Who is the right Surgeon for my Hairline/Restoration and some other q's

[yetanotherONE]

40 year old man. Been on fin for 7-8 years or so, and minoxidil around the same time though I think I'm a non-responder there. Also use Ketoconazole shampoo, and dabbled in other stuff like dermapen and RU. I've finally got some money in my pocket, and I think I'm ready for an HT. Been reading r/tressless and such for years, but never went full on into the HT research though I've met with a few clinics. Think I'm close to an NW3. I've been holding mostly steady but in the last year or two it seems to be thinning out a bit more in front. Crown I think is fine. I'm just tired of looking at it every day, worrying about hair stuff, researching weird research chemicals, etc.

I've had a high hairline my whole life and would like for my hairline to be lowered an filled in, and decently dense. I don't really know how to estimate graphs but I imagine less than 2k? I'd like for it to be under 15k total cost or so, preferably in North America (or south) so I can keep up with work after the surgery. And would really like to get it done in November, December or January if that's possible. Also, I'd like to get FUE and without saving my head. I have a sometimes front facing job and would like to be able to hide the initial awkward stages 2-3 weeks post surgery, either with my hair combed forward or a hat. 

Obviously, some of this may not be possible, but I wanted to post here and see if you guys had any recommendations for me, even if the recommendation is Don't Get an HT.

 

[FixMyHair213]

you've got great hair for your age, Eugenix, Dr Mwamba,  Bisanga are all clinics I would recommend. whats your location and budget. and will you be willing to travel outside the country and if so how far. 

[Buck Naked]

Looks like your hair loss has stabilized on meds. I think you can advance your hairline and for that you'd need 2,500 grafts at the most for it to look good. Have you consulted with any surgeons? You should consult with about 3-5 surgeons. Your budget is healthy too. Are you thinking FUE or FUT? I had my surgery done by Dr. Glenn Charles in Florida and am very happy with the results. He's highly recommended on here as well. Here's his link if you want a free consult:

https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/dr-glenn-charles

[aNewHairHope]

Bisanga.

[StillAlive]

Your hair is excellent for your age. If I had your hairline at 40, I wouldn't even consider an HT.

It's your head and your choice though, so yes, you absolutely can get a lower hairline with 2.5K grafts and it'll probably look quite amazing. Very little risk of further loss in the future as you are not even a NW2. 

[Mike10]

You're NW3 and around 2,5 K would be needed. Bisanga, Feriduni or Mwamba are decent choices. 

 

[BaldReaper]

Your hair looks great for your age but if you want an ht I think Freitas is the best choice 

[SeanT1]

Eugenix is also a great choice, they work wonders with hairlines & temple points.

Edited August 29, 2022 by SeanToman

[yetanotherONE]

On 8/27/2022 at 9:16 PM, Buck Naked said:

Looks like your hair loss has stabilized on meds. I think you can advance your hairline and for that you'd need 2,500 grafts at the most for it to look good. Have you consulted with any surgeons? You should consult with about 3-5 surgeons. Your budget is healthy too. Are you thinking FUE or FUT? I had my surgery done by Dr. Glenn Charles in Florida and am very happy with the results. He's highly recommended on here as well. Here's his link if you want a free consult:

https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/dr-glenn-charles

def thinking FUE. Would prefer to be in the US, Canada, or Mexico (or Latin America) so I can stay up with my work schedule. Will check out Dr. Charles. What do you think 2500 would run with him? 

On 8/27/2022 at 8:22 PM, FixMyHair213 said:

you've got great hair for your age, Eugenix, Dr Mwamba,  Bisanga are all clinics I would recommend. whats your location and budget. and will you be willing to travel outside the country and if so how far. 

Appreciate it. budget would be up to 15k, would prefer around 12k. Would prefer to stay in North America or South America to keep up with work schedule while I spend a few days recuperating post HT 

On 8/28/2022 at 4:37 AM, StillAlive said:

Your hair is excellent for your age. If I had your hairline at 40, I wouldn't even consider an HT.

It's your head and your choice though, so yes, you absolutely can get a lower hairline with 2.5K grafts and it'll probably look quite amazing. Very little risk of further loss in the future as you are not even a NW2. 

It's really not, tbh. Maybe the pictures aren't coming across, but I'm most likely an NW2 bordering on NW3. I can no longer comb it back or up.

 

Thanks everyone for the replies, really appreciate it. 

[Hairgrowpro]

I am a hair transplant surgeon and specialize in FUE with the Artas robotic system and the Neograft in the US. The number of follicles in my opinion is best obtained by creating a desired hairline that achieves both what you would be happy with in the short term as well as a hairline that looks natural and ages well with time. After hairline design (and obviously anesthesia) the next phase of the procedure I like to start with is site making which is how we determine exactly how many follicles it takes to fill in the density of that surface area. Otherwise it is just a ballpark estimate usually within a range of 100 to 200 follicles. Depending on where you wanted to establish your new hairline and for example if you wanted to fortify your temporal points etc it would likely be around 1700-2100 grafts. Consuming more hair follicles than you need is never advantageous for the patient. Sure, a physician would be able to place 2500+ follicles in that region although it would be at the expense of depleting your follicle bank reservoir and limiting your future ability for a transplant if you ever desired another touchup 10 or 15 years later. Creating adequate density for lowering a hairline is very important, but equally important is being conscientious about having a 360 degree result you will be happy with by not overly depleting the donor region. The fact that you're on finasteride will certainly help prevent future receding and give you a much better return on your Hair Transplant investment. The cost of a hair transplant can vary widely, especially in the US. This may be a broad generalization however I have found clinics that charge per follicle are more likely to recommend a higher number of follicles that are needed to be transplanted. And obviously this is not a firm rule that applies to every medical center but I would consider it a red flag if anyone quoted you for more than 2500 hair follicles for that area. The cost can range anywhere from $6,000 to $20,000+  in certain areas depending on which clinic and which area of the country. If the cost is suspiciously low then I would take extra time vetting the clinic to make sure that the physician is actually doing the procedure. Best of luck to you!

