Failed hair transplant with Dr Rahal

[Dr. Rahal]

Dear Follically-Challenged,

 

We're sorry that you're not satisfied with your progress at this moment. Dr. Rahal has seen the thread and hopes to have a conversation with you.

 

He is traveling out of country (returning next week) but wants to address all of your concerns. Patient Care is reaching out to you now to schedule a call.

 

We will find a solution to make you happy.

[LondonHT]

Perhaps Rahal did do the slits though...? So not much difference to the others out there.

 

Good reply from them above , give them a chance.

[Cant decide]

Sorry mate but just because you had a successful HT does not make you an expert on whether Dr Rahal did everything right and by the book.

 

I know what happened because I was in the surgery room. You do not know what protocol he followed and the technicians that worked on me. We are always told that Rahal uses technicians that have been working with him for over 10 years. Well here is the news. I spoke to one of the technicians after the surgey on how long she has been working with Dr Rahal. The response - I have only been here for 2 years

 

Then I ask you, how do you know the protocol he followed with you was the wrong one and not the exact same one he followed on me? In fact, it sounds like it was. Also, you said one of the techs had "Only" 2 years experience. I think this is ample time to get good enough to produce consistent quality results. I bet most of the other techs had at least 5+ years under their belts.

 

I know your worried about this and I cant say I blame you but I think you cannot rule out that the problem is with your physiology and not the doc or techs.

[Follically-Challenged]

Dear Follically-Challenged,

 

We're sorry that you're not satisfied with your progress at this moment. Dr. Rahal has seen the thread and hopes to have a conversation with you.

 

He is traveling out of country (returning next week) but wants to address all of your concerns. Patient Care is reaching out to you now to schedule a call.

 

We will find a solution to make you happy.

 

I appreciate that. I just want to make a couple of things clear.

 

Firstly, I said somethings last night on here that were heat of the moment stuff at a time when I was at boiling point. I am still pretty upset but I take back some of the personal stuff I said. That was out of order and I apologise. In no way do I want to personally attack anyone.

 

However, this still does not take away from the fact that I am sitting with a below par HT after a 2,700 graft procedure. I will never be able to get those grafts back.

 

In addition, I still believe that I did not have the most experienced staff during my surgery. That is just my opinion. I am sure Dr Rahal's opinion will differ from mine but I am the one who has to live with this result. Maybe the poor results are clouding my judgement but I am sure you all appreciate that it is never easy to have a failed transplant.

Edited July 9, 2014 by Follically-Challenged

[Follically-Challenged]

Then I ask you, how do you know the protocol he followed with you was the wrong one and not the exact same one he followed on me? In fact, it sounds like it was. Also, you said one of the techs had "Only" 2 years experience. I think this is ample time to get good enough to produce consistent quality results. I bet most of the other techs had at least 5+ years under their belts.

 

I know your worried about this and I cant say I blame you but I think you cannot rule out that the problem is with your physiology and not the doc or techs.

 

Problem with physiology. How do you explain my left side growing out really well yet the right side looks bare. If it was physiology, then the left side would not have grown out. The lack of hair on the right side has everything to do with grafts failing to grow as they were not transplanted properly.

[Cant decide]

Problem with physiology. How do you explain my left side growing out really well yet the right side looks bare. If it was physiology, then the left side would not have grown out. The lack of hair on the right side has everything to do with grafts failing to grow as they were not transplanted properly.

 

Good luck with everything. I hope you ultimately end up with the result that you are looking for.

[CAMPBELL]

Good luck with this working out in your favour and I hope things get resolved.

[BensonTT]

Hi, I had a hair transplant with Rahal on Jan 2014 and now am at the 7 month mark and the results are not looking good for me either.. I will contact Rahal and see what he says and update you guys with my own thread..

[Britanium]

Sorry to hear of your below par results. It must be extremely difficult for you right now. Its quite normal for one side to lag behind the other - but i agree this appears more than just lagging behind.

