Guest Posted January 14, 2003 Share Posted January 14, 2003 Hey everyone. Just wanted to intoduce myself as this is my first post as im new to all of this. Im a 24 year old male with thinning ares at the crown and a receding hairline at the front. I have a consultation with a HT doctor tomorrow in Philadelphia where I live. His name is Dr. Pistone. What I was wondering has anyone on the board ever heard of him or gotten any work done by him and if so where they happy with the results. Alos like I said I live in the Philadelphia area, does anyone have any reconmendations for doctors in this area? Thanks Guys for all your help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 14, 2003 Share Posted January 14, 2003 Hey everyone. Just wanted to intoduce myself as this is my first post as im new to all of this. Im a 24 year old male with thinning ares at the crown and a receding hairline at the front. I have a consultation with a HT doctor tomorrow in Philadelphia where I live. His name is Dr. Pistone. What I was wondering has anyone on the board ever heard of him or gotten any work done by him and if so where they happy with the results. Alos like I said I live in the Philadelphia area, does anyone have any reconmendations for doctors in this area? Thanks Guys for all your help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Mike1651 Posted January 14, 2003 Regular Member Share Posted January 14, 2003 You've discovered a great place to get information about a HT...listen to members like Arfy & Jotronic if they reply to your post--they have great experience & insight...you'll find out quickly that most of the replies will advise you to wait to have a procedure because of your age--I agree with that also...you'll also get advice to take Propecia to slow down your hairloss before considering a transplant...to answer your original question, seek out a few doctors recommended by this site--Dr. Bernstein in North Jersey, Dr. Beehner in New York State among others...don't be afraid to travel to have a consultation...I consulted with Dr. Pistone, but had several other consultations before deciding on a physician...Dr. Pistone doesn't perform an all FU HT & isn't recommended by this site...lastly, take time to read as much information posted here to get the full understanding of what's involved before moving forward...good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 14, 2003 Share Posted January 14, 2003 You say that he does not do FUs? What does he do then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Mike1651 Posted January 14, 2003 Regular Member Share Posted January 14, 2003 Like many non-recommended doctors, he performs a combination procedure which includes mini-grafts & FU's...it's a procedure which was very popular in the 80's & early 90's...most of the doctor's recommended here utilize a 100% FU procedure which produces the most natural results...check out the NHI website, it's full information which will give you better insight into current HT procedures...take care! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member EastCoast Posted January 14, 2003 Senior Member Share Posted January 14, 2003 Try Dr. Gallagher. He does all FU. I had 2 HT with him. He is in Phila. DR. Pistone does not do just HT, he does everything. I could never get to speak with Dr. Pistone, a salesperson wanted to treat me to lunch all the time. They would not even give a price per graft. Try drgallagher.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Hey thanks for all the info. I meet with Dr. Pistones consultants, I ask alot of questions and I made sure that this was a 100% FU transplant. He said yes thats all they do. So I had the bloodwork done and am scheduled for the procedure Jan 20 which is next Monday. I looked at all of the before and after photes of paients and they looked good. I don't think they would lie to me and tell me that there going to do mini or micro grafts, that would be false representation. I mean if they did something like that I would take them to court right? Your right about that they don't charge by the graft they charge by the session which I dont see anything wrong with. The price was $4900 which will cover fixing my hairline and filling in the top of my head. He said probley between 800-1000 grafts. Anyway how much was the procedure with Dr. Gallager and does this make any sense what Im saying? Thanks for your help and feedback Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Shadyraver Not trying to dissuade you from going to this doctor,since i do not know of him,but be carefull. Some clinics claim they do all follicular unit tranpslantations but in reality they just use it as a marketing term. Did you ask them to see the MICROSCOPES for graft dissection ? THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT !! If you did not ask them i would suggest that you go back to the clinic and ask to see the microscopes.If they refuse or they just dont use them,dont walk RUN OUT of there. If your determined on having strip-surgery, i would suggest you go to Dr.Bernstein(http://www.newhair.com.He has an office in northern new jersey which isnt too far from you.He is highly regarded as 1 of the top surgeons around.You can go to open houses and see patients live on close inspection. Obviously its your decision but i think i speak for many when i say bernstein would be a better choice then pistone. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 And just to clarify... I am not a patient of Dr. Bernstein just "trying to promote him" .Actually im going to Dr. Woods in Australia in a few months b/c i dont want a scar.But, i have seen Dr. B's patients and if you check out his websight you'll see all of published articles he's written on true follicular unit HT's. Take care Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Ok ready for this. You guys know that I have the procedure scheduled with Dr. Pistone this comming monday. From all of the feedback that I have gotten I went out and contacted another Dr. I contacted Dr. Brernsteins Office. It seems like there having an open house in Philly this weekend. What a coincidence. So I scheduled an appointment for a free consultation since they where going to be in my area anyway. Dr Bernstein is not going to be there but on of his assoiactes is. I know you guys on here recomend his office. So this could be a situation here. What happens if I like what they say and I feel more comfertable with them? I mean I already financed the procedure with Pistone. What happens if I have a sudden change of heart? Can I get out of the agreement with Pistone? Anyone ever run into this before? Do you guys think im makeing the right choice with Bernstein and his assoicaties? Thanks for the feedback again Guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Just wanted to add something that I forgot? How are you avoiding the scar? I would like that too. How is is possiable? