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Hello everyone, I just recently got a hair transplant at Dr. Yaman’s clinic and would love to share my results with the community. My goal is to restore my hairline and make the left and right side of my hair more dense. My hair at the top now has gotten very weak and not as strong as before. I use to be able to style it the way I wanted but now am not able to because the hair just seems so weak. I am a bit busy at the moment and will provide more information about my experience and more specifics about my hair loss information. I just wanted to get the post rollin and will be sure to update you all very soon. Thank you for your patience! Before:
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Hi all, I’m getting my procedure done in 2 weeks on 8/19/2022 which has been a 1 year wait and the earliest surgery date for FUT 3500 after first emailing Dr Diep MHTA Clinic on 7/5/2021 and having my Zoom consultation with Dr Diep on 8/12/2021. I have to arrive at 5:30 am on 8/19/2022 and was told my procedure will take 12-16 hours so should be done between 5:30 to 9:30 pm. I will have my sutures removed on 9/2/2022 which is 2 weeks after my procedure. Surgeon: Dr Diep MHTA Clinic in Los Gatos, California Surgery Date: 8/19/2022 Gender: Male Ethnicity: Southeast Asian Age: 38 Norwood: 3 to 4 Hair-type: Straight black that is coarse but thinning Procedure: FUT 3500 (initial estimate), #### (final graft count - will update after surgery with breakdown of graft count for 1, 2, 3, and 4 hair) Cost: $5.28 per graft ($18,500 total paid) Finasteride: Started February 2020 (once daily 1 mg) Minoxidil: Started February 2020 (twice daily to vertex) Location: San Francisco Bay Area (50 miles from Dr Diep MHTA Clinic) Additional Services: I’m not opting for the A-Cell ($600) and can’t get Amino Fill ($600) because Dr Diep MHTA Clinic said it’s on back order My reasons for choosing Dr Diep is that I watched his YouTube channel which has impressive results, and he is great at achieving density (high yield) and frontal hairlines that are natural looking by taking into account facial proportions. I’m concerned about how visible the FUT linear scar will be (hopefully minimal) since I wear a shorter hairstyle and get my haircut with a 1 guard fade to a 2 guard, but I want to maximize donor supply. I also read many reviews on here and Reddit, and acknowledge that Dr Diep is fairly controversial with the criticism (eg, intentionally implanting in cornrows as opposed to randomly which can look like a baby doll, left side is better than right side by starting left and moving right, could improve interlocking, appropriate angles, using fine singles in the front, having a more uniform extraction pattern on the donor, natural appearance, and donor management, etc). My preference is not to travel in the US or internationally to see other doctors. I ultimately decided Dr Diep is the best fit for me. I’m going to document my surgery and results with Dr Diep MHTA Clinic so this information can hopefully help others going through this process because this forum and all the posts have been a very helpful resource for me to learn about all of this. I also know it’s a big decision for many of us due to finances, physical recovery, etc. I plan to ask the Dr Diep MHTA Clinic technicians to take photos of me before the procedure where they cut my hair, after they cut my hair and before implanting the grafts, and after the grafts are implanted so that I can later post the photos here. Thanks to @Melvin- Moderator@Skyb@Cahustler@WS2020@jac@shucity@jimcraig152 for all of the time and effort in their very helpful comments and posts.
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Prologue - A Series of Unfortunate Events My story begins on a dark, grey cloudy morning (16th May 2022) which to say how the day unfolded may have been an omen of events to come. Rain the night prior continued towards the morning as i rose to get my final preparations done. I was unable to complete the Air Suvidha form the night before due to some technical issues of a useless Android App, meant to compress your PDF to under the 1MB requirement. So my morning began trying to set this right and with the help of my sister and Satyam @Eugenix Hair Sciences concierge giving me all the correct formatting for the information requested, i successfully managed to submit the form albeit without an assigned seat (Must be updated prior to boarding they said). At this point i was told you must also have a printed copy. I quickly went to get ready with a shower and finalising my packing believing i had everything i needed. Said goodbye to my loved one's and had a few come with me to see me off. On the way, i still needed those pesky print offs for the Air Suvidha and so drove to the local library to be confronted with it being absolutely wrecked and under reconstruction. So i had to detour all the way across to town and time was not on my side. By now it was approaching 12.35pm with a coach looking at 1pm when i finally got to the 2nd library. I briskly walked to the computers and waited an eternity for them to allow me to finally log in and print off the documents. A quick attempt to print them only delayed me another moment whilst i had to top up my print credit. Running out of time and praying that the coach may be delayed, as soon as i picked up the papers i broke into a brisk jog. This is where things took the biggest unfortunate turn. Within 60 seconds of starting my jog as i had done so several times before, i felt a sudden popping of my left knee. Dread filled me. Surely not now! Now of all days and times. A disastrous injury from 2018 to my left knee that left me needing physio and had been a long arduous recovery. So, in panic immediately stopping to a snail walk, i began to feel the almost forgotten dread of walking whilst slowing to a complete limp whilst i dragged myself back to the car. Almost ready to cry (manly tears of course) of the pain and reminder what this could mean for my health long term but also the difficult position i now found myself in. My sister who i had sent in yo the nearby shop to get me some sandwiches, snacks etc. also returned and whilst in pain and seeing the 12.45pm time, i began to try quickly drive towards the coach station. Knowing that even if i got there near the time, i wouldn't be able to walk as quickly as i needed. So, when i stopped i got the stuff i had (small case and rucksack) out quickly as i could and began a painful walk to the end of the coach stands. Brief respite not even felt on an escalator knowing i had to try move quickly. Finally getting there to realise, it had gone. My heart sunk. Whilst my mother told me we could simply drive towards London, i knew this wasn't practical and as they came into the station to comfort me, my other sister who remained at home began to look for alternate coaches after a futile attempt to contact the original coach to re-arrange a time (seriously, SCREW YOU companies that use automated lines and NOT humans!!). We found one due to depart at 2.10pm with an arrival around 7pm. Luckily my flight wasn't till the next day so this wouldn't have a huge impact but my new injury certainly would. The coach arrived and boarded as normal, finding a seat with some extra leg room to stretch my injured leg, trying to move it here and there like almost a mild physio attempt but mainly praying a miracle recovery would happen. We began the long 5 hour plus journey and after the 3rd scheduled stop, things took a turn for the worse perhaps showing more omens but at this stage i couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. The driver made an emergency stop on the motorway (Highway for all y'all 'Mericans) after a light showed a fire detected in the passenger area. Perhaps an over eager moron with a smoke habit using an e-cigarette or a faulty sensor. Either way, we were now stopped and losing time. Eventually after some panicked calling on the part of the driver we managed to set off again when the alarm had gone off and a full check done to show we weren't immediately going to combust into flames. We got to a scheduled stop and the drivers changed, setting off once again the driver got off the main motorway to what i thought was a scheduled stop. It wasn't. What followed was a hilarious unexpected jaunt through the rural UK countryside in a coach far too big for the roads coming across multiple narrow bridges and the absurdity only grew when i came to realise that the next stop was actually in London where i was supposed to disembark. Yes, all that time we spent could have been entirely avoided had the driver simply stayed on the M1 motorway (for those familiar) and followed it directly into London where it ends. Eventually we arrived 50 minutes late from our expected time of arrival and i had been keeping my family apprised of the situation where i was going to be picked up by a family member. As i left the coach, i could feel things were not well at all with my knee. Whilst seated i had tried to weight bear it and knew it wasn't going to co-operate. Immediately as i made the dozen or so steps off the coach, it began to tighten and even a short walk without issues a day prior was now like climbing Everest. I eventually got into the car, reclined the seat back to ease the pressure and we got to the place where i would stay. Immediately applying heat spray and doing whatever i could. I spent some time keeping it iced, some using a home remedy my mum had told me and then i turned in for the night with it almost approaching midnight. In the morning (17th May), i've woken and there's been some improvement from before but i knew from experience that this is usually a temporary state of affairs that becomes exacerbated once i attempt to even walk remotely normal-ish for a short distance. I began my day off at 5.40am approximately and got showered and made my way to the airport thanks to the help of the same family member that had picked me up. One final little quirk was the entry gate messing up immediately after somebody had gone through just fine. How many of these things are there now? I knew this was not going to be easy when travelling and so I asked the check in staff to try and get me as much leg room as possible and seat not too far from a toilet if i needed to go. Unfortunately a free upgrade seemed to be out of the possibilities but hey, don't ask, don't get. I made my way up to the lounge area where they said that you can get some assistance, updated my seat number to the Air Suvidha portal and figured i'll just use a pen to change it when i arrive. I did have a last minute scare and have to ring my sister to email me the PDF versions because for some bizarre reason it accepted my passport version from before and didn't ask for it, but did want my COVID-19 certificate and information. All done, had a sandwich and then went over to get some assistance going through security. Not as quick as i thought it would have been. You still get held up and tbh, i thought it would have been a bit quicker but it went through smoothly there and got a buggy ride right to the gate which was great because i cannot walk the distance that gate was. So, i'm comfortable on the plane now and heading to Delhi. Hopefully i can reply when i land and get settled. Wish em luck!- 144 replies
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A 40 year old patient came to us with NH Grd III. He was treated by Bio FUE technique of hair transplantation. Two thousand grafts were planted in the frontal half. The patient is satisfied with the results one year post surgery.
