Best Surgeon for "soft" hairline?

[Rick055]

OK.

 

I know everyone has their opinions about surgeons who excel at hairlines and those who excel at crowns.

 

That said, it appears to me that some surgeons most consistenly produce a hairline that is either "hard" or "soft".

 

Obviously there will be exceptions patient by patient, but would anyone proffer there is a "subset" of hairline surgeons who deliver the best soft hairlines.

 

I would contrast such to (what I perceive) as a typical "Armani" hairline.

 

I really prefer the maturing hairline look.

[hairthere]

a mature hairline and a soft hairline refer to two different things. a mature hairline has to do with the placement of the grafts. the appearnce of "softness" is achieved using single FUs, however your donor hair characteristics will also play a huge role. a mature hairline using single FUs can be achieched by any top surgeon. you simply need to spend time researching and when you find the right doc spend time going over your hairline design. best of luck!

[the B spot]

There is only the "right" hairline for each individual patient---Great docs know this and plan/give results accordingly.

 

Some docs are known for producing a thick wall of hair.

 

Some docs do the "power fade" where they gradually increase density as you go back---this is usually referred to as the mature hairline.

 

Then there are a select few that know how to build a hairline that fits the patients needs and balances patients wants into a hairline that is undetectable and patient perfect.

 

Make sure you choose a doc can adapt to each individual patient and his or her features.

 

Take Care,

Jason

[TheEmperor]

Sorry, I very much disagree with the statement that there is only one "right" hairline for a patient. And even the great docs miss the mark sometimes.

 

There are so many variations and possibilities. I would say to pick a doc whose hairlines you like. You will notice stylistic trends in patients from one doc. The same patient goes to two differnt top docs and will get two differnt hairlines. Once the hairline is on your head and grown out you will realize it was man made and imperfect.

 

That said, I have heard from a reliable source and believe that the 4000+ megasessions provide the softest hairlines because the doc has the greatest number of 1's to use in reconstructing the front.

 

The ability to "see into" the hairline without detecting any plugginess is more important IMO than the wall of hair approach that you see some docs planting.

 

 

 

Originally posted by the B spot:

There is only the "right" hairline for each individual patient---Great docs know this and plan/give results accordingly.

[Stimpson]

I agree with Emperor about the "wall of hair" approach. As an HT patient, I naturally have a tendency to try to spot others, and the "wall of hair" patients are ones that I sometimes think I see. What I mean is that I see people with a thick band of hair for a hairline, and extensive balding behind. I don't think any quality docs do this. Indeed I did now a person who naturally balded in this pattern, but it seems to be quite rare. It's kind of like what I imagine a lot of Armani patients will tragically end up with. It is just a bit odd, and it catches your eye, and that is what we all want to avoid. It may be great from the front, but the problem is that in life people are sometimes sitting behind you, standing while you are sitting in a chair, etc. The people with the odd looking patterns like this are sometimes the last to know, because they only see themselves in the mirror from the front or sides (which looks fine). Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the "frame the face" concept, and I am NOT talking about the crown issue at all (you DO see people with full heads of hair and a balding crown). I am just saying the HT has to maintain a natural appearance even behind the frame, and a thick band with baldness behind it does not look very natural. I also fully understand the question you are asking about the "soft" hairline, and I would personally say H&W do really good (see weblog by Jotronic, I think he has a really good "soft" hairline), and also Cooley (see weblog by Bimmerick, he has a really good mature, and very soft hairline), but really I think any of the top surgeons could do this well if you communicate what you want. - Stimpy

[TheEmperor]

Originally posted by Stimpson:

I agree with Emperor about the "wall of hair" approach. As an HT patient, I naturally have a tendency to try to spot others, and the "wall of hair" patients are ones that I sometimes think I see. What I mean is that I see people with a thick band of hair for a hairline, and extensive balding behind. I don't think any quality docs do this. Indeed I did now a person who naturally balded in this pattern, but it seems to be quite rare. It's kind of like what I imagine a lot of Armani patients will tragically end up with. It is just a bit odd, and it catches your eye, and that is what we all want to avoid. It may be great from the front, but the problem is that in life people are sometimes sitting behind you, standing while you are sitting in a chair, etc. The people with the odd looking patterns like this are sometimes the last to know, because they only see themselves in the mirror from the front or sides (which looks fine). Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the "frame the face" concept, and I am NOT talking about the crown issue at all (you DO see people with full heads of hair and a balding crown). I am just saying the HT has to maintain a natural appearance even behind the frame, and a thick band with baldness behind it does not look very natural. I also fully understand the question you are asking about the "soft" hairline, and I would personally say H&W do really good (see weblog by Jotronic, I think he has a really good "soft" hairline), and also Cooley (see weblog by Bimmerick, he has a really good mature, and very soft hairline), but really I think any of the top surgeons could do this well if you communicate what you want. - Stimpy

