Janna

Great hair style! You're looking fantastic! Thanks for the update.

His smile says it all........

We didn't wet his hair, actually. He came in for the consult with paste like gel product in his hair. He has the same paste in the after pics as well. During the consult, we wouldn't ask to wash the paste out as they would feel put out. Since he had paste in the before pics, we were fine with him having the same paste for the after pics too.

Your result is looking very good! I'm happy for you!

Fortune, It won't be too long before you're able to share your hair growth with us. We're looking forward to following your progress. We use motorized device because it's able to give consistent punches efficiently. With our protocol, there's no fatigue or loss of control of depth and angle of the punches. Some patients researching into different FUE techniques assume that "by hand" technique to be superior or that it takes more skill to do it by hand than with motorized decvices. I don't get why one needs to "feel" for the follicles with each punch. The main reason given has been that follicles need to be felt by hand. With good loupes, you're able to adjust for the angle and direction of the follicles when a motorized device is used. The depth of the follicles in a patient can be determined with 4-5 punches at the beginning as the the depth will then be the same thoughout the head. A skill set is needed for both types for sure but I really don't get why one would be superior over the other. To me it's what feels most comfortable in achieving great, hearty grafts with minimal transection. Thanks for your question.

Fortune, With the success of his first transplant well underway, he does indeed like to extend the coverage to his crown as much as possible. As you can see, he has less than average donor supply so he knows how the donor is utilized is very important. He is very happy with his progress!

Staggerlee, The 1 day post op after shampoo is a bit blurry but here it is side by side with pre-op:

Here's my feedback......... Wow! You're looking awesome!! I'm very happy for you!

Thanks Sadbuttrue & StaggerLee!! Stag, Thanks for your questions and interest in Shapiro Medical's FUE protocol. You are correct, we no longer have the Artas. It's been over a year since we've stopped using it. Currently, Dr. Joe and I do the extractions together and we've come to really prefer the sharp punches because they go through the skin just above the nape much easier than when we were only using the SAFE dull punches. The device that holds the punch is also much lighter and quieter. Dr. Joe usually starts off making the punches and I'll follow up on the other side of the patient by pulling out the grafts. The extracted grafts go immediately into the Hypothermosol solution and they are sprayed with Liposomol ATP on a regular basis throughout the procedure. Once Dr. Joe completes a section of punches, then we'll switch. This protocol keeps us fresh and maximizes efficiency. Dr. Paul and Dr. Ron are doing some extractions but they don't do majority of them on a given case. We are comfortable scheduling a patient for 2000 grafts in a day but if the patient wants more than 2000 grafts, then they'll likely be on the schedule over 2 days. This particular patient was done over two days - approx. 1550 on day #1 and the remaining on the day #2 because Dr. Paul decided he'd like to dedicate the second day for refining the hairline. We still implement the traditional implantation technique of using our skilled, experienced technicians using fine forceps. I think that our yield for the FUE is getting very close to that of our strip with the use of our holding solutions, ATP spray and ACell. I do think that yield in general for FUE procedures are still slightly lower than that of strip, however. I read on another forum that one of the Turkish doctors told his patient to expect 85% yield. I've personally heard from quite a few FUE doctors say 70%-90% is the norm. I am usually surprised by how much hair is moved for some of the FUE results I see online. Thanks again for your interest and I hope you are doing well!

I've heard some clinics doing 3000+ grafts in a day with the Artas but I think it all depends on the doctor and clinic on their limits. A lot depends on the patient's donor supply and also how easy the extraction process is going.

Your hair is coming along nicely. If you want to send photos at 6 months post op, I can put them side by side with your pre-op pics. Thanks for the update!

Here are pictures of Pcrudances before surgery and 6 months post op. He had 1324grafts/2698 hairs. Very small number of grafts were used to address the temple corners.

I'd say you're a NW 5 too. As for how many grafts are needed?.......You'd need an in-depth consultation to determine this specific to your case. In general terms, however, much will depend on scalp laxity and density. I think that on the low end of 3500 gr session, the area to address is the frontal half. If you're able to get 4-4500 gr range then you should be able to address the frontal 1/2 plus the anterior portion of your crown. The bottom part of the crown should be left alone or for another procedure once you're happy with the front and top.

Here are pictures of Pcrudance2006 progress from before surgery to 6 months post op. We appreciate the trouble he took to visit us in person for this follow up appointment.

Clarification: Shapiro Medical does not have the Artas any longer. It's been over a year since we've used the Artas. That quote from me is in regards to a patient who had work done with the Artas in January of 2014. In Feb of 2014, we had stopped scheduling patients for the Artas.

Glad to hear your happy with your progress. We're looking forward to your follow-up visit next week. Thanks for posting the update!

It's really starting to fill in! Thanks for the update, we appreciate it.

Shapiro Medical's stance on hair systems would be to minimize the usage as much as possible during the growth phases. I'd like to refresh StaggerLee's memory on the "big to do". The "big to do" was concerning a colleague of Dr. Shapiro's. This patient was very unhappy with his result. Poor growth may have been due to a hair system despite the patient getting reassurance from several doctors that it was fine to wear a system. As a favor to his colleague and because Dr. Shapiro felt badly for this patient, SMG did couple transplants for free on him.

This is a beautiful result! The patient's hair looks thick and healthy.

I believe that Wazaam is currently in touch with SMG and we hope to get him to where he is happy with his results.