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Hey folks, lurker here for a while and now first time poster. Background - I’ve been losing hair since my 20s. Honestly back then I didn’t think or realize how bad it was getting and didn’t think there was much I could do about it. In my mid 30s I started fin for a few years which helped maintain some density in my crown but by then I had already lost most of my front hairline. I convinced myself I was feeling sides. Mostly a loss of libido, but frankly speaking I think it was stress related likely. I stopped fin and experienced an accelerated loss of hair in my crown. At this point I reached out to a doctor in LA and did a virtual consult (start of pandemic). He looked at me and said I was not a good candidate for HT cause my donor wasn’t good. This really discouraged me. I ended up trying hair systems for a year. While they looked good, honestly I was never happy with the process, the constant maintenance and reapplication (I run and exercise 5-6 times a week and this just broke down the bonds frequently) and more importantly it was always stressful when it came to travel and dating. I also wanted hair that looked natural for my age (41) and not like I was 20. My primary doctor recommended I get a second opinion. This set off a series of strange events. I went down this rabbit hole of research, found Eugenix, amazingly enough Dr. Sethi was going to be in San Francisco where I live for in person consults in a couple of days! I met him and as I had a completely shaved head at the time he quoted me a high number of around 7000 grafts. It was good to meet him though and I felt like I really had a shot at this. I started communicating with the Eugenix team and while I wanted to go with Dr. Arika, she wasn’t going to be available in Mumbai where my preference was (I have family that lives there literally 10 mins away from the clinic!) What’s more, I had to be in India on Aug 6 for a week for personal reasons and turns out they had availability to schedule me on the 7th! This series of happy coincidences really made me take the leap and go ahead with Dr. Priyadarshini Das. I’m the kind of person who would usually spend a year or more doing research and feeling comfortable enough to do this, but some personal events in my life over the past year have encouraged me to remind myself that life is short and when the signs are pointing to something, just go for it. Overall, barring a couple of minor hiccups the Eugenix team has been great to work with. I was mostly in touch with Mohit who was always very responsive and kind. I also had a video consult with Dr. Priyadarshini who was very sweet and patient. There was a bit of dropping the ball between different teams (for example had to contact often to get info about my preop procedure and timings) but overall they were all super responsive and nice. On the preop day we got photos taken and Dr. Das looked at me and said now that I have hair (I let it grow for the month since I saw Dr. Sethi) she did not think I needed more than around 4500 grafts, since she was seeing areas that were growing nicely and would respond well to finasteride. I really respect Eugenix’s integrity in this. She also noted I had some reverse thinning which would also respond well to fin, but it reduced the donor she had to get grafts from. We decided to get some beard grafts for the remaining. Sharing some pics of my hair pre-op. Note the very clear separation of my crown and donor is because of the hair system I wore till June. In my next post I’ll share some pictures and my experiences over the two days of surgery.
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I had my hair transplant of 3000 grafts on February 28th and March 1st. I have chosen to document my experience in as a sequence of events format. Only the relevant details are posted. I hope this post is helpful for others considering a hair transplant anywhere regardless of the clinic. I will be posting regular pictures. I've started using Finasteride as well after the surgery. So we will get a good idea of how it helps the baby hair that is there in my crown and mid scalp. Please share your feedback and tips. Don't forget to wish me luck. Background and Decision The details of my situation and pictures before transplant are under the thread. I chose Eugenix after seeing good results in this forum here and elsewhere. Also because they are good with higher nor-woods and handling difficult cases, and mega sessions. I didn't want to take any chance even if it meant paying a little higher than normal. https://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/topic/62466-considering-hair-transplant-for-my-norwood-67-age-29-appreciate-your-inputs-request-for-comments/ Online Proposal: The following is the proposal I got from the clinic after seeing the pictures I shared with them. I have been told by medical counselor over the phone that direct assessment at the time of the surgery may change these numbers to some extent. After gaining confidence after speaking with Eugenix medical counselor a couple of times. I booked a slot for Feb 28, 2022. Proposed Grafts: 5500, Scalp: 3500-4000, Beard: 1500 Proposed Coverage: Hairline: 2500, Mid scalp: 1500, Crown: 1500 See Picture#1 at the end of the post. ---------------------------------============================------------------------- Pre Operative Procedure (Grafts Discussion - I) I reached Delhi in the morning of 26th Feb and boarded a hotel walk-able from Eugenix. I pinged my medical counselor to know when I can go to the clinic. He told me I can at 5PM on 27th. I went to the clinic as advised at 5PM. Scene 1 The coordinator there met me at reception area and told me that my surgery would be at 12 PM on 28th. I didn't know if he was a coordinator or a doctor or a technician at that time. So I asked me to check my hair as I was assuming the hair would be checked on pre operative day. I was wearing a hat so I removed it. He checked my donor area but he didn't say anything out. But I sensed an air of disappointment in him which of course is my assumption. I tried to show my beard by removing my mask and he said it's visible even with mask. I didn't shave/trim my beard for almost a month so that they will get an idea of how it will look when it grows long. Scene 2 (BP and Anesthesia Check) A nurse tested my BP. She has given two anesthesia samples on my hands. She explained me that it would tell if I'm allergic to anesthesia in 5 minutes. Sometime later, coordinator came back and informed me that my procedure would take 3 days instead of 2 days as the grafts planned are > 5000. He told me that there would be a photo session and after that I can leave for the day. I asked again coordinator about my donor area. He told me that he will ask a doctor to come and check. Scene 3 (Advised of Two Sessions) A few minutes later, a surgeon came and checked my donor area. She felt clearly disappointed. She told me that it appeared differently in the pictures. She told that my hair roots are wider from one another. I asked whether it's due to thinning or is it my hair's nature. She said that my hair is naturally like that. She also checked my beard. Although it looks dense due to long beard I grew they are still similar to donor scalp in terms of density (roots are wider apart). She was seemingly disappointed and thought about it a bit with the coordinator. She asked me whether I can go for two sessions instead of one. I asked her how many months apart two sessions need to be and explained my personal situation. She asked me whether I can at least wait for another 3 months. After this I brought up with her why I chose Eugenix and mentioned many cases from HT where they had done above and beyond and even compared to typical mega sessions. I think she explained me that it's different from person to person I can't remember exactly now the full answer. She mentioned that body(non beard) hair would be weak. They both went back after that to discuss internally. All the while my intention was to get best out of them for me. Scene 4 (Discussion with coordinator) After a while, coordinator came and sat with me. He explained me that around 4000-4500 grafts will be implanted and crown will be left out.(I think that's with not so bad hair line). He reassured me that minimum 4000 grafts will be implanted but they will still try to maximize anything beyond that up to 4500 grafts. Since all these scenes happened less than <20 minutes, I didn't have full clarity of how that would look like. So I was hesitant to make a choice. In retrospect, I think the difference in that plan would be just the crown. He asked me to not rush my decision. He advised me to go back to the hotel and think and he would call me sometime later to take opinion. I thanked and left the clinic for the day. Scene 4 (Discussion with counselor) After reaching the hotel, I discussed with my brother in law(he came to Delhi with me). He felt it's not a bad deal and we can come later for another session if we still think crown coverage is needed. I called my Eugenix counselor and explained him what happened. I met him in person after that to discuss. I discussed with him for some time. I requested him to convey my desire for maximization. He assured me that he will speak to them. I called him later to confirm the same. ---------------------------------============================------------------------- Surgery Day-1 (Grafts Discussion - II, Design and Slit Making) Scene 1(BP Check, PRP blood extraction, Payment) I reached clinic around 12 PM. The nurse checked my BP and took blood for doing PRP. My coordinator told me that I would pay for 4000 grafts and pay for any excess grafts post surgery. I paid for 4000 grafts. Scene 2 (Only 3000 could be planted) I was told by coordinator that photo session would happen as that didn't happen in pre op day. I was taken to the camera place. Assistants there took some photos. Then my assigned surgeon came and had a look at my