Lets hope you do get a good resolution from the Dr. I agree if you have paid for the experience of Rahal then it should be done at least in part by him. And for him to keep a check on how everything is going.

Working in conjuntion with the assistants - certainly not just leave them to it. Out of interest which side did the tech you spoke to work on?

[Follically-Challenged]

All.

 

I just want to clarify a few things.

 

Firstly, as I mentioned before the way my post was worded was completely inappropriate. What I said and the way I said it was out of order. This is not to say that I am happy with my hair transplant. I am not. But there is a way of doing things and I did it the wrong way.

 

I should have contacted Dr Rahal first. Even though I have been speaking to patient services, I should have given Dr Rahal thr opportunity to discuss my case.

 

Secondly, given where I am I need to give it some more time. I was so upset that I did not realise what I was saying.

 

I have since spoken to Dr Rahal and will mention this in a separate thread as it will get lost if I mention it in this thread

Edited July 13, 2014 by Follically-Challenged

[Cryingoutloud]

Well I dunno, FC. I think it was understandable that you'd be angry. As you said, you paid for a hair transplant by Dr. Rahal not by his assistants. Quite a few doctors who were consistently posting awe-inspiring results have begun producing some downright dross of late and, typically, it's because they start allowing techs to do the "heavy lifting" while they take a back seat, a cup of tea and a "supervisory" role.

 

Well, I'm sorry but that's absolute bullshit. If I pay top dollar for a top surgeon, I want that surgeon on the case, not his techs.

 

I've never seen such an appalling result from Dr. Rahal. Those saying it's not a disaster are being disingenuous. If the patient wanted a result that wasn't a total disaster, he could've saved 80% of what he paid and gone to a hack but that's NOT what he wanted, is it? He wanted a gold standard procedure so he went to a gold standard surgeon.

 

Frankly, every patient should be seeking assurances that the DOCTOR will be conducting the lion's share of the procedure. They're paying for experience, not a brand

[Cant decide]

Frankly, every patient should be seeking assurances that the DOCTOR will be conducting the lion's share of the procedure. They're paying for experience, not a brand

 

I want to clear something up here because I think this part of it is getting overblown. Dr. Rahal designs the recipient area, harvests the donor, does the suturing, does all the numbing, makes all the incisions and plants a few grafts to see how well they place. After that, his techs plant the remaining grafts. He comes into the OR from time to time to check on things and at the end he takes a good hard look to make sure all was done properly and to his standard. What I have described here is standard protocol for almost all top doctors you will find. There are very few docs who plant all the grafts themselves and quite frankly I would not want him to because fatigue could become a factor. In my earlier post, I just meant that a few more visits to the OR by Rahal would be beneficial to make the patient feel comfortable that he is present. This would not impact results necessarily IMO but again, it gives a level of comfort to the patient.

[watch4norwoods]

I want to clear something up here because I think this part of it is getting overblown. Dr. Rahal designs the recipient area, harvests the donor, does the suturing, does all the numbing, makes all the incisions and plants a few grafts to see how well they place. After that, his techs plant the remaining grafts. He comes into the OR from time to time to check on things and at the end he takes a good hard look to make sure all was done properly and to his standard. What I have described here is standard protocol for almost all top doctors you will find. There are very few docs who plant all the grafts themselves and quite frankly I would not want him to because fatigue could become a factor. In my earlier post, I just meant that a few more visits to the OR by Rahal would be beneficial to make the patient feel comfortable that he is present. This would not impact results necessarily IMO but again, it gives a level of comfort to the patient.

 

/thread

 

 

Rahal is king

[Follically-Challenged]

Hi All,

 

I thought it would be useful to give an update.

 

Dr Rahal has agreed to see me in person to assess whether I do have a failed hair transplant (as pictures do not tell the full story) before he takes any course of action. He said he is going to be in Europe in August and that he will inform me of the dates so I can fly to meet him. He said he will cover the cost of the ticket.

 

Following this meeting, if there is any touch up required (in my opinion there is), Dr Rahal has agreed to do this free of charge. He said he is happy to do the surgery on Friday or Saturday and he will do this personally.

