Dr. Diep FUE 2,500 Hair Grafts on Norwood 3A Bald Pattern

[JON86]

I'm not sure what you guys feel is so unusual about this. The majority of the time the techs are doing the placement of the grafts. The doctor does the extractions and creates the recipient sites. This is how most clinics do it.

I understand that I know lots of clinics work that way but the after care in

this clinic seems awful. HT soon had a surgery didn't even get to talk to

the doctor afterwards. That is just ridicolous for the money he spent.

Nobody should be treated this way.

[JON86]

Wow you guys in the States pay crazy money for hair transplants. You would probably pay 3/4 of that max for two of the best docs in Europe (Feriduni & Bisanga) if not less. Having said that Feriduni is heavily reliant on techs as well but he is very involved with the process. I didn't feel rushed when I was with him and was the only patient on the day, If I was going to have an HT in the States, and could afford it, I think the only doc I would go to would be Konior who while being expensive, does everything himself.

Yes Konior is about as great in the states as you can get will be meeting

with him soon. He is honest won't cut on you if he thinks you are a lost cause. He is a great doctor and cares about the long term of his patients.

[Shadow of the EMpire State]

I'm not sure what you guys feel is so unusual about this. The majority of the time the techs are doing the placement of the grafts. The doctor does the extractions and creates the recipient sites. This is how most clinics do it.

 

Is there any proof that he's even doing the extractions? The poster said he was "knocked out."

[PupDaddy]

Bill and David should clarify with Dr. Diep whether he personally performs all the scorings and extractions of grafts in his FUE cases himself or if his techs do some or all of them. He claims to personally do all the extractions himself using a manual punch of his own design, and he touts this -- the surgeon, with intimate knowledge of anatomy and physiology, personally "pulling each hair root" (as he puts it) -- as something that sets him apart from other clinics that offer FUE hair restoration.

 

His techs would be expected to participate in the extraction process by collecting, sorting, and inspecting the grafts as the doctor scores and extracts them, so it wouldn't be out of the norm for one or more techs to be right there by his side during the extraction process and working on the patient's donor. If any of them are actually scoring or extracting grafts, however, that is counter to what Dr. Diep claims and is information that potential patients should know. Bill and David, could you please clarify this with Dr. Diep?

 

At every clinic recommended here, techs routinely do all or most of the implantations, be it an FUT case or an FUE case. Implantation of grafts into recipient sites made by the surgeon is one of the primary jobs of an ht tech, the others being to dissect strips into follicular units for strip cases and to collect, sort, inspect, and store grafts harvested via FUE. So it wouldn't concern me if Dr. Diep uses his technicians for these tasks. The one exception, of course, is where implantation is performed using implanter pens. Techs should never be doing graft implantations in that case, only the surgeon.

 

If Dr. Diep is routinely double-booking in-person consultations and rushing potential patients through them, that is both poor form and poor practice. The in-person consult is crucial to providing information, answering questions, formulating a long-term strategy for a patient's restoration, allaying concerns, and generally providing a patient with informed consent. It should be more than a rushed intake (sign them up) or marketing ploy.

 

The doctor not at least checking in with the patient following a ht before the patient leaves the clinic is discouraging and can indicate a lack of interest in the patient or his after care. I hope that isn't the case.

 

It sounds as though aftercare might be disorganized at this clinic and that the patient's access to the doctor's direct advice and input following surgery could be lacking. Again, I hope this is not the case.

 

I would urge Bill and David to raise these issues with Dr. Diep, see what he says, and, if appropriate, ask that he formulate a plan to address them.

[Shadow of the EMpire State]

Bill and David should clarify with Dr. Diep whether he personally performs all the scorings and extractions of grafts in his FUE cases himself or if his techs do some or all of them. He claims to personally do all the extractions himself using a manual punch of his own design, and he touts this -- the surgeon, with intimate knowledge of anatomy and physiology, personally "pulling each hair root" (as he puts it) -- as something that sets him apart from other clinics that offer FUE hair restoration.