hair. He said the donor doesn't look very good. He said only 3000 could be planted and he would cover only frontal part with decent hair line. I clearly explained that as a person who came with expectation of full coverage, it may be okay to leave out the crown but not the mid scalp as that would be too different to my expectation. He asked assistants to call a surgeon(the surgeon that had a look on the preop day). Dr Arika Bansal came instead. Scene 3 (Design by Dr Arika Bansal) Dr. Arika Bansal had a look at my donor and instantly said the roots are wider apart and beard also is similar. They said beard looked denser as I had grown it long. I asked her to cover at least until mid scalp even if crown is missed out. I told her that I can keep my beard short if needed. I asked my surgeon and Dr Arika if my it's due to miniaturization or it's my hair nature. They said it's the nature of my hair. Suregon also said my hairs are thin in nature. Dr. Arika told me that she has actually drawn the proposal for me for 5500 (for online proposal) along with other panel doctors but it looked different in photos. She told that I'm still young(29) and my loss is progressive. There is also donor miniaturization that indicates progress of baldness. She told me the crown can be improved with Finasteride as lot of baby hair is there. She advised me to go for another session later. She has drawn a design keeping hair line high. She has drawn half circle for the crown. She said an excess of 500 graft will be tried so that half of my crown will be covered and rest of it will be improved with Finasteride. She explained that this will only leave out a small portion of the crown left out. At that time moment, I didn't understand properly how 3000 can be done instead of 4000 as that would lower the density. But I think the compensation comes from drawing a higher hair line. I asked if coverage or density will be good. She answered in affirmative. On my insistence further, she told body hair could be used. She gave some instructions to doctor as she drew my hairline. She asked me if I was using Finasteride upon looking my crown. I told her that I have never used it as I didn't consult any doctor. She told that her "advise" would be to go with only 3000. (I wonder whether some patients still insist beyond what surgeons suggested but I wanted to go with their opinion instead of force negotiating it). After that she told me that many people still cancel surgery at that point as well if their expectation was 5k-6k and in person assessment differs. She basically said I still have choice to not go for the surgery. See Picture#2 Scene 4 (Conversation with my surgeon) My surgeon took me to show my photos on screen. He asked me not go for 4000 grafts. He assured me he will try to definitely maximize if possible between 3000 to 3500(not exceeding). He had a look at my chest hair and felt it cannot be used. I left to reception area to discuss with my brother in law. He Planned: 2000 from scalp 1000 from beard Scene 5 (Conversation with my brother in law) I showed the pictures to my brother in law and we discussed a bit. He had a look at the sketch on my scalp. This is when I fully understood how it all works. Buy raising the hairline lot of grafts could be saved. Of course I read about it before. But this came in my experience now. Because a lower hair line with temples would eat up lot of grafts. The drawing didn't really look odd to me or him. Because the humps are connected with receding sides and the hairline is natural and pointy despite being high. I don't know how the density looks like after growing but the drawing didn't look odd. We decided to go ahead: 1. I didn't want to leave empty handed after all the effort. 2. The drawing did look good, and half the circle could be filled with excess grafts they proposed and rest of it with Finasteride. (Eventually the half circle was not filled) 3. If it's in a different clinic I would have had doubt on the efficacy and skill and would have regretted probably. But I know I'm at Eugenix so I had to only decide about the look. 4. The coverage of different areas is only one of the equations. The yield is also important. It's also important that the grafts placed grow back as much as possible. One of the factors I chose Eugenix. Scene 5 (PRP, Slit Making - I) I was given anesthesia and the nurse did the PRP. The surgeon had made slits for the two sides of the triangular hair line rows. He told me not to worry as a second session could be planned after some months. As he did slits, he commented lot of baby hair is there everywhere on mid scalp as well. He told that it would grow back with Finasteride. I asked some questions I had as he did the slits. Scene 6 (Slit Making - II) After that a different surgeon came and made the rest of the slits for the rest of the area. She would answer the questions I had as well. A total of 3000 slits were made. After the slits are done. I was taken to the common area. Coordinator called the senior surgeon(that spoke to me on pre-op day) to have a look at the slits. She took a photo and showed me. See the Picture#3. The procedure was smooth. The only pain was related to anesthesia as one would expect. But it's totally bearable. They took some photos after that. I had lunch after that. Coordinator came to me and told it's done for the day and I would need to go by 9 AM on the next day. I was not really tired as the slit making took relatively short time.~ 2-3 hours probably. ---------------------------------============================------------------------- Surgery Day-2 (Extraction and Implantation) Scene 1(DHT) Surgeon took me to OT. The donor area was given anesthesia. The extraction and implantation started by a couple of technicians. Two surgeons that did my slits would visit every now and then to check on the process. Note that the anesthesia was given depending on the area of extraction in phases. I was half asleep for some of the procedure(not due to anesthesia). I asked them if there are double hairs or not. They told that there are double hairs and triple hairs are there as well. They showed me a graft with two hairs. Sometimes I was curious what technicians were talking among themselves . Especially when I sense they were talking about my hair. The words like dandruff/grafts/density etc intrigued me. I'm Indian but don't know Hindi well enough to understand in low tone. Scene 2 (Beard DHT) Post lunch, anesthesia was given to beard area. The nurse warned me that it would be more painful compared to scalp. It's true. DHT started from the beard. Only the lower part of the chin was used as the donor. They would check if I'm uncomfortable on and off and allow me to relax or sit up for a few minutes. They would massage the back and neck to relieve ache. When my surgeon-1 came. He was taking a look at my beard donor. I asked if he would make more slits. He said we will see in the next session. He said that generally 60-40 ratio only advised for scalp-beard mix. (I was actually not specifically asking about beard donor alone though at that moment. But he was looking at beard at that point.). He told we can see it in next session after few months. After a while, the DHT completed. Both the surgeons came for review. The surgeon 1 had a look at my donor area. Surgeon 2 had taken a photo in phone and showed it to me. To be honest, it looked good. I don't know how it pans out once everything is grown out. But post surgery it had an appearance of buzz cut and it looked good. As he signed a form, the surgeon told me that we can plan out another session after 5 months. Scene 3 (Sign off) Photos were taken. I changed back to my dress from surgical dress. The second surgeon accompanied me to the common area. She gave a bag containing medicines, betadine, saline spray, surgical caps etc. A book named "The Autobiography Of Yogi" was also included. (I exchanged it for English version the next day as I can't understand Hindi). I asked her if I can use a hat. She said that I can only use a surgical cap. I thanked her and left for the day. ---------------------------------============================------------------------- All the people were very welcoming and nice. Including the surgeons, coordinators, nurses, and more importantly technicians. They were frank when they needed to be. The procedural coordination was awesome at the clinic. After the transplant I stayed back for 3 more days in Delhi itself and I would visit for donor dressing. I worked from hotel those days. To be honest, it was less troublesome than expected. I was advised to not bend my head down even while working. On a fundamental level, I think we should avoid doing anything that stretches the scalp skin(?) such as heavy laughing, moving briskly etc to quicken the healing. The post op care team would ping and call every day to check on me. I must have forgotten to add some of the details. Please ask me if you have any questions that I can answer. ---------------------------------============================------------------------- Pictures Time I generally try keep myself anonymous on forums. But today I want to change it and post pictures without blurring. Picture#1 Of the original online proposal(You can see my pictures shared with them in the linked thread at the start of the thread) Picture#2 of the sketch by Dr. Arika Note that the half circle was not filled in the end. You can notice baby hair both the crown and mid scalp in below pictures. Picture#3 Immediately after slits Picture#4 Immediately after DHT (Baby hairs are not visible in crown as head is trimmed) Picture#5 After 4-5 days (Do let me know if you would like more angles) Maintenance Medications These are the prescribed medications that I have started using. 1. Finasteride 1 mg each day at bed time. It's too early to write anything else about post surgical experience. I will save it for another thread or a reply to this thread. I will keep updating this thread. I thank the forum for the experiences shared.
