Need your advice

[nsudhir80]

Hello All

 

I am 25, Male and have been losing hair on a regular basis.At this point , my hair has thinned very much and i starting to see light patches on my head.I thought this would be a good time to undergo hair transplantion.I live in the L.A. , so I would like to ask for your valuable advice on the best economical doctor available.also, I would like to know if hait tranplantation is a one time process or requires regular follow up.thanks much for all your help.

[nsudhir80]

Hello All

 

I am 25, Male and have been losing hair on a regular basis.At this point , my hair has thinned very much and i starting to see light patches on my head.I thought this would be a good time to undergo hair transplantion.I live in the L.A. , so I would like to ask for your valuable advice on the best economical doctor available.also, I would like to know if hait tranplantation is a one time process or requires regular follow up.thanks much for all your help.

[bezane]

You're a lucky guy. You found this site before doing stupid things.

 

Best advice, read this entire forum and look at all the photos. All the answers are there.

 

The shorthand, get on proscar asap, be prepared to spend between 20K and 35K over the next couple of years. Count on 10K a procredure. Spread them out if you like. I doubt it can be done cheaper. I wouldn't even try. Save money on everything else in your life.

[hairbank]

Originally posted by bezane:

You're a lucky guy. You found this site before doing stupid things.

 

Best advice, read this entire forum and look at all the photos. All the answers are there.

 

The shorthand, get on proscar asap, be prepared to spend between 20K and 35K over the next couple of years. Count on 10K a procredure. Spread them out if you like. I doubt it can be done cheaper. I wouldn't even try. Save money on everything else in your life.

 

Bezane hit the nail on the head! Research the site for info..............if you decide for a hair transplant don't limit yourself based on location. Check out the surgeons recommended by the Coalition on this site and do some consultations. Most places give an allowance or provide for airfare & loding.

 

Check out the threads on Propecia/Proscar (finasteride). It inhibits DHT which is what causes hair loss. At your age and loss, you may be able to maintain your hair enough where you don't need a transplant.

 

As far as the number of transplants needed, it depends on your current loss, the look you're trying to achieve and many other factors. I'd recommended addressing this during a consult.

 

Good luck!

[Guest]

as advised earlier, at least consult a Doc to look into Propecia or similar, I have had good results and wished I had started much earlier.

In LA one would think that with all the plastic surgeon lifestyles goings on, there would be many great HT surgeons there. But that doesn't seem to be the case.

A very good sign of that would be consistant positive patient experiences shared on these forums. A plane ticket is a very small investment towards a successful HT.

 

BUYER BEWARE!!

[the B spot]

80-- like the others have stated, spend some time on the site and really catch up with what is going on in the HT industry. In addition, price and geography should NOT be real factors in determining your choice of surgeon. It is a short ride to other parts of the world where top quality doctors transform people everyday. Good Luck and happy hunting!!!

[Robert_]

nsudhir80,

 

Welcome to the forums. You're getting some good advice so take it to heart. It may seem like a pain to painstakenly research your options online, but believe me its worth it. You are going to want to know what to look for, what to ask, and what to expect when you go to your consultation(s) with hair restoration physicians.

 

Here are a couple of key points when selecting a physician:

 

1) Make sure that you have spoken with patients of that physician, not just their paid representatives. You want to get the most unbiased representation possible. You simply cannot get that with a representative (there are a few exeptions, but they are few and far between.)

 

2) See these patients IN PERSON if at all possible. Photos can be infinitely decieving. This is a cold, hard fact. What looks great in photos may not look so great in person.

 

3) Have realistic expectations. Hair restoration has come leaps and bounds in the last few years that have propelled the industry forward. You will want to investigate all of these to make an informed decision that will work best for you. However, even with all these advances hair transplants do have their limitations. Look into donor hair availability, scarring, healing times, growth times, growth yield, etc.

 

4) Get to know the terminology. What is FUE? FUT? Strip? Lateral slits? Plugs? Mini/Micro's? Recipient area? Donor area? Grafts? It may seem like a lot to learn, but by reading a little bit, you'll be sounding all of these terms off like an old pro.

 

Oh, I won't leave you hanging though.

 

FUE - Follicular Unit Extraction

 

FUT - Follicular Unit Transplant

 

Strip - Another name for FUT.

 

Lateral Slits - Explained here

 

Plugs & Mini/Micros - Explained here

 

Recipient area - The area recieving the transplanted hairs.

 

Donor area - The area from which transplanted hairs are harvested. Usually from the back of the scalp that is less prone to be ravaged by DHT.

 

Grafts - Hair grows in naturally-occuring follicular units comprised of 1,2,3, and sometimes 4 hairs. When transplanted, these follicular-units are then artistically placed in the recipient area in the most natural angle possible using the appropriate density for the needs of the patient.

 

5) Ask questions. But don't be afraid of the search feature (located under the "Find" button). If you have a question, odds are its been asked a dozen times before. The search feature is your best friend. Don't let me sway you from asking questions, though. The question you ask today will get answered but will also be available when someone else uses the search feature looking for an answer in the future. So by asking questions, you are helping out future hair loss sufferers.

 

6) Never let price or geographic location be determinates in choosing a physician. You will be pleasantly surprised that the best physicians are usually at the lower end of the pricing range (I think some of the "mills" are charging $10 and up per graft these days). That doesn't mean that they are going to be in your backyard, however. You only get one scalp. Trust me when I say that you don't want to trust it to "Dr. Ned's Hair Transplant and Bait and Tackle Shop" right down the road. I am being facetious, of course, but you get my drift.

 

6) Read. This is probably the most important one. Read, read, and read some more. You'll thank yourself for it I promise. Look at photos, read others' accounts, and read through the sites. Check out the Hair Loss Weblogs (mine is here ) and see how guys go through their procedures and what they went through. The more you know, the better off you will be.

 

There are many treatments available and no cure. By researching, asking questions, and getting to know what works, you are much better off than stabbing in the dark. There are hundreds of guys who have been through this journey before you and documented both their success stories and their failures. You can save yourself a LOT of grief and a TON of money by learning from their ups and downs - mine included.

 

Let me know if I can help you out or answer any questions for you.

 

-Robert