Issues with finding a surgeon

[beckert]

Hello all,

I am new to this and I am quite glad there is a valuable resource out there like this. My hair has been thinning since I was 17 years old and now I am 24. I live in the Orange County area in California and I have been looking into surgeons in my area, but I have run into a few problems. I looked into surgeons recommended by the IAHRS and the Hair Transplant network and I noticed a common trend. All the surgeons I have looked up have reviews online about bad scars, unwillingness to fix mistakes, having limited skill sets/aren't updated, and being inattentiveness/rashness. I have visited one surgeon so far and he spend about 15 minutes with me during the consultation and recommended a treatment without really looking at my scalp. I have curlyish and slightly wavy hair, so the strip technique works best for me, but I like my hair fairly short and I also don't want a big scar in the back of my head......Any recommendations on how I should approach this or if they personally recommend anyone?

[35YrsAfter]

Hello all,

I am new to this and I am quite glad there is a valuable resource out there like this. My hair has been thinning since I was 17 years old and now I am 24. I live in the Orange County area in California

I'm a native Southern Californian and moved to the Atlanta area with my wife in 1993.

What is your family history of hair loss? If you have Norwood sixes or worse, sevens in your family, you could be asking for trouble. I have seen two patients in the last two days who told me they regret having had hair transplant surgery when they were in their 20s. If you must have hair restoration surgery and have your mind set on strip, go to Dr. Wong. Dr. Griffith here in Atlanta does excellent work as well.

I work at Dr. Cole's office. Dr. Cole began his hair restoration practice around 1992 doing 4mm extractions and dividing the grafts into follicular units while most doctors were placing plugs and mini grafts. A short time later he switched to strip surgery and has performed over 8,000. He began moving away from strip in 2002 and now performs FUE exclusively. I believe he has performed FUE on over 3,000 patients since 2002.

35YrsAfter also posts as CITNews and works at Dr. Cole's office
forhair.com
Cole Hair Transplant
1045 Powers Place
Alpharetta, Georgia 30009
Phone 678-566-1011
email 35YrsAfter at chuck@forhair.com
Please feel free to call or email me with any questions. Ask for Chuck

[beckert]

Thanks for the reply and info! Most of them are either sixes or sevens. My father is between a six and seven. The surgeon I visited absolutely seemed against FUE's for me because he saw me when my hair was at it's full length and he got a really good idea of its texture, but I would much rather prefer FUEs over the strip procedure. I also heard of the trichophytic closure that has minimal scarring. How common is it for people to travel to get their hair transplants? Thanks again

[35YrsAfter]

Thanks for the reply and info! Most of them are either sixes or sevens. My father is between a six and seven. The surgeon I visited absolutely seemed against FUE's for me because he saw me when my hair was at it's full length and he got a really good idea of its texture, but I would much rather prefer FUEs over the strip procedure. I also heard of the trichophytic closure that has minimal scarring. How common is it for people to travel to get their hair transplants? Thanks again

Neither strip or FUE is scar-free. When a young man could possibly go to a Norwood 7, scars should be their major concern. I recommend you wait. If you can hang tight, wait to see what develops regarding follicle regeneration.

35YrsAfter also posts as CITNews and works at Dr. Cole's office
forhair.com
Cole Hair Transplant
1045 Powers Place
Alpharetta, Georgia 30009
Phone 678-566-1011
email 35YrsAfter at chuck@forhair.com
Please feel free to call or email me with any questions. Ask for Chuck

[beckert]

I have looked into the laser comb and have been looking at the new meds that are supposed to come out. I guess I will have to keep an open eye out for these types of things...Thanks again for the feedback and your time.

[drybone]

Sounds like you are looking for 'FUE' surgery. Lots of good guys on here to help.

Dr Cole has been recommended before.

[beckert]

Thanks for your reply I am looking for FUE, but I guess it makes sense to wait if I am going to go completely bald before I get too comfortable with going under the knife. I also want to look into other other regeneration based hair therapies...It looks like alot of those are still in the works though.