Advice required

[scott127]

Dear All,

I wonder if some of you would be kind enough to spare me a moment. I've read many of your posts and wish to ask some advice. I'm a 34 year old male living in the UK and have noticed some thinning of my hair in the crown area and receding at the front.

As a result I decided to take the plunge and see a specialist and came across Court House Clinics who had a clinic near me and wondered a) if you'd heard of them and b) if so, have you heard good things? I saw a consultant who advised me on a potential transplant. He also informed me about Finisteride and Minoxidil which I have started taking but understand this won't affect the front receding - hence my transplant investigation.

However having researched more, the one piece of advice that seems absolutely common is to 'get a good surgeon' and I literally don't know where to start. I have read many 'don't do it posts' and am just looking for some informed impartial guidence.

Hugely grateful in advance for any advice received.

Very many thanks.

[hairlessScotsman]

Hi mate,

since you say you've had many of these posts before, I'll keep it brief. Transplants look like transplants. The fact that they cost a ridiculous amount of money is irrelevant. They simply don't look like a full head of naturally growing hair. You can see the plugs, which are just as much a target for social ridicule as a receding hairline. So I would stay away from transplants personally as I want my old hair back exactly the way it was, but its obviously up to you.

The only other thing that I can suggest is that there is a new company in the UK trying to make waves that I've been keeping track of for quite some time now:
http://www.trx2.com/

Their product is coming out in January, but you they are taking pre-orders. I was disappointed to discover that the product is only targeted at Norwood 1-4. I am about a 6 However, since it seems your hairloss is relatively recent, you're probably in the target category. I'd like to state right now for the record that I am in no way affiliated with this company and have not tried this product out for myself, so I can not vouch for it's effectiveness. I just thought that I would mention it since it's coming from an alternative angle to the usual Minoxidil/Propecia approach that I used to use and got nowhere.

Just something else to consider. Good luck man.

[CIT_Girl]

You may need to travel in order to find the best surgeon for you, though Dr. Farjo is certainly one of the best and has clinics in Manchester and London. You can find a complete listing of the IAHRS-recommended surgeons here: http://www.iahrs.org/member/, which is certainly a good place to start.

I would suggest that you decide what type of procedure you are looking to have (FUE vs FUT) and then seek out the physicians who have the most experience and best results using that method. Spend a lot of time looking at individual physicians' results photos and videos- make sure the images are high-resolution and large enough make out details clearly, such as the hairline design.

Once you are able to narrow down your search to a few surgeons, submit your photos and information to their clinics for an online consultation (if you're unable to travel for an in-person consult). The physicians will then be able to review the information and photos you provide and make a determination as to whether they feel you are a good candidate for a procedure and, if so, give a recommendation as to how many grafts your expectations would require and whether this is reasonable. You also want to select a physician who will work with you on a long-term plan, as hair loss is a life-long process and everyone's donor supply is finite. If a certain clinic seems very pushy, or does not discuss long-term implications with you, look elsewhere.