BUYER BEWARE Dr. Lindsey reviewing a poor FUE result

[Dr. William Lindsey]

Here's another video of a guy who had low or maybe no yield from and FUE done by a reputable doctor. And I review our approach to these tough cases. Tough mainly because the patient no longer trusts the medical profession or hair transplantation. I see stuff like this weekly, often by NEWBIES to hair who've bought one of the main automatic systems and rent-a-techs, but I see it from everywhere.

 

 

Now don't get me wrong, FUE has its place....just do your research PRIOR to leaping for what sounds like something that is too good to be true.

 

 

 

The video is:

 

 

And a recent guy we had to repair..same story...different head...is:

 

 

 

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA

[delancey]

Dr. Bhatti perhaps?

[delancey]

Dr. Lindsey,

 

What FUE yield on average can one expect at your clinic?

 

Thank you in advance for your answer Dr. Lindsey.

[hsrp10]

Dr. Bhatti perhaps?

Lol, wouldn't doubt it based on the description of the first case.

Glad Dr. Lindsey could repair them both.

[Dr. William Lindsey]

The success of FUE at ALL clinics is variable. I keep hearing patients come in and say Dr. Bernstein says 40 % but I have no idea if that is true. I think they are referencing a one or 2 patient review from a few years ago.

 

I can tell you that at a couple of clinics its close to zero...as I keep seeing patients from them...of course the legions of happy people who have given them a positive yelp never stop in to talk to me.

 

At my place....well I think it depends on the patient's hair and scalp as much as anything. Take for example the comparison video that I'm putting up in a few days...it has a guy we did a last year with thin CRAPPY hair...who grew well, and we did a repeat case to work farther back AND a black guy with fat curly hair... My off the cuff guess is that the thicker hair will grow better and next Thanksgiving there will be a clearly better result in the black guy. BUT the crappy hair grew well...despite my warning to the guy not to do FUE last year....so clearly I'm not always right.

 

As Dr. Feller says...U in FUE means Unpredictable. And the F means.....

 

Dr. Lindsey

[Dr Blake Bloxham]

Great explanation.

 

Just to add a little more context -- without trying to start a "flame war" -- here is an official study done by Coalition surgeon Dr. Beehner (and presented by Coalition surgeon Dr. Wesley) published in the ISHRS journal a few months back:

 

Clinical Investigation Comparing FUT and FUE yield

 

 

I shared my thoughts in that thread previously, so I won't do it again here, but I think it's a pretty good assessment all around.

[delancey]

Dr. Lindsey, thanks for the response.

 

My perspective is that there is always an element of unpredictability in hair transplantation. Ironically, the U is present in FUT too.

 

I personally prefer FUE because having a long scar on my head would bother me tremendously and limit my hair styling options. It would also mean limiting my options later on in life should my level of baldness progress. But I also understand that I am only one man out of millions of men who have had or may undergo surgery one day. And some men just aren't bothered by having a long strip scar going from one ear to another. At the end of the day, there is enough knowledge and wisdom on the various forums to help people make a well informed decision that will stand the test of time. I'm happy if others make a decision that they are satisfied with. That's all that counts.

 

I've also met several wonderful FUE Doctors, whom are considered the very very best, and witnessed their passion for hair transplantation and their willingness to improve the FUE method. The energy and dedication some of these physicians have is tremendous. I personally believe that this passion for FUE is clearly illustrated in their work.

 

I recently asked Doug, the representative from Hasson and Wong, the difference between FUE and FUT yield at Hasson and Wong. Here's his response:

 

"Amazingly enough not much if any. Based on a recent conversation I had, you could make a case that our FUE may even be higher under certain conditions. With both in the very high 90%, it's nice for a patient with typical donor area characteristics to know that yield should not be a consideration when deciding between FUT and FUE at our clinic."

 

Dr. Blake Bloxham, have you considered participating in the World FUE Institute next year? The organization recently held a conference and live work shop on the Canary Islands (Spain). In case you haven't heard, it is a non-profit organization supporting the "education and scientific research in the area of FUE, inspiring new ideas, evoking insights, and encouraging education." Some of its members include Dr, Wong, Dr. Ron Shapiro, Dr. Erdogan, Dr. Lorenzo, Dr. Lupanzula, Dr. Chueco, and Dr. Rahal.