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Hi All, First all, thank you all for this great forum. I have been following it for several months now, and the information and insights are great. So, I decided to create an account and seek your advice on my case. I have attached very recent HD pictures which I asked my barber to take after my haircut (the sides are cut to a buzz level 4). The pictures are under harsh salon lights (direct and indirect) and with a shorter hair, so in everyday life, the hair loss is not as bad as it looks in the pictures, but I wanted to show the worst case, to avoid wrong assumptions and to get a correct estimation (I could have taken pictures with indirect lights, etc. and it would have shown completely different status, but that’s not the point here). Age: 40 years. I have been on Regaine 5% (topical minoxidil; 2x per day) since 15 years, and Propecia (oral, 1mg finasteride, 1x per day) since 12 years. I also take Biotin daily and use Vichy Dercos shampoo. My hair loss has largely stabilized for several years now. I had a hair transplant for the hairline area in 2013 (9 years ago) (FUE technique) and few grafts in the crown (handful, really) and the beard (the sides of the beard). I don’t remember exactly how many grafts/hairs it was, but from distant memory, I think 1,500-2,000 in the head and around 500 in the beard. The donor area is completely healed and looks untouched even a lower buzz. At the time, it wasn’t a bad result, and it gave me a change in the looks. However, it always felt unnatural due to multiple hair grafts in the hairline, as well as edgy temple closures (straight lines). So, I am looking for the best hair transplant surgeon to do a 5-Star hair transplant for me. Cost is not an issue at all. Location is also not an issue, but I prefer Europe due to distance and visa requirements. My objectives: 1. Frontal third: The distance from the lowest point in the hairline to the eyebrow is around 7 cm, so I think the forehead size is adequate. My objective is to make the hairline more natural with a better flowing closure to the temples, and fill in the frontal third so that there’s no more see through. 2. Temple peaks: The temple peaks now are very eroded, so my objective here is to define the temple peaks, so that they, along with the hairline, are consistent. (a solid hairline with almost eroded temple peaks just stands out as unnatural) 3. Crown: My objective here is fill in the crown area 4. Mid-Area: I don’t know if this area requires intervention, so I will go with the advice of the doctor. 5. Beard: My objective is to fill in the area marked in red on the pictures using the beard hair on the neck (the ones shorter than the rest of the beard in the pictures). Not expecting miracles there, but to maximize the use of those hairs which I was going to remove by laser anyway and put them for a better use in the main beard. I have done a lot of research and read through a lot of posts on the forum, and I have narrowed down my search to few doctors, in no particular order: 1. Dr. De Freitas 2. Dr. Mwamba 3. Dr. Bisanga 4. Dr. Couto (almost impossible to get an appointment; I tried contacting his clinic) Would you please advise who do you think is the best doctor for my case? What do you the required number of grafts are? My rough estimate is 2,000 for the frontal third and 2,000 for the crown. As for the beard, whatever is extractable from the neck hair (below the beard). Thank you for your advice. Cheers, Geo
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I went to Dr. Diep of the MHTA Clinic in Los Gatos, CA. He had good reviews and seem to be a successful surgeon. I regretted it immediately after. I haven't worn my real hair out in 2 years, which is a horrible way to live because of a someone's mistake. 1. He focused on putting grafts where I had hair already, leaving me with a small amount for the hairline which is so transparent and doesn't cover the bumpy scars he left from leaving too much skin on the base of each graft. 2. Where he drew a line on my forehead to show where my new hairline would be looked nothing like what I walked out of there with. It is a scam. He asks before surgery that if he feels you need extra grafts will you be willing to pay and of course I choose yes because I want it to be perfect. He didn't even accomplish what he promised me so Im afraid to say I may have paid an additional $1000 for imaginary grafts. 3. I was told my head would not be shaved bald. They shaved my hairline so far back that I was not able to go out in public without looking completely crazy. And when I asked what they expected me to do to go to work, their answer was that I wear a weave, because I was advised not to wear a wig which makes no sense at all because how could I possibly put a weave on scalp? 4. They carelessly shaved into my hair and cut some length from other sections of my head because they did not comb or section apart my hair they just shaved all kinds of different directions. Here's the funny part they picked my hair up off the floor and braided it into hair that was still connected and put a rubberband around it so I wouldn't know what they had done. So after surgery I'm sore and in very much pain and needed to keep my hair braided so it would stay out of my wounds so maybe two weekend later when I take out the braids I realized just how much hair they had cut by "accident". 5. I had a question recently. I have these goosebumps in my hairline that are very noticable and I googled that it is a mistake on the surgeons part so I called with my question I was told I would be called back I never was. I had to call again and of course they'll blame there mistakes on your body and how their mistake is your bodies reaction and it's common among whatever race you are that this happens......really? 6. Lastly Dr. diep does not do his surgeries his technicians do and they are careless, probably don't really care about how successful surgeries are. Multiple different technicians do your surgery and it is noticable in the end result, because some do better than others and you will end up looking rather inconsistent, when I saw his before and after pics I thought they were great look very closely for imperfections they are easier to notice when they are on your own hairline. 7. It has been seven months and the front of my hair looks very see through. Dr. Diep likes to cover his screw ups by saying you may need more than one surgery for more density which makes him more money. Also his favorite is, is that he likes to create a hairline that isn't perfect and not too dense because it will look fake but in reality it is to cover up any mistakes or incompetence of his office. Now my hairline is shaped round on the left and square on the right. 8.DO NOT GO TO DR DIEP ONCE HE HAS YOUR MONEY HE NO LONGER CARES ABOUT YOU I COULD NOT EVEN TALK TO HIM ABOUT MY INQUIRIES AFTER MY SURGERY. I am no longer a priority as his patient, he has all the time in the world for you before your surgery he even talks to you for your consultation but after that your history. 9. I just pray whatever happens that my result are decent and don't require any corrective surgeries just to look semi-normal. I worry quite often after having this surgery. I just wanted people to know my experience. 10. Once during surgery my meds wore off because your not given anesthesia your given a cocktail of drugs in a cup. They acted as if they didn't want to sedate me again. After i paid $12,000 plus $1000 do supposedly extra grafts that I can't tell exist because my hair looks thin and he didn't even reach the marker line he drew, anyways after I pay that much you can't sedate me again so I won't feel your staff stab me repeatedly with a needle into my head!!!!! Beware people! -
I just had FUE hair transplants done at Turkeymed in Istanbul, and I felt it would be helpful to relate my experience there as well as the outcomes. I was extremely intrigued because I liked the method in which communications were handled, and I enjoyed how they described all of the intricacies, particularly since I knew that my donor region is not so perfect, and so I wanted to make sure that my hair was not damaged in the donation area.The number of grafts I had is 3500 Grafts Operation Technique: FUE Operation Period: 7 hours Operation Cost: 1800$I was in contact with them for a few months before I made my final decision, and when I went there, I met the team, and they made a full plan for my hair, focusing on my donor area, and they did some signs to not get a lot of grafts from some places because, as I previously stated, my hair there is not perfect.After the consultation, they took some blood for testing and plasma, then they shaved my head, which was a really bad feeling. They told me that the operation would be done under local anesthesia, and the anesthesia injections were horrible. They were only 5 minutes long, but they were extremely painful. The nice thing is that when the anesthesia worked, I didn't feel anything during the extraction phase.After lunch, the surgeon drew a hair line and asked me about the shape I wanted, and then they began to open the channels after giving me local anesthesia on the top side. The final step was putting the grafts inside the channels, which was the longest step. They put those grafts one by one, and I began to feel pain in my donor area and became extremely tired in the last 2 hours.All of the medical staff and medical consultants were assisting me in maintaining a positive attitude by chatting to me and joking with me. They were quite helpful, but this procedure is extremely time-consuming. We began surgery at 9 a.m. and concluded about 4 p.m.After the procedure, they gave me some prescriptions to take (antibiotics, pain relievers, anti-swelling medication, and aspirin). They drove me to the hotel and instructed me to relax for the night; to be honest, the first night was a nightmare.The next day, they took me back to the clinic, removed the bandage, and cleaned my hair. Everything was fine.The good things I encountered were:- They are very organized, everything is done like a system, and everyone knows what he/she has to do - Medical Team and all staff were very friendly, they laughed and tried to speak in English, thank goodness there were translators to assist me - They had a long time to prepare my donation location and how they would extract the grafts from there, which is why I am pleased. - The hotel is quite near to the clinic.The only negative was the surgery time; otherwise, everything went excellent, and I am really delighted with my hair transplant so far; it was just a month ago, but I believe the results will be fantastic in the following six months.