 

His techs would be expected to participate in the extraction process by collecting, sorting, and inspecting the grafts as the doctor scores and extracts them, so it wouldn't be out of the norm for one or more techs to be right there by his side during the extraction process and working on the patient's donor. If any of them are actually scoring or extracting grafts, however, that is counter to what Dr. Diep claims and is information that potential patients should know. Bill and David, could you please clarify this with Dr. Diep?

 

At every clinic recommended here, techs routinely do all or most of the implantations, be it an FUT case or an FUE case. Implantation of grafts into recipient sites made by the surgeon is one of the primary jobs of an ht tech, the others being to dissect strips into follicular units for strip cases and to collect, sort, inspect, and store grafts harvested via FUE. So it wouldn't concern me if Dr. Diep uses his technicians for these tasks. The one exception, of course, is where implantation is performed using implanter pens. Techs should never be doing graft implantations in that case, only the surgeon.

 

If Dr. Diep is routinely double-booking in-person consultations and rushing potential patients through them, that is both poor form and poor practice. The in-person consult is crucial to providing information, answering questions, formulating a long-term strategy for a patient's restoration, allaying concerns, and generally providing a patient with informed consent. It should be more than a rushed intake (sign them up) or marketing ploy.

 

The doctor not at least checking in with the patient following a ht before the patient leaves the clinic is discouraging and can indicate a lack of interest in the patient or his after care. I hope that isn't the case.

 

It sounds as though aftercare might be disorganized at this clinic and that the patient's access to the doctor's direct advice and input following surgery could be lacking. Again, I hope this is not the case.

 

I would urge Bill and David to raise these issues with Dr. Diep, see what he says, and, if appropriate, ask that he formulate a plan to address them.

 

Correct on all counts.

Edited November 1, 2015 by Shadow of the EMpire State

[Melvin- Admin]

I can almost assure everyone that the doctor will say he did the extractions, I can not provide proof he didn't cause as I said I was not conscious for most of the procedure, but when I was techs were doing the extractions, as for the techs being good, I'm sure they are otherwise the doctor wouldn't be getting good results, and as I said I'm hoping I'll get a good result and I'm fairly certain I will just based on how things look now at 3.5 months at least I hope, but results do not negate post op care and overall bedside manner which is severely lacking at this clinic. The few times I called the clinic with questions I never spoke with the Doctor himself, mind you I'm not your typical patient, I've had a procedure before and researched hair restoration for years before deciding to get surgery, so I pretty much know what to expect, but I can't imagine those first time patients who have little to no knowledge on hair restoration.

 

I must say though my consult did not feel rushed and I actually spent quite a while discussing future hairloss and expectations with the Doctor, I would've most certainly never booked a procedure if I would've felt rushed in anyway, the physician assured me he did the extractions, I do trust he has good artistry especially in hairlines, but there were many things that fell short of my expectations especially from how my consult went, these issues definitely need to be discussed with the clinic, just because your results are good doesn't cancel out every other facet of patient care and a clear definition of what the clinic means by " dr performs surgery himself" if by that they mean designs the hairline and creates the recipient sites and maybe does some extractions, than that needs to be clear from the beginning.

[future-ht]

anyone else want to comment on the density for a mere 2500 grafts? There must be some photoshop going on.

[Melvin- Admin]

anyone else want to comment on the density for a mere 2500 grafts? There must be some photoshop going on.

 

Nah most definitely not, 2,500 grafts is the standard the front third of the scalp, if you look at the pics you see the doctor drew where the grafts were being placed which was only the front third, also the patient still had hair, he wasn't completely bald, i had 1,800 grafts in a similar size area and got good results and I was a lot balder. The results look legit, I'm sure you can go on his YouTube channel and view the video. It could be the pictures were taken with flash which will make the hair look denser, but not photoshop it's nothing incredible for the grafts used and area that was covered.