[hsrp10]

As Dr. Feller says...U in FUE means Unpredictable. And the F means.....

 

 

That's hilarious! Spit out my coffee reading that.

 

Seriously though, I think FUE has gotten better especially when you look at the European clinics where it's done more as a speciality compared with North America. I had a smaller FUE procedure in Europe and the followup clinic inspection showed nearly 100% of the grafts grew with significant density.

 

I've had both FUT and FUE and recognize each is "better" depending on different various patient requirements.

[hsrp10]

I can tell you that at a couple of clinics its close to zero...as I keep seeing patients from them...of course the legions of happy people who have given them a positive yelp never stop in to talk to me.

 

 

If this is a recommended clinic on this site repeatedly producing such results can we address this issue and have you name them here?

 

This site is for helping HT patients avoid the known pitfalls out there.

[Sean]

There are a couple clinics that do not adhere to patient safety and ethics leading to disasterous FUE.

 

Dr Lindsey points out important things and one should take note.

 

Be wary of flawless FUE results that are clinic or rep posted and review them carefully. It's important to see actual patients up close if you decide to get a procedure. Be cautious of cheerleaders as well as they may have incentives offered or discussed.

 

You do not want to end up with permanent issues in the long run. (Ex: scar tissues, over harvesting, low yields, loss of grafts, etc)

 

FUE has to be done with meticulous care and proper surgical protocols. Some docs should do things ethically.

[delancey]

There are a couple clinics that do not adhere to patient safety and ethics leading to disasterous FUE.

 

Dr Lindsey points out important things and one should take note.

 

Be wary of flawless FUE results that are clinic or rep posted and review them carefully. It's important to see actual patients up close if you decide to get a procedure. Be cautious of cheerleaders as well as they may have incentives offered or discussed.

 

You do not want to end up with permanent issues in the long run. (Ex: scar tissues, over harvesting, low yields, loss of grafts, etc)

 

FUE has to be done with meticulous care and proper surgical protocols. Some docs should do things ethically.

 

I fully agree.

 

@hsrp,

It would also be a good idea for the clinic to release the name of the Doctor responsible for the poor result above to help consumers make well informed decisions in the future.

 

Perhaps it is an industry courtesy or just a way to avoid conflict. I get that perspective. However, if one continues to see poor results from the same clinics, perhaps it would worthwhile to consider releasing the names of the Doctors involved in the poor results. Not only for patient awareness but also to create more accountability in the industry.

 

Just my two cents.

[Dr. William Lindsey]

Sean is right on the money.

 

Nobody makes EVERYONE happy. On Friday I saw 3 perturbed guys, ALL 3 from the same clinic...ALL 3 said they'd only seen great reviews of that clinic online..not on a hair forum mind you.... Now all 3 are doing the research they should have done a year ago.

 

As I've posted MANY MANY times, every year we do roughly 130 strips. And every year we have 1, maybe 2, that just don't grow well. And we always have 5 or 6 guys who do such poor cleaning that they either pull out some hair or let crusts buildup and auto extract grafts....

 

So why don't those 1 or 2 cases grow? I have no idea as we do one a day...they are not getting rushed at the end of the day when we're all tired... and we do all cases the same way. Well to some extent patient physiology plays a role...thin weak hair in general would seem more likely to suffer from perioperative stress than fat hair...but honestly our "guy" last year who got what I would call a poor result...had no obvious reason. He has fat middle eastern hair, he came multiple times during the week and did above average cleaning, and I don't know of any thing he did to screw it up....

 

Now he of course has lost faith in HT, and probably us...but I can not MAKE it grow. I know nothing for certain, but I do know odds. ODDS are that if any patient goes to an office with a good consistent track record, and follows the instructions, that they will, on average, get a good result.

 

Probably 95% likely or so if they go to a truly good office. But most practices out there offering hair as a niche...are not truly great offices at hair. And even 95% is not 100%.

 

So if you are shopping and the ads or chatter keeps talking guaranteed and perfection and stuff that sounds too good to be true. Well, it probably is too good to be true. Same thing applies to virtually all of life's big decisions.

 

Same advice I try to beat into my kids.

 

 

Dr. Lindsey