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I arrived to Istanbul on 15th of January 2017 before midnight, after previous online consultation, booking an appointment and paying deposit. I choosed Asmed and Dr. Erdogan for theses reasons: 1. In that time Asmed almost hadn´t bad results on HT forums, 2. on their website they wrote, that they have interpreter from my native language (it wasn´t true), 3. I had good flight conection to Istanbul. After arrival the driver of Asmed clinic wait for me and my patient coordinator Sevinc called me to say welcome in Istanbul and to give me informations about my stay. On the second day, 16th of January 2017, in the afternoon I had an appoitment in Asmed clinic, where I filled the questionary and met Dr. Erdogan. He spoke with me for a while and draw me the hairline. I told him my expectations. Than they made pictures of me and my hair condition and cut my hair for 2 mm. Dr. Erdogan check my donor and said that I need 4500 grafts for hairline and vertex. Previous number of grafts after online consultation was 4000 – 4200 grafts. After that I payed rest of ammount (tottaly 11.250,- Eur for HT). Than Dr. Erdogan came and draw new hairline, but I didn't agree with it. He said that this hairline perfect suits me and asked the staff if he is right. Of course that nobody said that it is not true. Maybe it was my fault but I didn't know that this is final hairline for surgery and I expected that before surgery he draw me new hairline. I found out it next day, but it couldn't be changed (hairline is much worse as he drawed). I had my HT surgery on 17th and 18th of January 2017. Dr. Erdogan made just incisions and the rest (hair harvesting and implantation) were made by stuff. One of them told me that my grafts are perfect quality and my result will be great. After finishing my HT I look to the mirror and I saw that my hairline is wrong and unnaturall. Dr. Erdogan saw that I was not satisfied with my hairline and told that it is due the swelling and when hair start growing it will be fine. On 19th of January 2017 Dr. Erdogan checked the result and I came home. I started to use finasteride 1mg daily from the surgery. I sent my pictures to Asmed after one month, after 3 months and after 6 months from the surgery and they always wrote me back that everything is ok. After 11 months I saw that my transplanted area is still lack and result is bad, therefor I wrote to the Asmed and sent them pictures. They (Sevinc) wrote me that it is normal and everybody has different hair growth and I have to wait to the end of 18 month from HT and if my transplanted area will be still lack I have to write them and they offer me a solution. After 18 months my transplanted area was still lack and there were no improvement, therefor I wrote to Asmed another mail with pictures and asked them why my result is so weak and where the mistake happened. I was very suprised when they asked me to fill new questionary and to send them another pictures. My surprise was much bigger when they wrote me that I need another HT with 2500 grafts, which will be cost 6.250,- Euros. I have been in Istanbul again in August 2018 and I wrote to Asmed and asked them to arrange an apointment with Dr. Erdogan. They wrote me back that Dr. Erdogan is busy due the moving of clinic and he has no time to meet me. After time I published few pictures of my result on this forum with asking for opinion and I was contacted from Asmed for informations who am I and when I had HT in their clinic. I send them answears and they asked me for pictures of current condition of my hair, which I sent them, but I didn't get response. After 3 weeks I wrote them that I didn't get any response and they wrote me that they sent me response on my email adress but I didn't get it. After few days they wrote me that Dr. Erdogan checked my pictures and my result is normal and it was caused due stopped using finasteride (I have using Propecia for 18 months from the surgery). I wrote them that it can't be true, because my original hair are fine and my transplanted area are lack. Also the condition of my hair was same after 11 and after 18 months when I took Propecia, and now when I don't take Propecia. If it will be true, than my transplanted area will be fine and original hair will be lack. I wrote it them and they asked me for another set of pictures which Dr. Erdogan will check again and tell me the best solution. Therefor I sent them another set of pictures with current condition of my hair, but they didn't response for a month. I wrote them that I didn't get response and they wrote me that they sent me response on my email adress but I didn't get it. Another day they wrote me that hair behind the frontline started shedding when I stopped finasteride. Therefore it does not support the frontal part and this is why it looks as it does. I sent them once again set of my pictures and wrote them that I was on finasteride from my surgery to the end of 18 month since surgery and asked them, if bad result of HT in 11 month since surgery and in 17 and 18 month since surgery, where the same weak result was visible is caused by discontinuation of using finasteride after 18 months and asked them where is area of shaded hair after discontinuation of finasteride, which they mentioned. They wrote me back on 13th February 2020, that they will have a meeting with Dr. Erdogan to my case next day (14th February) and they let me know. Because I didn´t get any response I wrote them on 6th March what is happened. They wrote me back, that they had meeting, but Dr. Erdogan had to go to Mexico for the FUE workshop and they didn´t write the report and they think that I need another HT with 2500 grafts (the didn´t mentioned if free HT). I wrote them back that I still don´t know what is the reason of my terrible result of HT. They wrote me back that no using of finasteride is one of the reason and the exact reason is possible to say after analysis in live. On 8th March 2020 Melvin Moderator contacted me and he asked me for informations about my HT and than he wrote to Asmed. On 12th of March Asmed contacted me that Dr. Erdogan will analyze my photos once again and they let me know. Today is 11th April and nothing has change. Nobody from Asmed contacted me for another month. After 3 years and 4 months since my HT I still don´t know what is the reason of my terrible HT result. But I know that the reason is not discontinuation of using finasteride after 18 months since surgery, because the result in 11 month since surgery, 17 and 18 month since surgery and also now is the same. I don´t know if I should wait for some response from Asmed, but I don´t believe for something serious from them because I see that they try to delegate resposibility to my person and dicontinuation of finasteride after 18 months since surgery. And this is NOT the reason! I understood that they didn't want to help me to fix my weak result, but the purpose why they contacted me was to stop me to write negative things about Asmed clinic. From my HT I checked a lot of web sites and forums with this problematic and I saw a lot of results of another surgeons and clinic (in many cases "no name" surgeons and clinics) on theses forums and also on their web sites, where I saw a lot of similar hair loss cases like mine which are great and were solved with less numbers of grafts and I understood that I that I made a big mistake, when I decided to go to Asmed. Density of my frontal area is lack, shape of my hairline is unnatural with gap on one side and total result of my HT is weak and bad. One thing is the result. But another thing is attitude of clinic to their result. And the attitude of Asmed to my result is unethical and unprofessional. I usually do good decisions in my life and just a few of my decisions I consider as bad. But decision about going to Asmed and Dr. Erdogan for hair transplant I consider the worst in my life...
