Gorpy

Keep in mind that it is virtually impossible for a doctor who is very "hands on", that is, they make all of the recipient sites and place most of the grafts, to handle a mega-session. At some point, as the number of grafts go higher and higher, they have to rely more and more on their staff. While some doctors like Dr. Keene do most of the work themselves, others will make the recipient sites and then say "see ya next week", while the staff places the grafts. Personally I want the doctor either doing or closely supervising the work. Placement of the grafts is important and not as simple as it seems. I'm sure many graft placing staffers are very skilled, but...

I also think the results are impressive based on the severity of this guy's hair loss and the limited donar supply.

Thanks for that info tymman. That brings up an interesting point. In my case, I can see a thinning typical MPB pattern on my head. So it is fairly obvious what the future will look like. But, in the case of a person without detectable loss with the naked eye, a magnification device could shed (no pun intended) some light on the future for some areas of the head.

Damo, I thought your first procedure looked very good. I can see where you might want a little more density, but I'd probably be happy with the density of the first. Us old guys will settle for a little less density :-).

I have consulted with two of the top docs recommended on this site. Neither of them used a magnification device to look at my hair. They both examined it carefully with the naked eye. I think an experienced doc can make a good determination of your condition without magnification. I'm not sure it would add any value. I think it is extremely valuable to consult with at least two docs. This allows you to compare and contrast there views. I feel much more enlightened now.

This whole density thing is still very confusion. The guy who is shown on the sight you refer to (on the right) is one of Dr. Keene's patients. The text of this page talks about density of 50 to 60 fu's per sq cm, yet I don't think there is any way this guy got that density. He received 3000 fu's in an area roughly what I will be getting (90 sq cm). At a density of 30, that would be 2700. Even if he only covered 80 sq cm. (which is not a very large area), and received 40 per, that would require 3200 fu's. In fact, most of the pictures I see on the sites of some of the top doctors reflect a lower density. They talk alot about high density, but 2000+ grafts covering a fairly large area is not dense packing.

I buy mine at Costco, and yes it does require a prescription.

Bosley is all about marketing and hype. Look at the website Mahair recommended. It's an eye opener. You did a good thing in coming here to start your research. I suggest you look at http://www.iahrs.org/ and from those doctors, pick out some that interest you and then do more specific research on them. Find out everything you can. Search everywhere.

You are correct in you description of proscar and propecia. Proscar comes in 5mg pills and Propecia comes in 1mg pills. Some people, myself included, are cutting the Proscar pills in to 4 pieces and taking one piece a day. It's much cheaper that way. I haven't heard of any other brands available. Pro - pronounced as in 'pro' sports player. pe - pronounced same as a 'pea' you eat. cia - pronounced 'sheeah'

The main purpose of Propecia is to STOP further hair loss. That should be the expectation when using it. Any regrowth that a few patients experience is an added bonus but should not be expected. So if you want to keep the hair you have, you should start on it now. You will have to continue it forever.

Thanks Robert. There's so much talk about density these days. Dr. Keene recomended 30 per cm for me. I have the donar hair to go higher, but if 30 is going to give me that "illusion of density", I'd be happy with that. BTW - your hair looks very good. Very natural.

Robert, What was the density of your transplant? Thanks, Gorpy

Yes, if you take a look at TV and movie personalities, about 90% of them have a great head of hair. That just doesn't reflect the real world. I find myself looking at actors hair these days. Look at Don Johnson for example. I wonder...

Sixhead, you definitely need to look around and do some research. I am also in Arizona. From what I have found, Dr. Keene in Tucson is one of the best in the world. And on top of that, she has a knack for doing great hairlines. I have not had a transplant from her, but I did have an initial consultation. I am waiting to see if I have any adverse effects from finasteride which I recently started. Do a search on the comments about Bosley on this board. Then do the same thing on Keene.