 

I agree with all this. You have to look beyond the hairline to the overall design to include the supporting hair. Even hair that is 100% native density, you will see "into" it quite a bit and even see scalp under certain circumstances.

 

HT docs have shown the ability to plant at very high density in the hairline, but given the overall pattern of loss, do you really want full density in the hairline? And if not, how does the hairline look from differnt angles, when the hair is moving, combed different directions, etc?

 

The answer of course is the use of ultra refined grafts, exclusively 1's in the hairline as much as possible, and proper balance with other areas of head. Everything works together.

 

Check out H&W for examples of this.

[Rick055]

My personal preference is also against the "wall of hair" approach, at least as I understand it.

 

@Stimpson: Funny you should mention those docs, those were my two favorite hairline docs. In fact I think i notice it very consistently (at least in the work portrayed here, which is not as much as H&W) from Cooley. He seems to do a real nice 3V, IMO.

 

I think the best way I can describe it is a "hairline before the hairline". It's definitely a different commodity than the dense packed hairline, of which I am not a huge fan. It's almost like there's a larger transition zone? I can't quite quantify it.

[Dr. Timothy Carman]

Originally posted by Rick055:

I think the best way I can describe it is a "hairline before the hairline". It's definitely a different commodity than the dense packed hairline, of which I am not a huge fan. It's almost like there's a larger transition zone? I can't quite quantify it.

In general, along with proper contour of graft placement which will define the "line" of the hairline, which is designed uniquely for the unique facial and hair characteristics of each patient, in most "more mature" hairlines there exists an even greater zone of transition that embraces an even greater irregular character, which I best describe as "perfectly imperfect".

Hairline before the hairline is a good way of putting it-

Hope that helps-

[Rick055]

Originally posted by Dr. Timothy Carman:

in most "more mature" hairlines there exists an even greater zone of transition that embraces an even greater irregular character, which I best describe as "perfectly imperfect".

 

Hope that helps-

 

Thanks, doc. It always helps to be better able to articulate it.

[Dr. William Lindsey]

Dr. Carman makes a good point. Everyone is an individual and having a good rapport with your doctor will get you a result that you want..for the right reasons. I see men all the time and have to convince them that although they are "buying the transplant" at age 30, they need to look normal at age 50 too, and to plan for some fronto-temporal recession in hairline design.

 

I am a "frame the face" doctor, and for most men of average stature, feel that the crown thinning is not a big problem...unless the patient "sees" that in every picture of himself and can't ignore it.

 

One final issue. God doesn't make straight lines on people. And if you don't believe in God, then straight lines simply don't occur on people. So we make a strong effort to draw a straight line hairline for the patient to approve the location, and then we irregularize it with protrusions and recessions of a few millimeters so that it looks natural.

 

One of the threads on this site discusses the pro's and con's of one of the political candidate's hair transplant results. I would suggest that it is a perfectly straight line, rather than the wall of hair in front of bald scalp, that calls attention to the previous procedure. I personally think its a good result, except for that perfectly straight hairline.

 

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA

[PLEASE GROW PLEASE]

[QOUTE} Sorry, I very much disagree with the statement that there is only one "right" hairline for a patient. And even the great docs miss the mark sometimes.

 

 

Bspot said , There is only the "right" hairline for each individual patient---Great docs know this and plan/give results accordingly.

I believe hes saying hair tranplants shouldnt be designed cookiecutter style and good docs understand this a plan and tailor the surgery for you.

 

Just because you like a doctors cookie cutter hairline doesnt mean you should go to him . Imagine an Armani hairline on a 50 year old . My hairline on you or yours on mine wouldnt fit.

If hes 50 and a nw3 then a wall of hair placed properly would look good.

I picked Dr Shapiro because he tailors your hair to fit you .

Not sure about other clinics but even using 1 hair grafts in the hairline isnt enough.