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I recently went to Dr Cinik’s clinic for a hair transplant. I am completely aware it is considered a hair mill and so will take my results with a pinch of salt, as I understand they will likely not be comparable to that of someone else who has visited the clinic. Day 1 I arrived at SAW at around 7am and headed outside to try and find my transport. It is quite chaotic out there, especially after a red eye flight where you have not managed to sleep. It took around 5-10 minutes for the car to arrive and I was then driven straight to the clinic. Once I arrived they provided me with a sandwich, some juice and a cake. After around a 20 minute wait I was taken to have my blood test and ECG. Once this had been completed I was told that I would be returning at 4pm for my consultation so I was dropped to the hotel where I caught up on sleep for a few hours. The hotel facilities were very nice and a lot more upscale than I expected, I also brought my girlfriend with me and it was easy to add her on to the room for only €10 per night. I was picked up and taken back to the clinic at 4pm. Firstly they examined my hair follicles in the donor area with some kind of high resolution/microscopic camera. I then had a brief consultation with Dr Cinik (3-5 mins) where he looked at pictures of my previous hairline and drew a new one on. Following this I had some ‘before’ pictures taken by their photographer and left to go back to my hotel. My girlfriend and I decided to head out to get some dinner from the surrounding area as there were quite a few restaurants dotted around, however just as I was leaving I received a call from the clinic stating that I had left earlier without paying for my surgery. When booking I was told that payment should be made on the day of however I was advised that as they planned to start so early the next day (7am) I should have paid the day before. Unfortunately no one made this clear to me and so a driver was sent to take me back to the clinic in order to make the payment. When I arrived at the clinic the staff seemed confused as to why I was paying the day before the surgery however I advised that as I had already come all the way back I would like to just make the payment at that point. They were more than accommodating and sorted this out and then dropped me back at my hotel. Day 2 I was being picked up at 6:45 so needed to wake up quite early in order to try and fit some breakfast in. Much to my detriment I didn’t have much of an appetite at that time. I was picked up promptly and arrived at the clinic where I had my hair cut. The techs then began giving me the pain free anaesthesia (a freebie as part of my package) and massaged this in to my head for a while. It definitely wasn’t painful, more slightly irritating (like being pinged with a rubber band). Whilst waiting for this to kick in they attempted to place a cannula in my vein for an IV. The first tech had a lot of trouble finding a vein in either of my arms and had to call in a colleague to assist. The second tech was also having no luck with finding a vein and so they had to insert it in to my hand, which they advised me would be a lot more painful. This whole ordeal made me very nervous as I felt like nobody knew what they were doing (probably somewhat exacerbated by me foolishly reading bad reviews of Cinik the night before my surgery). I think the techs could see I was pretty clammy and nervous so at this point they gave me a ‘relax’ tablet. I have no idea what this was however it looked a little like a Valium. After this it was time to begin injecting the actual anaesthetic in to my scalp. The pain of this was unbearable and I was writhing around in the chair. I honestly thought I was going to end up with some form of PTSD due to the pain of this. Luckily the tablet started to kick in a little which helped to calm my nerves, just not the pain. The tech administering the injections was very attentive and sympathetic and she stopped halfway through to give me a break and massage my head. They also gave me a cake and some water as I probably looked like I was going to pass out from the pain (if only I had managed a bigger breakfast haha). My scalp was definitely becoming more numb so the second half of the injections was a lot more tolerable. After this the extraction process began which was completely pain free (only slightly eerie when you can hear the follicle being plucked out with the tweezers). My memory of events become a little hazy after this point as I was hooked up to the drip containing god knows what painkillers (but I’m certainly not complaining). I had paid extra for Dr Cinik to open the channels himself so he came in at this stage and performed that part. I had also paid a little extra for my beard to be thickened so the channels on my face were opened too. After this it was time for lunch, which I actually rather enjoyed. I was served some juice, salad, bread, rice and beef kofta. It was a little hard to chew due to my face being so numb from the anaesthetic in my beard area but that was only a minimal issue. Now came time to place the grafts, during which I was hooked back up to the drip so slept for the majority of this. I could definitely sense a mixture of more and less experienced techs (4 in total) performing the procedure. From my impression it felt as though the more experienced tech was working on my beard and hairline which made me feel a little more confident, although I suppose the proof will be in the end result! The techs (especially the more experienced seeming lady) seemed really pleased with their work once the procedure had finished so that also helped me feel a little more comfortable. I really can’t fault how attentive they all were and whilst there was a language barrier they tried their hardest to engage in conversation and make sure I was as comfortable and relaxed as possible. Once the surgery was completed I met with one of the sales reps who provided me with my medications, hair was serums etc and provided instructions on how to sleep that night. I was dropped back to my hotel at around 4pm and slept for the remainder of the day. It was a struggle to get to sleep that night, due to the upright position. The sleeping pills they provided did not have much of an effect either. There was a lot of plasma leakage from the donor area during the night which was also quite unpleasant to try and sleep in. Day 3 I was picked up at 9am for a hair wash. The washing of the transplanted area was fine but wow the donor area was so tender. I thought I may pass out from the pain. Luckily it was over within a few minutes. I also had laser light therapy which was a freebie as part of my packaged and lasted about 15 mins. Returned to the hotel after around 45 mins and relaxed for the day. Day 4 I spent the morning in the hotel and was picked up early afternoon for a final hair wash. I was taken promptly to the airport and flew home in the evening. All in all it was a pretty well streamlined process. Now we just need to wait for the results! Here are a few before pictures: I was initially quoted as requiring ~2,500 grafts however in the end they (allegedly) placed ~3,500 in my head. They also implanted a further 600 in my beard. These are the post surgery photos and some of the donor area for anyone who is curious:
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A 35 years old patient, suffering from genetic baldness. NW class : VI Technique Used : Combine FUT + FUE + Beard Technique Total Number of Grafts Implanted : 5000 a) FUT Grafts : 3200 b) FUE Grafts : 1300 c) Beard Grafts : 500 Result : Post operative 13 months
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- combine fut+fue+beard
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After much hysteria on the forum, this issue has to be addressed. Anyone reading this that is interested in getting a hair transplant, it will either deter you away from one or entice you. If it does either my job is done. First of all, pictures can be deceiving both to present good and bad results. However, most only think that pictures can be deceiving to present good results, this is not true. I would like to start off by saying, I’m ecstatic about my hair transplant and it has changed my life, but I do not have true density. I have the “illusion of density” meaning I have to comb my hair a certain way and have it dry for my hair to lookst its best, but certainly it can look bad if I intentionally try too. I will be writing an article on this, because it is important to get out there. I’ve always said, id rather someone not get an HT if they’re not gonna be satisfied with the reality. Here are my pictures first one hairline spread apart in bright light looks horrible. Second one in normal room lighting, but not facing the light. Third one in bathroom lighting, with the light source behind the hair. See how each lighting changes the appearance and also how combing and layering the hair provides “illusion” of density.
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A 30 year old male with NH Grade IV came to us with a history of hair loss for the past 3 years. He underwent FUE hair transplant to restore his frontal half. Around 2500 grafts were placed in the scalp. The patient had good results and is satisfied with the outcome.
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This patient is female with fine, dark brown hair. She complained that she was not able to comfortably wear her hair back due to thinning at her hairline and temples. Results shown are after one year following a follicular unit transplant procedure of 1,848 grafts. Before After Before hair transplant Position of planned hairline Placement of 1,848 follicular unit grafts Results one year after 1,848 grafts View from left side before hair transplant View from left side after hair transplant View from right side before hair transplant View from right side after hair transplant Top view before hair transplant Top view after hair transplant
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- bernstein medical
- bernstein medical. hair transplant
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Hey guys I am a 35 yo male from London and arrived home last night from Istanbul so I will talk about my experience at Asmed. I wanted to keep this brief but to hell with it I couldn’t help it. Firstly a big thank you to both Sema and Suzana who were my coordinators. Sema - who helped me over the past year since I contacted Asmed and Suzana who was with me throughout the experience and never left my side. She is very fluent in English and communication and organisation was excellent. In fact everyone at Asmed looked after me very well and never made me feel awkward. Not to forget the anesthetist Dr Umat who is a very interesting individual :). Initially I sent Asmed (Sema - my initial coordinator) my photos 12 months ago and Dr Erdogan recommended 5000 grafts and for me to start finesteride before surgery as without it I may not be happy with the end result because of my type of hairloss. I was a bit weary of finesteride side effects so it took a month for me to decide what to do because for me hair transplants and finesteride go hand in hand. So a couple of months went by (sept - dec 2017) eventually I got on brand name Propecia 1mg by Merck. I started slowly as advised by a hair loss expert we all know - it took me till January until I was using it more or less every day. In this time I was in constant communication with Sema discussing dates etc. And getting my finances sorted. So in January I asked to book the surgery in May however they had very few dates and I could not get the amount of time I wanted from work. I use Toppik hair fibres and Asmed advise patients not to use it for 6 months so I wanted as much time not using it as possible after surgery. So my work allowed me to take 3 months leave (mix of unpaid and paid) - yes a lot of time but only 6 weeks was unpaid. So in