Jason Gardiner's Hair Transplant with Dr. Craig Ziering

[Spex]

Yes Gill, I was not aware of his association with MHR. He is now the director of The Hospital Group in the UK, which i was not aware of either...

Which if anyone runs a search against that particular place within the forum community they will see the patient feedback. Its the Uk's equivalent to MHR and Bosley IN MY OPINION. It is what it is.

Shame also we have not had any further updates on pictures from Dr Z as assured we would do.

[UK_]

Yes Gill, I was not aware of his association with MHR. He is now the director of The Hospital Group in the UK, which i was not aware of either...

Which if anyone runs a search against that particular place within the forum community they will see the patient feedback. Its the Uk's equivalent to MHR and Bosley IN MY OPINION. It is what it is.

Shame also we have not had any further updates on pictures from Dr Z as assured we would do.

The hospital group do all sorts of plastic surgery procedures, if I was to go for a HT i'd go to a specialist, Dr Ziering would be on my list of surgeons for sure, the thing is, surgery and HT's are highly complicated and the outcomes can vary. Nobody, not you, me or anyone on this planet can claim to have a 99% success rate with transplants, and people always focus on the 'bad HT's' whilst neglecting the hundreds of positive cases produced.

[UK_]

****! Histogen was the first thing that came to my mind as well. Now I don't know what to think. This is a shitty industry. Hopefully Doc Z is not playing us and I'm sure Spencer would probably do something about this also. Hopefully he has been honest with his information and if he is not, KARMA is a bitch.

Why? They havn't even started trials yet, the trials start at the end of May so the earliest update will be toward the beginning of september.

And compared to the likes of Follica, Histogen have been a God-send in terms of how much information they share with the hair loss community.

[UK_]

Does anyone have any knowledge on the effect of damage to the scalp and the activation of WNT proteins in the healing process and how this may lead to the prevention/regeneration of hair follicles?

Does this work?

[Don'tDoIt]

[/QUOTE]

Don'tDoIt,

Thank you for your honesty and bravery in coming forth. Believe me, you're not alone. You must have been one of Ziering's Chicago patients?
[/QUOTE]

In fact, yes, I was one of Dr. Ziering's patients in Chicago. Ziering was with MHR at that time. Boy, you sure know the history of this industry!

[CVAZBAR]

Why? They havn't even started trials yet, the trials start at the end of May so the earliest update will be toward the beginning of september.

And compared to the likes of Follica, Histogen have been a God-send in terms of how much information they share with the hair loss community.

No doubt but when you hear shit like this, it's hard not to think the other way. I mean i feel like you when it comes to Histogen but all this is very strange. Doc Z seems very sincere but all this doesn;t make him look good at all. Who can you trust?

[SpencerKobren]

For The Record...

The honest and free exchange of patient experiences and ideas are the cornerstone of any legitimate online community. As we all know, hair loss is an overwhelmingly emotional issue, and those who participate in various discussions on our forum can, at times, become extremely passionate about their beliefs, whether these beliefs are based on fact or hearsay.

As someone who has a unique perspective of the true history and the behind the scenes complexity of this field, I think it’s important that I state the facts when it comes to some of the misleading statements and disappointing innuendo that are being presented in this thread.

What readers need to understand is that the vast majority of today’s most revered hair transplant surgeons would have never made the grade, so to speak, back in the late 1990s. In fact, only a handful of today’s online heroes were even considered for inclusion in the first edition of my book, The Bald Truth.

When I was writing the manuscript for The Bald Truth back in 1996-97, the general complexion of the hair transplant field was pretty grim. Most honest experts admit that the late 1990s, was for the most part, still the dark ages of the industry.

In total, only eleven hair transplant surgeons (out of about one thousand practicing in North America at the time) were accepted for inclusion in the first published recommended list of hair transplant physicians, and for the record, there was no fee required for the accepted listing.

While the field as a whole despised the notion that a very public and clear distinction was being made between the skilled and ethical surgeons and all the rest, the more forward thinking doctors viewed this as an opportunity to evolve the industry standard and to meet, and to even exceed the bar set by the true leaders of the profession.

As the first person to publically expose the hair transplant industry, and to go head-to-head (at my own professional and financial risk) with the large chain clinics, I have gained intimate knowledge of whose who, when it comes to the good, the bad and the ugly in this field.

It’s certainly no secret that Dr. Ziering cut his teeth in the old school world of the large chain hair transplant clinic, but very few in the know can deny that Dr. Craig Ziering has proven himself to be one of the good guys in this field.

Dr. Ziering has been in private practice for about a decade and currently employs state of the art follicular unit hair transplantation. He has a full-time staff of well trained technicians, and was personally recommended for inclusion into the IAHRS by several accepted members, who include two of the most respected and revered hair transplant surgeons in the world, Dr. Ron Shapiro, and Dr. Paul J. McAndrews.

I think our user Blowmeup made a great point when he referenced Dr. Bill Rassman’s association with Bosley Medical. While Dr. Rassman wasn’t their medical director as Blowmeup mistakenly posted, he was in fact the President of Bosley from 1988-1990, and according to Dr. Rassman’s CV, his role was to "Structure controlled growth for multi-million dollar surgical business," it also states he was "Responsible for national marketing and advertising."

When I was conducting my initial interviews for my book, many of Dr. Rassman's peers expressed their reservations about him based on his past affiliation with Bosley, and what some considered his over zealous promotion of a “flawed surgical technique,” which interestingly enough is today’ s gold standard - follicular unit transplantation.