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member EastCoast Posted January 15, 2003 Senior Member Share Posted January 15, 2003 What class are you? 800-1000 Fu don't go that far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 I think A N4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member arfy Posted January 15, 2003 Senior Member Share Posted January 15, 2003 Call Dr. Pistone's office and ask if they use microscopes to dissect the grafts. Not "loops" which are magnifying lenses worn as headgear, but a binocular microscope. Ask them if it is loops or microscopes. (You want microscopes) Looking at Dr. Pistone's website, it says he does other cosmetic procedures besides hair transplants. This is usually a bad sign, not always, but usually. As far as getting your money back, you are not the first person to realize at the last minute just how UNDERPREPARED you are, heading in to the surgery. Sometimes you can get your money back. Tell them you feel like you are rushing and need more time to think it over. An ethical clinic will not FORCE you to follow through on a surgery if you have changed your mind. If Dr. Pistone will not refund your deposit, what does that say about his priorities? You should have all your questions answered and be sure you are making the best decision for yourself, well BEFORE scheduling a surgery. Keep reading, and think about consulting with different doctors. If you are Norwood4, a 800-1000 graft procedure is only the beginning. You will need multiple surgeries, was this explained to you? As far as "avoiding the scar", you are really uninformed about what you are about to go through! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 Shadyraver, Just from my observations here you seem to be rushing into this. I highly recommend you slow down. Learn everything you can about HTs and then make an informed decision. Go to the open house as this will help you in the above process. But don't have a procedure until you know what the heck this is all about. Quite frankly, you don't seemed to be as informed as you should be and you scheduled a procedure at what appears to be your first consultation Do yourself a favor and wait. Good luck jrp65 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member wtf Posted January 15, 2003 Regular Member Share Posted January 15, 2003 I;ve had eight bad one's ! same doc. should of been one ! blame doc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 WTF. You had 8 bad ones? What you had 8 bad hairtransplants? Who was your Doc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Mr. Hair Posted January 16, 2003 Regular Member Share Posted January 16, 2003 To help clearify how Doctors who perform mini and micro graft procedures use the term Follicular Unit (FU). Anytime any doctor transplants hair (whether it be a true all FU, mini and micro, or plugs) they are technically transplanting Follicular Units. What you need to know is if they combine these Follicular Units and place them together in one recipient site. This is how I got suckered in when I asked my doctor if he does an all Follicular Unit Transplant. He said "yes" and now I have mini and micros in my head. I didn't find out til 10 days after the procedure when I asked "how many hairs will the transplant yield?" But before asking I did some math myself. I had 500 grafts and figured on average 3 hairs per graft would yield 1,500 actual hairs. Well my doc's answer was alot different. When I asked, he said I can expect over 3,000 hairs! I said how can this be with an all Follicular Unit transplant. He then went on to explain how he combines the Follicular Units to create more density. So beware when doctors say they do FU transplants. Know exactly what the difference is between an all FU transplant, and mini and micro grafts. Also not to rag on you Shadyraver, but your knowledge on transplant seems pretty weak. Before having my transplant I did thousands of hour of research, and I still got scammed. The reason why I went to this doctor, was because Dr. Bernstein turn me away. I was only a N2a and 23, and he said it was to soon for me to have a transplant, and he was right. That's an ethical doctor for you. He put my interest, before his financial gain. Now I've schedule a procedure on with Dr. B in march to help soften my hairline, and camoflage these mini's and micro. Good luck Shady with whatever you choose to do. Mr. Hair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member EastCoast Posted January 16, 2003 Senior Member Share Posted January 16, 2003 How can 1500 fu turn to 3,000 as your doctor said ? You only start with a set number of transplant hairs, how can they mulitply ? Does it matter how they are grouped ? Confused. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Mr. Hair Posted January 16, 2003 Regular Member Share Posted January 16, 2003 EastCoast, 500 grafts means 500 recipient sites in which 500 Follicular Units are suppose to be placed. What my doctor did was make 500 recipient site, then took all the FU (alot more then 500) that he cut up and placed them in those sites. In a true all FU transplant there should have only been 500 Follicular Units place in the 500 recipient sites (1 FU for each site). But what he did was take a 3 hair follicular unit and a 4 hair follicular unit and place both those follicular units in 1 recipient site. Hence 7 hairs coming out of one hole. The whole time I was under the impression that 500 follicular units will be going into the 500 recipient sites. One FU for each site. So in my math I said, on the high side lets say there are 3 hair in each Follicular Unit. 3 hairs times 500 follicular units would yield 1,500 actual hairs from the procedure. When he told me over 3,000 that means he averaged 6 hairs per each recipient site. Now if you've done your research you would know that a true follicular unit would have at most 4 hairs in it (sometimes 5 hairs). Definitely not 6 hairs. And on me thats the average (6 hairs) I have per each recipient site. I believe another name they use for mini's and micro's is coupling of follicular units. I hope this helps clear up any confusion. Mr. Hair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 17, 2003 Share Posted January 17, 2003 Mr. Hair Your 2nd explanation was much better for us new guys to the site. Some of you bald dudes sure know your stuff! Thanks, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 17, 2003 Share Posted January 17, 2003 Here are some pix of my hair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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