February we decided on 3rd and 4th Oct. 2018 (2500 grafts per day) this was actually good because I would have been on Propecia 10 months. You can send from 1000 to 3000 euros - I sent 1000 initially and just before I went I sent another 2000 just after Dr Erdogan looked again at my updated photos (as it was nearly a year since the initial ones)to confirm. I used TransferWise as they take the actual exchange rate on Google and not lower rates like banks provide. I would need to arrive before 14:00 on 2nd Oct for the consultation however there were no flights that arrive before that time on BA from Heathrow Airport. There were other flights from different airlines but I wanted BA as I could get the flight for £75 return and free long stay parking (as I know someone who works there), I was already spending so much on the surgery so I wanted to keep costs down. Sema very kindly allowed me to arrive in the evening of 1st Oct, 2nd Oct - consultation, 3/4 Oct surgery 5th Oct shampoo/clean and departure for home at 1625. This extra night came at no extra cost. Initially I booked the clinic’s own suite but there was a problem with the room so they booked me into the Raddison blue hotel (5 mins from clinic) all days free and breakfast included. This turned out much better because although Asmed can make you breakfast, they close in the evening and the only people there are security and local restaurants are not very close. Just take a yellow taxi (with meter) from the hotel for 10 liras (just over a pound) and ask to go to the Palladium shopping and restaurant complex 5 mins away. If you need to change money into Turkish Lira change it at this complex just ask anyone for "change office" which is in the shopping center. I wanted to see the famous blue mosque and grand bazaar but it is an hour away. Day of Arrival (Mon 1st Oct) Flight arrived at 1630 just a 4 hour flight from London Heathrow Airport. The Asmed driver was there with my name written on an iPad (transfer from airport to hotel and all journeys between hotel and Asmed are free). He gave me his phone as Suzana (my day to day coordinator) spoke on the phone me and welcomed me to Istanbul and said she will be in constant touch with me on whatsapp and in the clinic she will be taking care of me the entire time. The car was a large Mercedes people carrier with beautiful red leather seats and plenty of snacks to enjoy. Because of the time of day it took close to an hour to get to the hotel because of rush hour. The Hotel room was very good and I took a taxi to the Palladium center. You just need to tell the hotel reception to get you a taxi and it comes right away, they have a meter on so you won't be ripped off. Took 5 mins cost me a pound and walked around the shopping center, ate some delicious kebabs and got a taxi which are always there and got back to my room to get some sleep. Day 2 (Consultation) Suzana sent me a whatsapp message saying that the driver will pick me up at 12:45. I got into the car with 2 other people who also were having their consultations. You should know that you won't be the only patient in the day as I will come to later. We were greeted at reception by our respective coordinators and reception staff. The clinic is amazing, clean, modern and very classy at the same time. There a couple of women who are playing the piano and violin in the reception area. So Suzana sat me down and said that she will wait here with me until we are called for the consultation. Dr Erdogan and his team were very busy during this time and surgeries were still going on so we needed to wait an hour before they could see us. However, in this time I was offered some snacks and asked to read through some paper work and sign that I understood all the terms. All of this would have been sent to you when you booked so it is just the same. After that I was taken downstairs for blood tests to test for HIV etc.. All clear. I then went into the photography room and had my photos taken both dry and wet hair shots from all angles. A while later I and my coordinator were called into Dr Erdogan's office. It was like meeting a king and I told him so - I have very been following him for few years and on social media so it was quite a hair raising moment for me. So in the consultation it was Dr Erdogan, another doctor, one of his senior surgical assistants and my coordinator. Dr Erdogan very quickly broke the ice with me and told me how happy he was to see me as when he saw my name he realized I am of Pakistani descent (born UK) and how happy he was about that because he has always liked people from there so that was a nice start. He went over some basic things with me and said that I am a candidate for hair transplantation after looking at the blood tests. He had a screen in front of him with my photos from just earlier and discussed what he can do. He said that my hair loss pattern was more Ludwig patterned rather than the usual norwood cases. He analysed my hair in detail with his apparatus and said that my hair is of very good quality with a total donor of 8500. In general he said that safe zone hair can be effected by DHT as seen by very old people and looking at my age (35) it is possible to lose 10% of safe zone hair in my lifetime and that if I came off finesteride later in life it is possible that my total donor capacity is at 7500 so even though my real donor is 8500 he sees it as 7500. He drew a hairline and asked what I thought. It was probably a tiny bit higher than I would have liked but he said that once transplanted it will look lower but my main concern were no temples drawn because mine are quite faint. He said in a funny way that he really does not like my crown. I have not got a massively receding hairline and that patch on the top really does stick out like a sore thumb. So he drew my temples and it looked great but he said he would need 700 grafts just for that and he can't cover the top properly as well in 1 operation so if want that it would be 700 less grafts in my crown and it still won’t look that good on top. He wanted 2000 grafts just for the crown 2500 for the hairline and just above and the remainder 500 in the mid-scalp as he said it has a lot of and hairs. He said it was up to me but if I leave it to him that is the way he would do it and I can always come back and do the temples after a year or so. I thought about it and knew already that the crown was my priority - it is a different type of hair loss pattern. So I said to him I will go with his instinct and he said I will be very happy with my result. He actually told me later on that he would in fact put 2100 in the crown and 400 just below that instead of the 500 so my crown should have a big difference he said. This was not the final hairline and he would refine it after hair shaving. Consultation lasted about 20 minutes I had a bunch of questions for him but he really is to the point and just gets on with his analysis and what he can do for you. After that Suzana took me to the finance department where I paid the outstanding amount in Pounds Sterling cash. If your home currency is pounds or USD I advise you to pay in that currency to them. It saves you changing into euro where you won’t get a good rate and will have to pay some fees. The rate the clinic gave me was much better than at home and they don’t charge you for them to change it into euros. After this I got my hair shaved off! It actually looked alright! I waited for Dr Erdogan to make his final refined hairline plans. He told me that he will go into the temples a bit so that was good news. Whilst this was going on he has a big team of people watching. These are the techs or surgical assistants (as he calls it) who will work with you for the entire surgery. If you have 2 days surgery like me they don’t have different teams, it’s the same people working on you. I was then taken to the room where they have their latest robot – the K-bot. You sit with your head against a support pad and the camera takes 3d images of your entire head and you can see on the screen your grafts in detail. This helps the doctor further in his analysis. This lasts for 15 minutes but you can be on your phone – I actually took a video of what the K-bot was doing but I don’t think you can post videos here. This all took best part of 4 hours from waiting at the start to the end. Dropped back to the hotel went into town again for a nice kebab (with lines in my head). Yes you have to keep the lines on and not rubbed off because they then have to go through the whole process again. And no wearing hats so I was laughed and smiled at a lot whilst walking through town it was surreal. Day 3 (Surgery 2515 grafts) Asmed advise you to where a buttoned shirt before and after surgery. I woke up at 6 am, 6:30 breakfast buffet – plenty of variety. For 3 days including this day I had to take an antibiotic tablet with breakfast and Xanax to calm me although I only needed that for the first day. It wasn’t till I got down there that I realised how many of us were being operated on. Including me it was 6 guys at breakfast ready to be taken to Asmed. Three of them already had their first day hairline surgery and the rest of us were on our first day. I was slightly taken back by this because I was sure they only did 4 surgeries a day but I guess it can depend on the cases. One guy was just having his hairline refined. All 6 of got into the people carrier and went to Asmed. We were given Asmed buttons shirts and bottoms to wear for surgery and it really is straight into it from that point. My coordinator took me to the surgery room and I met all the people involved with my surgery. I asked who will be doing the extractions and how long they had been working there. One person would be doing the extractions and she has been doing ONLY extractions for 7 years so I felt assured. Suzana showed me the microscope where they dissect single hair grafts as I was querying this lot. So onto the anaesthetics – Dr Umat organises this. He is a very interesting person he looks serious but he is a really cool person and fun to talk to, if he ever reads this I hope you are well and very active! This is the most painful part of the surgery, they have something that vibrates as they inject many times into your scalp which makes it a bit easier. If it is too much, they can give you something through the I.V your arm help ease you. It acts really quick and she starts extracting and you cannot feel a thing. You have a screen in front which tells you how many grafts have been extracted and if they’re singles, twos etc…I actually had a fair amount of 4s 5s 6s. Suzana was in the room with me the whole time she was a great help. She gave me a face rest support where I could also stick my I pad on it to watch stuff on. Sema came in now and I watched a popular bald show (we all know) re run from the previous night just to keep them on their toes and they knew what it was. This whole process takes more than 3 hours (I think) as I just lost track of time I didn’t sleep at all. They extracted 2515 grafts in total. Dr Erdogan did not come in during this time but his most experienced surgical assistant – Dilek came in at certain points. Dr Erdogan watches all the surgeries on monitor in his office and directs if need be from there which I am not completely happy about but the results are good. Next was 30 minute lunch maybe less and back to the operating room where I’m prepped and given anaesthetics for the recipient area before the main man Dr Erdogan comes in and shakes my hand and begins the incisions. The techs cover my eyes and hold my face in certain positions as the doctor instructs them whilst he pokes away. This takes him 30 – 40 mins and he shakes your hand and moves to the next patient. The same person that did the extractions is now joined by Dilek who both start the implanting stage. This can be prickly and pain a bit so they test certain areas and ask you is it painful or not. If it is they put some liquid type anesthetic so you don’t feel