Could you imagine how irresponsible it would have been if I chose not to write about Bill Rasman and his relentless pursuit to evolve this field based on the word of a few jealous, ill-informed, old guard surgeons? The result would have been profound and ultimately it is likely that the industry would have never developed into what it is today.

The work of Bobby Limmer, Bill Rassman and Bob Bernstein is what spawned my drive to spread the word to the masses that there was a significantly better surgical option available than what the large chain clinics, and most independents were offering at the time. The publication of The Bald Truth has been referenced as the single most important catalyst for positive change in this field, and it is my firm belief that I could not have effected such powerful change if I chose to ignore Bill Rassman’s role as a pioneer based on his past relationship with Bosley Medical and the grumblings of his many detractors.

The bottom line is that I have thoroughly researched Dr. Ziering and the quality of his current work. He has countless happy patients who believe that their lives have been greatly improved by Dr. Ziering and his staff. Those in the field who endorse his recommendation are some of the most respected, skilled and ethical surgeons that this profession has to offer.

It’s also important to note that even the most respected online heroes of this field have unhappy patients. Cosmetic surgery is not an exact science and patients have to be aware of the entire scope and possible pitfalls associated with any procedure they elect to have in an effort to improve their appearance.

I hope this clears up some of the inaccuracies, hearsay and disappointing negative innuendo that were presented in some of the postings in this thread.

[Jotronic]

Damn. This thread is done. Nuff said.

[blowmeup]

I knew Rassman worked for Bosley, but I had no idea he was the President of the company. I guess Gillenator doesn’t know everything huh? I give you so much credit Spencer for everything that you have accomplished and for the classy way you always handle yourself.

[Spex]

Indeed Joe. Thanks Spencer for your detailed reply and clarification. Dr Ziering is clearly performing solid work and i hope more of it filters onto the forums from present and new patients.

Regards
Spex

[PayDay]

I knew Rassman worked for Bosley, but I had no idea he was the President of the company. I guess Gillenator doesn’t know everything huh? I give you so much credit Spencer for everything that you have accomplished and for the classy way you always handle yourself.

Great post Spencer. blowmeup is right, you're are all class! You read so much bullshit on all of the forums from people who make it out that they are experts, it’s always good to hear the real history and behind the scenes stuff. I bet 99.9% of the people out there had no idea that Rassman was the president of Bosley. that was a real shocker! Much respect my friend, you know I’ve been following you for years and you always just tell it like it is. By the way, I tried to tune into your radio show on Sunday and I couldn’t get it, will you be on this week? You know it my weekly therapy

[gillenator]

Don'tDoIt,

Thank you for your honesty and bravery in coming forth. Believe me, you're not alone. You must have been one of Ziering's Chicago patients?
[/QUOTE]

In fact, yes, I was one of Dr. Ziering's patients in Chicago. Ziering was with MHR at that time. Boy, you sure know the history of this industry![/QUOTE]

Don'tDoIt,

Listen my friend. I pretty much know the type of work that was done back then by all types of HT doctors so I have a good idea of what you went through. MHR was in their infancy back then.

I truly hope you have had some success in getting some corrective revisions to your situation because the field has come such a long way. There are now far more options that did not exist back then. And at present day, there are some very honest, hard working, passionate physicians who are producing some amazing transformations. I see so many examples across the board and the field continues to improve. That's from a technological point of view, along with skills and instrumentation (reduced trauma).

Human character however has not changed. We all know that. And it's so important to distinguish the two (skill and ethics) because both can and will affect the outcome of the care received. The doctor can be extremely skilled and confident yet I still hear patients being taken advantage of financially or patients who OBVIOUSLY are not ideal candidates for surgical hair restoration yet are being "sold" and pressured into surgery. Or guys who are not responding favorably to hairloss meds, are continuing to lose hair and have advanced classes of hairloss in their family histories, are way too young, etc still being sold, "because they can afford it".

That's the fatal mistake they make from the beginning is telling the clinic that they have enough money to spend. I still see this happen WAY too much. Our emotions must be dealt with BEFORE we go to the consultation. Resolve must be based on reality, prudent consideration within one's limitations, and planning over one's lifetime, not how much one has in the bank.

I am sure you are well aware of all of this now that we have fast-forwarded to 2011. I wish you the best in the future and thank goodness we have the internet now to do our research! Take care....

[gillenator]

I knew Rassman worked for Bosley, but I had no idea he was the President of the company. I guess Gillenator doesn’t know everything huh? I give you so much credit Spencer for everything that you have accomplished and for the classy way you always handle yourself.

Dude,

Yes, you're absolutely correct, I do not know everything and I'll be the first to state it!

[zo1279]

Spex...you hit it right on the head (no pun intended lol). He DEF has a concealer...as there is NO WAY to cover an entire balding head with 3,500 FU's. However, with that said, even with the concealers, he looks amazing...what a dramatic difference hair makes. I also think though that he looked really good as a bald man...either you have the "bald look" or you don't...and he def had that good bald look...I would look like i have 2 weeks left to live if i had to shave my head! If I was him i would have just left it...but again, you can see the power of wanting hair especially in this situation in that he was fine without it and I'm certain he did well with the ladies...but he still wanted hair. Good for him as he would have been a winner either way!

[clee984]

I'm certain he did well with the ladies...

I'm fairly certain that he didn't.