where to start, hair transplants london

[johnuk]

Hi,

I'm 40, and over last couple months I've been losing hair on my crown. My father has same, so its inherited. I would like to try a transplant, from a surgeon in London. I did a brief internet search and thre now seems to be lots of places offering this, but where should I start in figuring out the quality of these clinics? My worry is gong to some cowboy place and ending up looking worse through some botched operation! IS there a recommended or reliable site that does reviews? What questions should I ask when I meet with the surgeon? What should I look out for? Are there any stnadards organisations, etc? So many questisons .....

[arfy]

If you want a hair transplant to address hair loss in the crown, you are not a good candidate for a hair transplant. There is a limited supply of donor hair, not enough to cover an entire head. The crown area requires a lot of grafts (because of the circular 'whorl' pattern) and you could use up most of your donor hair just on the crown. This would leave you unable to address future hair loss in other areas which are considered more important (the hairline and frontal area). If you're losing hair in your crown, it's an indicator of future hair loss in the front as well.

You can certainly find clinics who will operate on you, if you are able to pay, rather than educate you about the limitations and risks. But you're not a good candidate for a procedure. Instead, you might consider using Finasteride or Dutasteride to slow or halt the progression.

[JoeTillman]

Hi,

I'm 40, and over last couple months I've been losing hair on my crown. My father has same, so its inherited. I would like to try a transplant, from a surgeon in London. I did a brief internet search and thre now seems to be lots of places offering this, but where should I start in figuring out the quality of these clinics? My worry is gong to some cowboy place and ending up looking worse through some botched operation! IS there a recommended or reliable site that does reviews? What questions should I ask when I meet with the surgeon? What should I look out for? Are there any stnadards organisations, etc? So many questisons .....

I agree with Arfy but for different reasons.

You stated:

1. You are 40 years old.

2. You are noticing crown loss over the "last couple months".

As a 40 year old your surgical prospects are much better because you are not a 20 year old kid that has bad genetics with a future doomed to a NW7 pattern of loss. Statistically the chances of you progressing very far is about as low as can be imagined.

But point #2 is what points to a big "no" for surgery. You just started noticing it so at worst it may just look slightly flatter than what you are used to due to the decreased number of hairs and visible scalp probably isn't an issue at this time. If it is, then it means you have severe loss in just a couple months (per your post) and this would indicate something more serious than typical male patterned hair loss and would justify a quick trip to your local dermatologist. But assuming it is just a slight different then you should forget any surgical option and look at the medical options that are available, such as Regaine or Propecia. There is another product called "Keraten Retard" that some clinics offer that may be an option as well.

If you can upload some photos for us all then you can get some more informed opinions about what your options are.

[WHTC Clinic]

JohnUK,

At 40, you have a legitimate concern for desiring better density in the crown. Ask to have your hair density checked on top and back, degree of miniaturization, and a medical history check to confirm your cause of the hair loss.

Get more than one opinion of a clinic or doctor that exclusively does hair restoration surgery and is reputable. You may want to look in areas other than the U.K. Ask to have their recommendations for medical therapy, Platelet rich plasma (PRP), and additional hair replacement options like concealers (e.g. Dermatch).


Thanks for sharing.

[johnuk]

Thanks for replies & help. I will try to upload photos at some point, especially if I opt for treatment.

I strongly suspect my baldness will be NW5 or NW7, which matches what my father had. I've had a frontal recession for a long while (since early 20's) but it has never bothered me; although frontal has maybe got a little worse over last several months . But its only the empty spot at the crown which troubles me , its very noticeable, due to the length of my hair (normally have it 2 to 4 inches long). I thought about starting Propecia about 5 months ago, but I'm worried about the side affects (ie, loss of libido & permanent loss of fertility).

Suppose I need to get some opinions from doctors. Now I will ask them specifically about feasibility of crown restoration.