[FUE2014]

No ways would Dr Diep destroy his reputation and business by photoshopping a result. 2500 grafts or 5000 to 6000 hairs will make a noticeable difference. I'm sure if this was shot in less flattering light you would see that it is quite thin in places. Remember it's only an illusion of density we're aiming for.

[JON86]

I have voiced my experience with this clinic will leave it at that. However I do not believe

this was photo shopped. He gets consistent results with this number of grafts. Lighting always plays a role in everyones pictures.

[Dr. John Diep]

I have been performing FUE hair transplant surgery for 10 years eversince my Fellowship training. During the surgery, I will numb the patient up, design the hairline, harvest the hair graft one at a time and make site. When harvesting the hair graft, I personally score and push the harvesting instrument into the scalp to extract the graft at a precise angle with precise pressure. My hair technicians will then use their forceps to pull/pluck/collect those hair grafts that have been drilled out by me earlier. My technicians do not score or extract the hair grafts, because they do not know the angle or the pressure to harvest the hair grafts intact. All my technicians do is gently pull or scoop to collect those hair grafts that have been drilled out by me earlier. The reason for the good consistent hair transplant result is because the hair grafts which I personally score and extract out are healthy and intact with low transection rate. We do not split the grafts, keeping the grafts intact tend have higher growth rate. The other important factor to increase yield is to create recipient sites precisely around the same size as the hair grafts so that there will be less struggle to place the hair grafts in. With less struggle to place the hair grafts in, then there will be less damage to the grafts, leading to better growth. I do not place the hair grafts into the recipient site. All the hair grafts placement are being done by my hair technicians. FUE result is extremely dependent on how healthy the hair grafts being extracted intact by the surgeon. Since I perform FUE at least 4 times per week, not once a month, consistently for many years, I believe my skill improve through the years.

In term of the lighting, I believe that the more flash you use, the less dense the hair will look. The darker the room and less lighting would probably make the hair appear more dense. When taking photos, I always use flash on both the before and after photos to be consistent. All of my photos and videos are raw and unedited. They are untouched. The professional photographers can take one look at my photos and videos and be able to tell that they are real, legit and never been changed with consistent lighting or flash of both the before and after photos. I have attached the video link of this client on Youtube for the audience to see.

 

 

Edited November 2, 2015 by Dr. John Diep

[PupDaddy]

Thank you for clarifying your FUE protocol, Dr. Diep. I was relieved to see you confirm that you personally punch (score, excise) each and every FUE graft, a critical task that many if not most clinics offering FUE have relegated to technicians.

 

I have no problem with technicians plucking the previously scored grafts from their sites. Nor do I have a problem with technicians placing/implanting the grafts into the recipient sites made by the surgeon. These seem responsible, efficient, non-surgical uses of technician labor for FUE procedures and both are standard protocol even at the increasingly rare clinics where the ht doc personally scores/punches the grafts.

 

One question: You used the word "drill" as well as the word "punch." Do you still sometimes use a motorized punch? Is that what you meant by "drill?" I thought you only used manual, non-motorized punches.

 

I would hope that the aftercare situation that HTsoon described was an anomaly. In my opinion, patients really need to see their surgeon after the procedure is completed, even if just for a couple of minutes to have the surgeon inspect the implantations, assure the patient that all is well, and make sure they understand and are comfortable with immediate aftercare. Patients also need to be able to get in touch with their surgeon post op if they have serious questions or concerns, at least via email, and the clinic's staff should be well versed and organized for follow up with each patient post op to make sure the patient is compliant with post op care and to answer "routine" (although nothing is routine to a ht patient) questions.

 

Thank you for participating in this discussion.