 

This was on 9th July.

 

I subsequently emailed Dr Rahal on 15 July with some concerns and grievances I had regarding my procedure. Dr Rahal took the time to give a detailed response which was much appreciated.

 

I have not received any feedback from Dr Rahal regarding his European visit. I have emailed him a couple of times and am awaiting a response.

 

I am keen to see how I can resolve this. I will keep you all updated.

Edited August 5, 2014 by Follically-Challenged

[JoeTillman]

Hi All,

 

I thought it would be useful to give an update.

 

I managed to speak to Dr Rahal in July. He was not happy that I went straight to the forum instead of contacting him. In hindsight I should have contacted him first.

 

In any case, he agreed to see me in person to assess whether I do have a failed hair transplant (apparently pictures do not tell the full story) before he takes any course of action. He said he is going to be in Europe in August and that he will inform me of the dates so I can fly to meet him. He said he will cover the cost of the ticket.

 

Following this meeting, if there is any touch up required (I think the pictures are clear that there is a need for this), Dr Rahal has agreed to do this free of charge. He said he is happy to do the surgery on Friday or Saturday and he will do this personally.

 

This was on 9th July.

 

I subsequently emailed Dr Rahal on 15 July with some concerns and grievances I had regarding my procedure. Dr Rahal took the time to give a detailed response.

 

However, since then I have not received any feedback from Dr Rahal regarding his European visit. I have emailed him a couple of times but have not received any response.

 

I am keen to see how I can resolve this. I will keep you all updated.

 

Follically-Challenged,

 

I saw your post and wanted to chime in to let you know what's up. Once Dr. Rahal gets his European trip sorted you'll be one of the first to know. Understand this, your concerns will be addressed and sorted.

[Follically-Challenged]

Follically-Challenged,

 

I saw your post and wanted to chime in to let you know what's up. Once Dr. Rahal gets his European trip sorted you'll be one of the first to know. Understand this, your concerns will be addressed and sorted.

 

Hi Joe. Thanks for the feedback.

 

I have received an email from Dr Rahal. He said that his European trip has been cancelled and that I will have to fly to Ottawa. Dr Rahal will cover the cost of the trip.

 

I just have to find the right time as it is a long way away from the Middle East.

[JoeTillman]

My pleasure, FC. If you need anything further, I'll do my best to help.

[Mickey85]

Hi Joe. Thanks for the feedback.

 

I have received an email from Dr Rahal. He said that his European trip has been cancelled and that I will have to fly to Ottawa. Dr Rahal will cover the cost of the trip.

 

I just have to find the right time as it is a long way away from the Middle East.

 

I know it is quite a long distance from Canada to the Middle East but Rahal covering the cost of the trip is quite a pleasant gesture. I wish you all the best.

[Follically-Challenged]

I know it is quite a long distance from Canada to the Middle East but Rahal covering the cost of the trip is quite a pleasant gesture. I wish you all the best.

 

It is a very nice gesture. As I said before I have grievances about the procedure but I cannot say anything negative about Dr Rahal the person.

 

I will keep you posted on how things go.

[stinger99]

Amazin for dr Rahal to stand by his work and take care of u

[2youngforthis]

man i am wanting to have a procedure by him and now i am all kinds of up in arms! gezz who now.

[glocktop]

2youngforthis - I hear ya. I was consulting with Rahal's office for my first HT but I've ceased since this happened. I'm waiting for more answers on how this happened - and what they will be doing differently inside the operating room to prevent this from happening again.

[rev333]

This can happen with any doc and does.

 

The way Rahal is handling this is admirable.

[rev333]

This can happen with any doc and does.

 

The way Rahal is handling this is admirable.

[woodman]

glad to see that your concerns are being addressed man. i'm booked for fue with rahal. so it's nice to see that they are covering your flight. agree this can and does happen with every doc.

 

I needed a touch-up for my first ht. it happens. keep us posted.