head, the guys who need the scalp reductions the most are the ones who wind up unable to get their scars covered with hair. Scars can sometimes be difficult to transplant grafts into, and often the guys with scalp reduction scars have not been able to completely hide these long, serious scars on top of their head. Scalp reductions are done in the crown and mid areas. In a regular hair transplant, these areas are considered less critical for grafting (the frontal hairline is #1) so after the hairline is finished, there is often not enough donor hair left for the crown, or it is only thinly covered. If you have scalp reduction scars in your crown and can't cover them, you are in big trouble. Lots of scalp reductions result in "stretchback". This is where the scalp stretches back into the original position, leaving you with no cosmetic benefits, and large scars all the same. Scalp reductions increase tension on the scalp in the donor area, meaning that you will be able to harvest fewer grafts using the traditional strip excision. Your scalp is tighter, so less grafts can be harvested. You get less coverage and less density, because you have reduced the number of potential grafts. Scalp reductions are serious surgery. It is much more invasive than a typical hair transplant. The doctor methodically separates the scalp from the skull. Then there is the unpleasant "pulling" to stretch the scalp together so it can be sutured. In other words, it is a gruesome procedure that doesn't accomplish anything except create massive scars. The guys who could benefit from a scalp reduction (small balding area, well defined) can be satisfied much more simply and successfully by a standard hair transplant. Thankfully, fewer and fewer doctors are willing to perform this procedure.

Hello, I wanted to tell you about my experince with a getting a hair transplant. I am not writing to tell you how satisfied I am. No, people who are happy want to pretend like they never had it done. Likewise, most people with bad results would prefer not to talk about it. I have been trying to come to grips with what was done to me over 5 years ago, and still can`t. It seems like no one really cares either. I have contacted lawyers, medical boards, the BBB. I finally started reseaching the internet. I was both relieved, but also very saddened to see that I was not alone. There are people all over the United States that have had the same thing done to them. You see, a hair transplant doctor can do a plain lousy job time after time. Yet, as long as there is no infection, there is no law suit. You have to sign a `no guarrentee` release form before they will opperate. I understand, this is to protect the doctor. But, too many doctors are just plain taking advantage of this. They do not have to put any effort into there results. By the time the patient knows they were taken, they doctor has already been paid. I checked out message board postings on www.hairlosshelp.com and www.thebaldtruth.com I read story after story that was all to close to mine. Why no one will step in and stop this amazes me. I have tried every resorce I can think of, all I have heard is, "I am sorry." Let me tell you my story.... I am 34 years old right now. I started to lose my hair in my early twenty`s. In 1996 I went to see Dr. Stephen B. Anderson www.800theface.com and his Northwest Hair Transplant Center in Bellevue, Washington. I told Dr. Anderson "I want to have my hair look like someone in there 30`s, not 50`s. I want it to cover". He did not say he could cover all my hair loss, but he said "You will be happy, we can make you look good". I was quoted by Dr. Anderson`s assistant that the cost would be around $6000. I went to Dr. Anderson for four procedures, including a `scalp reduction`. By the time it was done, the total was over $10,000. I was told at that point to wait while the transplanted graphs came out of there `dormant` stage from the shock and started to grow. It has been 5 years now, and at best maybe 10% of his transplants grew. Doctors have been doing transplants since the early 1970`s. The only problem they had back then. was making the hair not have the `corn row` or `doll` look to it. They have come a long way since then, but the transplanted hair growing was never a issue. For Dr. Anderson it seems to be. If I was the only one this had happened to, I would write it off as my body `rejecting` the grafts. But, as it happens my friends brother went to see Dr. Anderson about the same time as myself. He was told basically the same lies that I was, that it would cost much less and have far greater results than either of us had. The only thing either of us have to show from his work is very bad scars. When I go out in public without a hat, I often get asked if I have had "brain surgery". So why have we not gotten are money back? Well, Dr. Anderson hides behind his lawyers and his `no gurantee` release for everyone must sign before he performs surgery. This allows him to say "Well, I do the best I can". If I got his best, I would hate to see his worst! Scalp reductions (aka "male pattern reduction" etc) are OLD technology. The idea is that the doctor will surgically remove large areas of bald scalp, and pull the rest of the hair-bearing scalp together, instantly resulting in a smaller bald area. Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, the reality of scalp reductions is not so appealing. Scalp reductions create big, serious scars on your scalp, in the bald area, where there is not any hair to camoflage them. Since there is not enough donor hair to totally cover a fully balding head, the guys who need the scalp reductions the most are the ones who wind up unable to get their scars covered with hair. Scars can sometimes be difficult to transplant grafts into, and often the guys with scalp reduction scars have not been able to completely hide these long, serious scars on top of their head. Scalp reductions are done in the crown and mid areas. In a regular hair transplant, these areas are considered less critical for grafting (the frontal hairline is #1) so after the hairline is finished, there is often not enough donor hair left for the crown, or it is only thinly covered. If you have scalp reduction scars in your crown and can't cover them, you are in big trouble. Lots of scalp reductions result in "stretchback". This is where the scalp stretches back into the original position, leaving you with no cosmetic benefits, and large scars all the same. Scalp reductions increase tension on the scalp in the donor area, meaning that you will be able to harvest fewer grafts using the traditional strip excision. Your scalp is tighter, so less grafts can be harvested. You get less coverage and less density, because you have reduced the number of potential grafts. Scalp reductions are serious surgery. It is much more invasive than a typical hair transplant. The doctor methodically separates the scalp from the skull. Then there is the unpleasant "pulling" to stretch the scalp together so it can be sutured. In other words, it is a gruesome procedure that doesn't accomplish anything except create massive scars. The guys who could benefit from a scalp reduction (small balding area, well defined) can be satisfied much more simply and successfully by a standard hair transplant. Thankfully, fewer and fewer doctors are willing to perform this procedure.