I posted this on another thread after 4 days of being on finasteride. "I am now 4 days into taking proscar (quarters). Funny, but only us hair loss guys would notice this, but I have a single hair that is below my now receded hairline. It seems it didn't want to fall out and has resisted receding more than my other hairs. However, it has grown weak and is short and looks about ready to die. It could be my imagination, but after only 4 days, I'd swear it is becoming more visible and longer. I'll keep you informed." Robert had informed me that it can take 4 months or longer to see results. That is true on a scale considering only cosmetically significant differences that cause a visible difference. However, I just want to keep an accurate record of what I have found and make the point that on an individual hair level I now believe that one can detect a difference almost immediatly. It has now been 3 weeks and one day since I started Proscar. The individual hair I was referring to above is still growing. It is about .5 cm longer that when I started. It is also darker. I want to emphasize that this single hair was almost gone. It looked like a vellus hair that was finally ready to die. I could barely see it. Now it is easily visible due to its new length and darkness. There is also something else I've noticed. This is more subjective so I'm not sure about it. My hair seems to stand up straiter. That might sound strange, but it really appears to have more stength, which makes it pop upward and away from my scalp. I have not changed shampoos or anything like that that would change its texture. And the really good news :-). I have not noticed any sexual side effects.

It's actually difficult for women to relate to hair loss because 1) They don't suffer from it except in rare cases and 2) Since there are so many men with hair loss, it just seems like a natural part of life to them. My wife's ideas are similar. However, when I ask her to imagine how she would feel if she were losing her hair, a light seems to come on and I can see that "Oh yeah" expression on her face. You better believe that women would be freaking out if they were losing their hair.

2 year update

2 year update

I just posted my current pictures under the "Hair Transplant Photos" category. Comments are welcome. He, John Se, I just noticed, we are neighbors.

I'm looking at 2700 grafts, 90 sq cm * 30 per cm density, starting at my new hairline and going back to just before what most people would call the crown. I have no real loss on the crown yet and no need for grafts there. My new hairline would be about 1.5 to 2 cm below my current hairline. Throughout the area behind my current hairline, I have diffused hair throughout. I'm not experienced at estimating the density of the area, but it's thin enough to be very noticable. Maybe 10 or so hairs per cm in the thicker parts. When I see myself in pictures, I say to myself "wow, I'm bald". I have a good donar area of more than 5000 grafts.

I'm still debating about getting transplant with Dr. Keene. It's not that I'm considering anyone else at this time. It's her or no one. My main concern is shock loss. I have quite a bit of diffused hair still remaining in the transplant area. I'm concerned about it all being shocked out. Dr. Keene recommended a 30 grafts per cc. over the entire area. I suppose that if it all eventually comes in, any previous shock loss wouldn't matter because that's thick enough for me at 49 years old. Plus my original hair was never really thick. So I could acheive the "illusion" of density with 30cc. I'm leaning stongly towards going ahead with it. I really want that new hairline that she is so good at creating. Dr. Keene said that some shock loss is a possibility. I think that is realistic. It would be unlikely that it would all shock out, right?

I am now 4 days into taking proscar (quarters). Funny, but only us hair loss guys would notice this, but I have a single hair that is below my now receded hairline. It seems it didn't want to fall out and has resisted receding more than my other hairs. However, it has grown weak and is short and looks about ready to die. It could be my imagination, but after only 4 days, I'd swear it is becoming more visible and longer. I'll keep you informed.

Sorry if this has been answered somewhere, but I can't find it. If shockloss occurs and causes the whispy hairs to fall out and NEVER grow back (because they were soon going to fall out anyway), would it be wise to try to strengthen those hairs with finasteride for a few months before doing a HT? In other words, finasteride is supposed to take some of those hairs, depending on which stage they are in, and restore them to "strong" hairs. Therefore they would hold up better to shock loss, correct?

Sorry if this has been answered somewhere, but I can't find it. If shockloss occurs and causes the whispy hairs to fall out and NEVER grow back (because they were soon going to fall out anyway), would it be wise to try to strengthen those hairs with finasteride for a few months before doing a HT? In other words, finasteride is supposed to take some of those hairs, depending on which stage they are in, and restore them to "strong" hairs. Therefore they would hold up better to shock loss, correct?

Thinkingaboutit, we're in about the same situation. Physically my body is in great shape. Many 35 year olds would love to have my body, but at 49, my receding hair makes me look old.