it. In fact at any time you feel pain you must tell them and they will ease it. They put a special blue solution over the recipient area which highlights all the incisions Dr Erdogan made. At some point they realised they covered the required area and had a few more grafts so Dilek made a few extra incisions which is fine as she is possibly the best tech going. Implants can take quite a while I cannot remember exactly but it was just a bit less than the extractions so maybe 2 hours. Once it is done I felt very tired walked very slowly as I was trying to get my bearings right. The trauma and anesthetics can make you very tired. So Suzana came with me to another room where they sat me down under a low level red laser for 10 mins to help with healing. After that she gave me ATP spray and said I must put spray my recipient area a few times every 2 hours with it. She also gave me ice cooling gel to help with swelling. Its only till a few days later I realise how big my face got! I went back to the hotel, my forehead looked bigger because of the swelling had something to eat in the hotel restaurant – felt like crap but hotel staff are used to Asmed patients so I mixed in well. I went back upstairs for a very awkward night. Didn’t sleep much, Suzana gave me neck pillow and for the first 10 days you need to sleep with this on your back facing up (no rolling about) do not let your recipient area rub anything as this is a very sensitive time for your scalp. I wasn’t in much pain but I just felt completely shattered and sleepy but I kept waking up in the night but I got through it somehow. Day 4 – (Surgery 2505 grafts) Exactly the same as day 3. Note that grafts it is not exactly 5000 grafts (5020) they do not tell you to pay for these extra few. So that is it, surgery complete and Dr Erdogan came and said he is happy with the way it looks and is just the way he wanted it and said he will see me tomorrow. In terms of reactions to the surgery at the time I had swelling but by the time I wrote this my face was huge I look like sloth from the goonies – google it if you don’t know. But this is all part of it. Some people have more sensitive bodies than others. Just have to keep applying ice packs. Day 5 – (Wash and go) Another awkward night but managed to have breakfast and be picked up at 9:50 am. Suzana was at reception and took me down for the shampoo and washing. This is what you have to do on your own for 10 days post op so pay attention when they tell you. They took the bandages off washed me and I felt fresh again and went in for the final post op photos. They gave me some Turkish delight sweets as a gift and a power pack. As well as this as they knew I was on Proscar (I changed to proscar a month earlier – cost effective and same brand Merck) they gave me 1 year supply of Proscar (£200 worth) for free and a pill cuter! They gave me a USB stick with all my surgical details and photos as well as various papers of post op instructions. All the post op shampoos and creams are free. Suzana bid me farewell she was really good to me the entire time and I told her I’ll be back in a year for results photographs only downside Dr Erdogan didn’t meet me I left but I guess he is busy with all the other patients. Dropped to the hotel at 12 and was told the driver will be back at 14:00 for airport drop of. So that’s it I hope I didn’t bore you with the details there is more I could write but those details may come up in the future in the meantime I have posted photographs taken at Asmed below. Surgery Details : 1148 Single 2589 Double 1158 Triple 119 Quadruple 6 Quintuple Total Grafts: 5020 Avg hair: 2.05 per graft Hair thickness: 61 microns Medication: Proscar 1.25 per day since January 2018 Pre-Op Plans: Post OP
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Hi Guys. It's my 20 days post-op today and I just had someone to look at my current hair progress. Upon seeing the current state, it seems like some bald spots show up after losing some of the grafts. I know that I'm already on the shedding phase and things aren't supposed to be taken seriously at this time but please here me out because based on what I'm seeing when I take pictures of my head, it looks like the bald spots doesn't have grafts or pores that will grow hair. Please check on the images on this post to see the comparison of my head couple of days post-op and the current situation. The first 2 pictures are taken earlier and the rest are just today.
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This patient underwent a single FUE hair transplant procedure in July of 2020 totaling 3021 grafts and 6177 hairs. You can view his hair count breakdown below: Singles: 552 Doubles: 1809 Triples: 633 Quadruples: 27 He is 41 years old and started experiencing noticeable hair loss at approximately 36 years of age. His family history of hair loss includes men on the paternal side experiencing advanced degrees of baldness, some classified as high as a Norwood Class 6. He's been using Rogaine (minoxidil) since July of 2020 and underwent 4 PRP procedures between July of 2020 to July of 2021. You can view his before, surgical and after photos below. We've also posted a video for a better presentation of his results. We look forward to your feedback. Best wishes, Rahal Hair Transplant Video Photos
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Hey all! Hoping to get some advice on which Dr to go with for my hair transplant. Both Dr Yaman and Dr Bicer have recommended 3000 grafts to restore my hairline and add density to my mid-scalp (I'm a NW 3/3v). The main difference I see between them is pricing. Dr Yaman is $3250 and Bicer is $6000. Knowing the Dr involvement is about the same with both (both would be doing my incisions) is it really worth the extra $2750 to go to Bicer?
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Hi All, I am fairly new to this forum and have only been following the content over the last 15-20 days. I was quite impressed with all the feedback and genuine responses. I have been struggling with hair loss issues for the past 4-5 years resulting in aggressive balding and have finally decided to have my 1st HT in Australia next month(2400 grafts/16,500AUD). I did a lot of research and had 10's of consultations (in-person) in India as well as in Australia. To begin, I want everyone to understand that HT is not just only about surgeons. One need to consider lot of factors involved in this progressive journey like price, travel, duration, quality, medication, follow-up, expectation, age, accessibility, recovery etc.., Here, in this forum, most of them are genuine in sharing their views and experience and I expect everyone to understand that this is a good platform to share facts and real time experiences. Also, people sharing their views in this forum is not to give any publicity to a certain clinic. As every pill gets a certain approval, choosing a surgeon has certain approvals from boards like ISHRS and ABHRS. I don't want to mention the clinic or surgeon names but a few guys promoting certain clinics which I too agree that they are one of the best surgeons in India and world as well. My straight question to those people is simple; when you ask others about certain details like price, clinic and surgeon name most of them explained very clearly about their experience. If someone asks you the same query regarding the procedure your response is so biased you're not revealing the price instead a couple of guys said they have opted for a premium package which means 350rupees/graft i.e., 7$/graft as per their website. One guy mentioned he has undergone HT roughly about 8,600 odd grafts which means 60200 AUD (3010000 INR). Did you spend 60,200 AUD!!!!!! or do you expect others to spend the same amount? In my opinion, the surgeons in Australia will or would have rejected your case for sure if they operate ethically. My sincere request to the moderator is to not be biased and if someone recommends a particular surgeon how can you say that he is disrespectful to the forum? I think you guys are being disrespectful without being honest about your prices. I expect a genuine response from those people about their procedure so that it can be helpful to others. To all members, please try to understand my point of view, I'm only trying to express my views about some people that aren't being entirely honest which beats the purpose of this forum. I only ask you to understand and respond and not react harshly. -
Hi again everyone, My post last week about Australian surgeons made me consider going overseas and I'm currently researching Pekiner in Turkey. My biggest question is regarding health insurance given that you're flying overseas for a medical procedure? I know that HT are a relatively low risk procedure, but the use of twilight sedation and infections means the risk is always there. What is everyone's opinions on health insurance to cover if something were to go wrong overseas? -
A 33 year old male suffering from NH Grade III baldness for 3-4 years was looking to undergo hair transplantation surgery to cover frontal part of the scalp. He underwent FUE hair transplant and 2035 grafts were transplanted. The surgery was uneventful and the patient is happy & satisfied with the results after 12 months.
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Hi guys. This is a picture of my transplanted area 5 days post-op. The clinic told me to start washing it with baby shampoo and water from yesterday but still no touching. You can see that all the grafts has a blood clot tied to it and I'm scared that once these blood clots got cleaned on Day 10 when I get back to the clinic, the grafts will also be gone. Does anybody had the same experience? I'm getting depressed now since I saw in some videos that grafts that has blood clot on it won't likely to survive. Please, if anyone had the same experience or knows how to deal with it(if it's not yet too late), let me know.
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Hi Guys, I have been struggling with hair loss for about 4 years now and I have decided to make a change. I want to get a hair transplant, with two conditions. I only want it done once, and I cant spend a ridiculous amount on it. Im thinking more in the $5k range. I live in New York, and am undecided on two options. I am considering Dr. Scott Boden, who I met and liked but is a little pricey, or going to Madrid with a gentleman named Dr. Juan Andrade. I would ideally like to go somewhere in the US, but it needs to be affordable. Is it worth it to go to Europe, or are there affordable great doctors in the US? Any affordable great ones in NY? I also don't want to go to Turkey as I am worried it's a little too dangerous.. Please, I need some help. I have my wedding in Nov 2020 and I cant look bald then. Thanks everyone, I have never openly spoke about this to anyone but my fiancé.
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For a long time I have been interested in Dr. Diep due to his YouTube collection over the years. However after reading a lot of recent negative reviews about him in this forum, I want to broaden my options. Dr. Hasson seemed like an awesome surgeon, but unfortunately he is in Canada. I cannot leave the states currently. I would love to hear from others on here who they think are really good hair transplant surgeons! My hair loss is progressing to a Norwood 6. I have realistic goals. I don't need to lower my hairline to anything crazy. I just want to have good coverage on my crown area and then work upwards. I understand I may need multiple procedures. I do not take Finasteride due to side effects. The only preventative measures I take are Biotin supplements, iRestore low level laser therapy, and Nioxin shampoo. I tried shaving my head during quarantine and 100% do not want to be bald for the rest of my life. Hair transplant is the way to go for me. I am 26 years old currently, here is a photo of my scalp:
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