[Gatsby]

15 minutes ago, Hairgrowpro said:

I am a hair transplant surgeon and specialize in FUE with the Artas robotic system and the Neograft in the US.

The artas robot uses larger punch sizes of at least 1mm plus and really has no place in the 'art' of hair transplantation. No elite surgeon would use this devise today. Dr Wong (and others) who bought one now use it as a coffee stand.

Edited August 30, 2022 by Gatsby

[Hairgrowpro]

42 minutes ago, Gatsby said:

The artas robot uses larger punch sizes of at least 1mm plus and really has no place in the 'art' of hair transplantation. No elite surgeon would use this devise today. Dr Wong (and others) who bought one now use it as a coffee stand.

Hi Gatsby, you are certainly entitled to your opinion and fortunately my results (and my patients) speak for themselves. It's not my job to convince you otherwise about your predetermined conclusion regarding  equipment you have likely never operated with yourself. The world and particularly the field of medicine is very rarely black and white or all good or all bad. These are simply tools and can only be effective when used in the right context (hair type, scalp conditions, individual anatomy, etc.). The Artas admittedly isn't perfect and it's not uncommon that I will start with the Artas and transition to a manual approach, particularly if I need to have more flexibility selecting follicles outside of areas that a grid would be difficult to place. I have been able to acquire  very good quality grafts with the Artas when the technology is applied in the appropriate situation with many elated patients. In full transparency I don't use it for site making or implanting because clearly it seems to be inferior in that department. The amount of tissue removed from a 1mm punch is a fraction of the tissue removed from an FUT but yet all the "artist" surgeons you might be alluding to would probably agree that there can be utility of the procedure in the appropriate context. I have not had a substantial difference in recovery/healing/aesthetic result from any Artas patient donor regions compared to manual methods when the technology is used in a conscientious way which tells me your opinion is based more on theoretical opinion and hearsay than from firsthand experience. 

[Gatsby]

Of course I'm not a surgeon. My opinion (which is all it is) is based on interviews on doctors that I have sited. As a 'learning tool' the artas robot has a role for a new surgeon to be able to perform hair transplants but often at the expense of the patient's results. It's almost like a one size fits all. I'm not aware of an artas robot that has the dexterity of an elite surgeon's hand or punch. Using 1mm or 1.25mm punches only causes more scarring than perhaps is necessary and if it was a great tool then everyone would be using this. You are only 5 posts in on this forum @Hairgrowpro. I will always advocate for the education and protection of patients to receive the best state of the art surgery from my 'opinions.' This is not just my opinion but also should be the goal of all surgeons who have been practicing the art of hair transplantation of two decades or more. And I can find the interview with Melvin and Dr Wong when Dr Wong stated that the aratas is now a coffee stand.

Edited August 30, 2022 by Gatsby

[Buck Naked]

23 hours ago, yetanotherONE said:

def thinking FUE. Would prefer to be in the US, Canada, or Mexico (or Latin America) so I can stay up with my work schedule. Will check out Dr. Charles. What do you think 2500 would run with him? 

Appreciate it. budget would be up to 15k, would prefer around 12k. Would prefer to stay in North America or South America to keep up with work schedule while I spend a few days recuperating post HT 

It's really not, tbh. Maybe the pictures aren't coming across, but I'm most likely an NW2 bordering on NW3. I can no longer comb it back or up.

 

Thanks everyone for the replies, really appreciate it. 

I'm not sure what Dr. Charles charges. I had my surgery with him about 10 years ago. I think your budget of $15,000 would be enough. Please let us know what he charges.

[Vann]

Truthfully, I would think FUE given your age. But you could go extremely dense with FUT and potentially go back for an additional operation if needed. However, I don’t really think you need much done so a one time go would be your “best” bet.

The only practices I would consider in NA are konior and H&W but they’re extremely expensive. However they do a lot more with a lot less. So imagine them densely packing grafts as other surgeons do.

EU: Bisanga has been really good lately. 
De fretas and pinto are good as well but have a long wait list with no consultations (I believe it’s out for a year)

there is also Eugenix in India that has good hairline and temple work but lately it seems like it’s more on the higher end packages that seem like it’s more on hit.
 

you have a good amount of places to go to with your budget.  

Edited August 30, 2022 by Vann

[yetanotherONE]

thank you, I appreciate it. Don't want the scarring so won't do FUT. Already talking to Hasson and Wong, will reach out to Konior.