RichG

I'm guessing the point of mentioning the number of surgeries is to convey experience. I believe Wilt Chamberlain made a similar boast.

I'm curious. Did anyone else read the claim by Dr. True of being close to performing a total of 20,000 transplants by next year? Assuming Dr True started back in 1992 with 5 working days per week, and 50 weeks per year (2 week vacation), he would have to average nearly 6 procedures per day to reach this figure. Am I missing something?

To be honest. I believe it is impossible to rate Doctors who perform hair transplant surgery in a "top 5". There are many factors which determine who is best including quality of work, facilities, staff, pre-op counseling, post-op care, price, etc.. Every person has their own weight they apportion to each of the factors. For me, I chose Dr. True because he was close by; the price was reasonable compared to others; I had experience with Dr True previously while he was in a partnership with Dr. Elliot; and the pre-op counseling was excellent. Three and a half months post-op from my most recent surgery, I can see the results will make a far more significant impact on my appearance then earlier surgeries. However, this is to be expected from any one of a number of surgeons practicing the latest ultra dense grafting methods for the frontal hairline. On the downside, if I were to offer Dr. True any advice on how to improve his practice. I would definately suggest he either redecorate the current facilities, or better yet, move somewhere else with more spacious rooms. Part of the reason I went with Dr True a 2nd time is that I was impressed with the facilities at True and Elliott. The present facilities are very spartan looking and the procedure rooms are not much larger then a closet. I would get a more comfortable chair with memory foam head support (for comfort while staying still for hours and hours), and increase the amount of sedation to achieve a twilight sleep to make the hours pass by more quickly. Anyway, back to my point, you really can't have a top five because hair transplants are not something you can experience yourself at each of the Doc's performing them. However, the moderator of this site could take a poll of the membership rating their experience with the Doctors they have seen, in all of the various quality factors on a scale of 1-5. Then you can tabulate the results and each member can get an idea of which Doctors stand out in those areas they deem important.

I think Dr. True (and his team) perform decent work. However, I would not go so far as to travel all the way from the U.K. for a procedure with him. The primary reason is followup care. What are you going to do if you develop a problem once you get back in the U.K.? I had my most recent procedure with Dr. True primarily because of his proximity to me. The other alternative was Dr. Beemer who was further away in Saratoga Springs, NY which is a 6 hour drive for me. He has nicer facilities, in a quaint upstate New York location, but the distance for follow up care is what made me choose Dr. True. My recommendation is to try and find a reputable doctor in the U.K.

I don't think it is possible to answer your question. The closest you can get is to take a poll of how various doctors rate with such items as pre op consultation, pre-op instructions facilities, staff, pricing, comfort during procedure, quality of results, follow-up care etc.. on a scale of say 1-5 and then tabulate the results.

I had my procedure performed by Dr. True. He cut the donor strip, closed the wound, and punched the graft holes. A technician administered the local anesthesia and a team of technicians placed the grafts. I believe Dr. True may have stopped in the room for a few minutes while the grafts were being placed. I understand with the larger procedures, it is necessary for the physician to rely on a team of technicians to participate in the surgery, however I personally would feel much better if there was a thorough examination of the work by the Physician following the procedure. This would ensure that any problems that might occur due to one of the Tech's having a bad day etc... can be caught and corrected early.

I kind of felt that way after trying a hairpiece. What a mistake that was. Actually hair transplants are the absolute best way to achieve the best and most natural looking head of hair. When I first took the plunge for a hair transplant in the early eighties, the state of the art looked similar to a doll head with large round multi hair plugs. Now this looked unnatural. Luckily, I ignored the advice of the Doctor and decided not to start with the hairline. Also, picking the right Doctor was a crapshoot, because there was virtually no information readily available to evaluate a doctors work other then the pictures in his provided portfolio ( which by the way looked unnatural due to the older technology). Anyway, I have had three subsequent transplants since and am waiting for my latest (and likely best) to grow into place using the latest ultra packed graft technology. Frankly, I envy those of you who are younger and considering hair transplants for the very first time. You have the advantage of new state of the art methods, an incredible amount of research and information from fellow transplant patients (thanks to the invention of the internet), and a virgin head of donor hair. What more can you ask for?

Just one correction to my note. My 3rd transplant was with Dr. Beehner. He has one of those names that are easy to mispell.

Hi Ken, I also live in the Philadelphia area. I started with hair transplants in the mid eighties when the old large round plug style procedures were in vogue. Things have changed dramatically since then. The ultra dense packing can provide a completely undetectable natural looking and youth ful result in just one sitting. When I did the research for my 3rd transplant with Dr. Beemer (Saratoga) in December of 2000, this advancement was not available. Dr. Beemer's approach was to use mini and micro transplants and "pepper" them accross the scalp over 2-3 sessions. In addition, there is a new advancement which eliminates most of the pain associated with the dreaded needle anesthesia. It is called the wand, but it actually still involves the same multipe needle sticks, only this time the infusion rate is computer controlled which reduces the pain significantly. I would say the pain scale goes from an 8 out of 10 to a 3 out of ten. More like multiple tiny bee stings. I would say the worst part of my most recent session, which occurred two weeks ago with Dr. True was sitting still in the chair for nearly 8 hours. Also I might mention the scabbing associated with my recent transplant greatly reduced compared to prior procedures. After only 12 days there are no scabs; only a bit of redness. When I run my hand lightly over the top of my head it feels like a crew cut with all the little hairs. My recommendation for a Doctor is to go see Dr. Bernstein. I hear he is very reputable. Especially in the area of repair work. You might also want to see Dr. Feller and Dr. True. I chose Dr. True because he performed my 2nd transplant in the early 90's and seemed to be on the cutting edge with dense packing, pain reduction, and donor closure. In my research, I was not impressed by the qualifications of any of the Doctors in the Philadelphia area. I think you are correct in going to NY. Let me know if you have any other questions. Rich

I don't believe most reputable Doctors favor removing old transplants. The favored approach is to mask the old transplants. With the current state of the art ultra dense packing, you should be able to achieve extremely satisfactory results. I just had mine masked in this manner, and I can tell it will look great. This is after only two weeks post surgery. Your best bet is to invest in reputable and experienced surgeon. There are plenty of repair pictures on the net.

You can reduce itching by taking Bendryl.