I know SMG looks for the finest 1 hair grafts to put in the first line, not just any 1 hair grafts.

[Rick055]

IMO I don't think it's necessarily a "cookie-cutter" issue.

 

I think that any cosmetic surgeon - much like any artist - probably develops a personal style which will run throughout their work.

 

Despite the period, you can always spot the respective works of Van Gogh, Matisse, etc...

 

And it's not that I think talented docs can't change gears; but I do think individual style comes into play.

[PLEASE GROW PLEASE]

Everyone of Armanis hairlines look the same and so do some other doctors.

If you can spot any doctors work imo its not top notch.

Any great doc will know when to shift gears and that should be on almost any patient.

Some I feel arent capable of this.

Anyway I was just trying to clarify what Bspot was saying .

His words got a little mixed up

[Rick055]

Originally posted by PLEASE GROW PLEASE:

Everyone of Armanis hairlines look the same and so do some other doctors.

If you can spot any doctors work imo its not top notch.

Any great doc will know when to shift gears and that should be on almost ant patient.

Some I feel arent capable of this.

Anyway I was just trying to clarify what Bspot was saying .

His words got a little mixed up

 

I understand.

 

And it's not that I could "spot" a doctor's work, but if you showed me ten people who had a transplant and I knew 5 were Armani and 5 were, say, H&W, I'd be willing to bet I'd be somewhat accurate in figuring out which were which.

[Jotronic]

At our clinic, the definition of "mature" with regards to a hairline is in the height of the hairline on the forehead. This is opposed to a "juvenile" hairline where the height would be lower and the temples less receded or, at the extreme, completely filled in.

 

In my case, my hairline is mature in height and design in that the proper temple recession is built in as well as a soft transition zone. My case would have been a disaster had Dr. Wong packed in the grafts at high density right up to the very front of the hairline.

 

What has not been mentioned is how a hairline looks from the profile of the patient. There has to be a balance achieved from the front to the back and in cases of heavy front loading and lowering of the hairline on a patient that even has only slightly noticeable thinning in the back, well, it just looks odd. Patients like this look to me like if they were balanced on the tip of a pole that they would fall forward. I've seen it before even on people that I had not met before and did not have direct knowledge of them being an HT patient. I knew right away that they had been though because of this imbalance in their profile.

[M1A1]

Joe,

 

Can you please provide more insight on how a flash affects the denisty of hairline as well as angulation. It is amazing from the pictures I have seen from some clinics on how the density changes significantly from using a flash vs not using a flash...

 

Thanks

[Dr. William Lindsey]

Joe is on the mark about flashes and he can resond. It is critical to take consistent pics. With face procedures, more than hair, lighting can make wrinkles, and bags under the eyes look worse or better, and acne scars as well.

 

Just one example is an old (90's) Bryan Adams video where his severe ice-pick acne scars weren't visible. It was because of very bright frontal lighting. In a few shots, there was a shadow as he bent over, and all the marks were there.

 

When I used to do a fair amount of lasering on the face, this was an important discussion point between the patient and me in order to inform the patient of realistic outcomes.

 

Same deal with bright light illuminating white scalp behind dark hair, and the noticable difference without the flash. The difference can be almost as profound as a topical camouflage.

 

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA

[SharpTooth]

I've read a number of places where a "mature hairline" is normal for men as we age. I have a friend who's 42. He has the same hairline since i've known him almost 20 years. So while i've read thoughts that a mature man would not want the hairline of a teen, isn't that objective? Having the hairline of a teen?

 

Just thinking what people general mean. I guess i'm just trying to understand what people mean.

 

There was another post of a pic recently in which a 40 yr old man was offered by some Doctors on here to lower his hairline. But he was happy with his higher hairline - i think if i remember he just wanted more density.

 

So when it's all said and done, and enough donor hair is available, couldn't a HT patient drag the hairline down to where he was a teen?

 

So - just curious.

 

Thanks!!

[AJKV]

Originally posted by PLEASE GROW PLEASE:

[QOUTE} Not sure about other clinics but even using 1 hair grafts in the hairline isnt enough.

I know SMG looks for the finest 1 hair grafts to put in the first line, not just any 1 hair grafts.

 

I thought that's common for every good surgeon to select the 1 hair grafts and the finest 1 hair grafts to put them into the hairline, isn't it?