[JON86]

Thank you for your answers on the fue procedure I learned more reading that than I did in my five minute consultation. However you failed to address your post op care. There are more and more negative claims starting to pop up on the internet. The common claim is you are not accessible to your patients. Everyones mental state is different after a procedure but they should at the very least have the peace of mind that if there is some kind of issue that they can reach their doctor in a timely manner. Not checking up on a patient after a surgery and going over questions is ridiculous and screams to me that I already got their money.

[future-ht]

FUE hair transplant restoration surgery result on Norwood 3A male pattern baldness of over 2,500 hair grafts transplanted by Dr. Diep after 1 year follow up. The surgery was performed personally by Dr. Diep, designing the hairline and pulling one hair graft at a time by himself within 1 day of work only. This client does not take Propecia nor use Rogaine. He is not on any medication. Please click on the following Youtube video link below.

 

 

 

Does Dr. Diep use nape hair for the hairline?

Edited November 3, 2015 by future-ht

[future-ht]

So from reading Dr. Diep's description above:

 

1. He does not use the lateral slit method

2. The techs place the grafts into the recipient site, but does Dr. Diep make the holes? I assume so.

3. Bright harsh light such as a flash from the front can actually create more shadows and gives the illusion of density. The best way to make a comparison would be to use the exact same lighting conditions. In the before pics, soft light comes from above, which greatly illuminates the scalp giving a less dense appearance. The after pics you can see the surrounding light is dimmer because the wall color is darker, and then of course the flash creates dark shadows behind each hair, like instant toppik

[1978matt]

FUE result is extremely dependent on how healthy the hair grafts being extracted intact by the surgeon.

 

Interesting comment as this seems to correlate more with Feller's opinion on the procedure as opposed to Vories (placement being the most important).

[Dr. John Diep]

In term of lighting and photography, I have consulted a professional photographer by the name of Keith Moreau, the owner of Silver Spot Media from Brisbane, California, who works on commercial for Virgin Airline and other big projects. You can google him for further information. Per his quote, "Dear Dr. Diep, You have sent me 2 photos to review and access as a professional photographer. I have looked through the 2 photos, before and after, you sent of this patient. As you mentioned, the first photo was done in a different environment than the second, though both were done with the same camera. From what I can tell, the ambient light on both photos is about the same. In the before shot, the ambient light is slightly more diffused but that isn't significant. Both look like they were taken with a direct flash, as you can see from the reflection on the forehead and the quick falloff of light away from the center of the photo. I don't think that using a photo flash or any difference ambient light is causing these photos to be significantly different in showing the hair density, the photos are quite similar. Regards, Keith Moreau, Owner of Silverspot Media."

In term of the after care, I do check and see my patient off at the end of the day. I am available to my patient. My cell phone is printed on the first page of the post op package. We do provide hair wash the next three days and answer any question. I am available to my patient if they call and request to talk to the doctor with appointment time. I can not abandon my patient and leave the surgery room to talk. I can and will talk to any of my client with appointment time so that I can be certain to be free at that specific time. I have always care for my patient well being from the beginning to the end of surgery including the follow up. If my clients have further issue, I prefer they contact me directly by calling to make an appointment to talk with me or call my cell and leave a message so that I can call back when I am available. I welcome constructive criticism in order to provide better service and more satisfaction for my clients.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Dr. John Diep

[Dr. John Diep]

In term of lighting and photography, I have consulted a professional photographer by the name of Keith Moreau, the owner of Silver Spot Media from Brisbane, California, who works on commercial for Virgin Airline and other big projects. You can google him for further information. Per his quote, "Dear Dr. Diep, You have sent me 2 photos to review and access as a professional photographer. I have looked through the 2 photos, before and after, you sent of this patient. As you mentioned, the first photo was done in a different environment than the the second, though both were done with the same camera. From what I can tell, the ambient light on both photos is about the same. In the before shot, the ambient light is slightly more diffused but that isn't significant. Both look like they were taken with a direct flash, as you can see from the reflection on the forehead and the quick falloff of light away from the center of the photo. I don't think that using a photo flash or any difference ambient light is causing these photos to be significantly different in showing the hair density, the photos are quite similar. Regards, Keith Moreau, Owner of Silverspot Media."

In term of the after care, I do check and see my patient off at the end of the day. I am available to my patient. My cell phone is printed on the first page of the post op package. We do provide hair wash the next three days and answer any question. I am available to my patient if they call and request to talk to the doctor with appointment time. I can not abandon my patient and leave the surgery room to talk. I can and will talk to any of my client with appointment time so that I can be certain to be free at that specific time. I have always care for my patient well being from the beginning to the end of surgery including the follow up. If my clients have further issue, I prefer they contact me directly by calling to make an appointment to talk with me or call my cell and leave a message so that I can call back when I am available. I welcome constructive criticism in order to provide better service and more satisfaction for my clients.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Dr. John Diep

[future-ht]

Thanks for the info Dr. Diep.

I think your website and marketing would be greatly improved with higher resolution pics, and a graft count for each picture so we know how many grafts it took

 

 

Question:

 

1. What size is your punch?

2. You didn't specify in your post. You said techs place the grats, but do you make the recipient sites or do your techs make the punches for recipient sites?

3. Do you use nape hair for the hair line?

4. What is the maximum density you can transplant?

[thisguy1]

nm...

Edited February 25, 2016 by thisguy1

[thisguy1]

I have been performing FUE hair transplant surgery for 10 years eversince my Fellowship training. During the surgery, I will numb the patient up, design the hairline, harvest the hair graft one at a time and make site. When harvesting the hair graft, I personally score and push the harvesting instrument into the scalp to extract the graft at a precise angle with precise pressure. My hair technicians will then use their forceps to pull/pluck/collect those hair grafts that have been drilled out by me earlier. My technicians do not score or extract the hair grafts, because they do not know the angle or the pressure to harvest the hair grafts intact. All my technicians do is gently pull or scoop to collect those hair grafts that have been drilled out by me earlier. The reason for the good consistent hair transplant result is because the hair grafts which I personally score and extract out are healthy and intact with low transection rate. We do not split the grafts, keeping the grafts intact tend have higher growth rate. The other important factor to increase yield is to create recipient sites precisely around the same size as the hair grafts so that there will be less struggle to place the hair grafts in. With less struggle to place the hair grafts in, then there will be less damage to the grafts, leading to better growth. I do not place the hair grafts into the recipient site. All the hair grafts placement are being done by my hair technicians. FUE result is extremely dependent on how healthy the hair grafts being extracted intact by the surgeon. Since I perform FUE at least 4 times per week, not once a month, consistently for many years, I believe my skill improve through the years.

 

 

 

It sounds like from comments here you are a busy man with a very busy office - which is never a bad thing; it means business is good. But even writing this info you posted here on a sheet to hand to every consult while they wait in the waiting room is 1 easy solution to some of these issues. It's good data.

 

So it sounds like what HTSoon was seeing as extraction by tech was actually the back half of extraction as you split the process in two - "cutting out" and "pulling out", you do the former, tech does the latter - the former being the more critical part.

 

This is good info and I think every patient would love to know the mechanics.

 

As for aftercare situation - you strike me as a very analytical person so perhaps the psychological impact of hair loss is not as apparent. Right brain v left brain. As others have said, it is difficult to imagine not hearing post surgery "everything went well, you should feel confident but as we discussed there are always variables ...but I was pleased with how the day went." Hair seems to impact the male psychology a lot so sort of being left out on an island in the weeks and months after surgery when it is impacting psychology ("will it grow back? "did something go wrong ?") is an area of improvement.

 

But as stated on other threads I think the end results of FUE are among best I see routinely so addressing these other "non science, more emotional/organizational" things can go a long way.

Edited February 25, 2016 by thisguy1

[Melvin- Admin]

It sounds like from comments here you are a busy man with a very busy office - which is never a bad thing; it means business is good. But even writing this up on a sheet to hand to every consult while they wait in the waiting room is 1 easy solution to some of these issues.

 

So it sounds like what HTSoon was seeing as extraction by tech was actually the back half of extraction as you split the process in two - "cutting out" and "pulling out", you do the former, tech does the latter - the former being the more critical part.

 

This is good info and I think every patient would love to know the mechanics.

 

As for aftercare situation - you strike me as a very analytical person so perhaps the psychological impact of hair loss is not as apparent. Right brain v left brain. As others have said, it is difficult to imagine not hearing post surgery "everything went well, you should feel confident but as we discussed there are always variables ...but I was pleased with how the day went." Hair seems to impact the male psychology a lot so sort of being left out on an island in the weeks and months after surgery when it is impacting psychology ("will it grow back? "did something go wrong ?") is an area of improvement.

 

But as stated on other threads I think the end results of FUE are among best I see routinely so addressing these other "non science, more emotional/organizational" things can go a long way.

 

I've spoken with Dr. Diep, and I believe it was a misunderstanding on my part, it's scary when you're a patient and you wake up and the doctors not there, but his statement did clear things up, I really think just taking that extra moment with the patient to clear any doubts would make a world of difference, I truly do believe that he is one of the best in the business for hairlines hands down, I don't regret going to him at all, my expectations have been exceeded, but it's that time when you're waiting for your results and things in your head doubts begin to come up, a clear line of communication is necessary, I think if these small changes are made he can be up there with the greatest, in my opinion his FUE is right up there with Lorenzo, definitely one of the best in the U.S.

[JON86]

I've spoken with Dr. Diep, and I believe it was a misunderstanding on my part, it's scary when you're a patient and you wake up and the doctors not there, but his statement did clear things up, I really think just taking that extra moment with the patient to clear any doubts would make a world of difference, I truly do believe that he is one of the best in the business for hairlines hands down, I don't regret going to him at all, my expectations have been exceeded, but it's that time when you're waiting for your results and things in your head doubts begin to come up, a clear line of communication is necessary, I think if these small changes are made he can be up there with the greatest, in my opinion his FUE is right up there with Lorenzo, definitely one of the best in the U.S.

 

I totally agree with these statements about the hairline design of Doctor Diep. I believe he is among the best there is and it's what drew me to that clinic. Nobody does more for hairline design with fewer grafts in my opinion. He does amazing temple work as well and that is an area often overlooked. Even though I have posted a negative experience in dealing with this clinic I will say if I were going fue I would still choose him in a minute. I am saying this for two reasons. The first is his fantastic results. The second is the biggest advantage of fue is it's less invasive and you have less chances for problems vs fut. Most of the negative reviews of this clinic out there are fut related. I like Dr Diep I just wish he would improve the after care for his patients. There are reviews out there of patients worried about infections and folliculitis and they had to wait for a long time for a skype appointment or a phone call. That should not be happening. Anyone facing any problem related to infection should be addressed right away. I am not saying this to bash Dr Diep I just think if this one simple area would improve his clinic would be one of the best in the US.

[matt1164]

I had a surgery with Dr. Diep. at about 5 days post op I requested a facetime follow-up with him and his office scheduled one for later the same day when he was done with surgery. I was very happy about that. His office has returned all my emails the same day. I feel like his aftercare is pretty good given that I am in NY and he's in Ca.

 

also, he gives many pages of explicit aftercare instructions to refer to. on that list he says what should be considered an emergency and what to do in case.

[JON86]

I had a surgery with Dr. Diep. at about 5 days post op I requested a facetime follow-up with him and his office scheduled one for later the same day when he was done with surgery. I was very happy about that. His office has returned all my emails the same day. I feel like his aftercare is pretty good given that I am in NY and he's in Ca.

 

also, he gives many pages of explicit aftercare instructions to refer to. on that list he says what should be considered an emergency and what to do in case.

 

Happy to hear that they are improving in this area.