FUE vs Strip

[topcat]

Strip only clinics that claim FUE does not have a comparable survivability rate or higher when compared to strip are being completely disingenious. Yes FUE in the wrong hands does result in low yield and that is why so few are able to offer it but it doesn’t mean they haven’t tried. Maybe those clinics that are consistently getting low yields with FUE should give up offering the procedure but unfortunately that is not how this industry works as all the strip hacks have shown us, so prospective patients have to weed through the sh*t FUE doctors.

The fact is FUE has nothing on the sheer numbers of completely crap results out there from strip with the hideous scarring, nerve damage, and often poor growth. The amount of damage that strip is responsible for pales in comparison when held up against the FUE procedure.

It’s funny how some of same strip clinics that will tell you how inferior the FUE procedure is are the same ones that spoke so highly of the potential of the ARTAS system recently. When will truth and honesty come to this industry. Let’s be real, someone either works in the industry or they are a patient advocate rarely can they be both.

Strip has it’s place as long as the patient is fully informed but FUE with very small punches and small sessions is more often than not the best approach for most.

Speak to the hundreds of patients out there that have experienced both strip and FUE and you might get a dose of reality.

[Tracy C]

It is about chosing your surgeon wisely. There are probably just as many hacks doing FUE as there are doing strips. The key is to fond a doctor who is not a hack. A gifted surgeon can do wonders either way. I had two strip procedures performed by a very gifted IAHRS surgeon. You are very hard pressed to find the scar. My stylist sees me every six weeks and she can't see my scar even though she knows exactly where it is. I haven't experienced any of those other problems either.

[topcat]

Tracy C I’m sure your result is great. The point of the post is not about choosing a surgeon. As you wrote there are hacks performing both procedures. The point of the post is that it is very hard to find much honesty in this industry. Too many clinics do what is best for the clinic and not what is best for the patient. The fact that clinics will rave about hopes of a robot but go silent about the skilled doctors using very small fue punches is very telling.

BTW who pays for the repair of patients who have had plucking and Acell or do they bear that cost alone and yes I have heard their story firsthand.

Understand something Tracy millions of dollars are being spent so that fue can be offered by more clinics. That money is being spent for a reason and it certainly is not being spent to advance strip. I'm just stating the obvious.

[Tracy C]

Topcat,

Your thread makes it sound as though any doctor who performs strip procedures is a hack. This is absolutely not true. I tried to offer some balance for the readers. You don't want to allow that.

There is a high degree of dishonesty in the hair restoration market. That is why the IAHRS and American Hair Loss Association were created.

[topcat]

The post specifically states that strip has its place. It also states that it is strip only clinics that regularly state fue gets low yield. It does not state that every clinic that offers strip is a hack clinic. I'm not sure how you get that from reading the post.

FUE in the wrong hands does give low yield and fortunately many strip clinics that have tried to offer it and failed have given it up but to point out the clinics that still offer fue and get crap results as the face of fue is disingenuous.

The posting is not anti strip. It is simply pointing out the fact that strip only clinics feel very comfortable stating something that is completely untrue and that is what is wrong with this industry.

[topcat]

Tracy the main point of the post is for prospective patients to understand that the majority that work in this industry meaning anyone who receives compensation in anyway be it through direct pay, advertising fees, free work, etc do and say what is best for them and not necessarily the patient.

Rarely do we hear about skilled doctors using very small fue punches and only performing small sessions with very high yield and some of the most natural looking results. The reason being is that it represents a miniscule percentage of the industry. It is long tedious work and the profit potential pales in comparison to strip both for the clinic and for those in the business of marketing, promotion and list making.

But yet we will hear about unproven techniques like hair plucking and Acell which already has resulted in new repair patients. This is a very dishonest business much like what we see happening elsewhere in the world.

This is not an anti strip post it’s a post to help inform others. Gather as much information as possible before committing to surgery and make sure it comes from varied sources. Personally from my own experience I do not care for paid to be on lists. The free market works fine for many industries with the cream often rising to the top. But it requires the free flow of information and honesty from those that work in the industry.

[RichardDawkins]

Strip is outdated because strip is like a tombstone ...... PERMANENT

While with FUE you have much more variables which can lead to solutions rather then a to b transplantation. End of story

[HelpROGER]

I’ve told you my story and I agree with you about the need for people to do their research and gather as much information as possible before having surgery. This is what saved my ass and I will always be indebted to Spencer Kobren and this forum for providing me with this information and a “list” of qualified doctors to speak to. I was turned away by the IAHRS doctors I had consultations with, which is why I trust this process so much. MHR just wanted my money! I think if you knew about the Bald Truth, not sure if it was around yet, when you had your first surgery you would be much better off right now like I am. It’s the free market that allows you to post your opinions on these forums and the reason I was able to find the information that literally saved my life.

[topcat]

Roger I agree with you ethical clinics will not only turn away people who are not good candidates but they will also recommend fue to many candidates who would be better served by that procedure regardless of if they offer it or not. Because that is putting the patient first. They certainly would not come on to the internet and start telling people about the poor yield of fue when that applies to only the hacks and not to the handful of highly skilled and competent fue surgeons. They used that argument back in 2004 and it did work for a short time. But you see they have to stand by this statement otherwise what would be the reason not to send a patient to a skilled fue clinic when warranted. This is all a money game but as long as one is aware of it they can make a better decision.

Self serving is what makes this industry so dishonest. FUE is a no brainer. You can have a small session to test the waters without the procedure destroying your whole life like we see with many of these large procedures that don’t work out. If you decide you would no longer like to continue down the HT road you can go back to the way you were with very little evidence of anything ever being done. A true patient advocate would always suggest this option first before a strip because it puts the patient’s welfare first. So when exactly will more patient advocates start suggesting it.

A strip can always be chosen later and this benefits the patient.

I post for one reason to try and help others by letting them know what I see. I would like nothing more than to see more honesty in this industry. There is absolutely no reason we have to continually see poor outcomes or patients who feel like they didn’t get what they were expecting. Those that work in this industry can still make money but it doesn’t have to be at the expense of destroying another person’s life. I hope you all become billionaires just do it honestly and give prospective patients all of the infomation and not what just benefits you.

[RichardDawkins]

If you wanna see more ethics then call Spencer and make it a subject of one of te next talks

[HelpROGER]

It is common knowledge that it was Spencer Kobren who introduced FUE surgery to North America and hair transplant surgeons in Europe. I heard Dr. Bauman say that, Dr. Feller and Dr. Cole once too. So if it were not for Spencer Kobren you would not have had your repair FUE and would not be talking about it on this forum, which by the way is supplied to us by a patient advocate. I understand all of your points, but I think you fail to see the big picture, which is if it were not for one patient advocate none of us would be communicating like this and you would have never had FUE surgery. You are an expert only about your own experiences, I think your opinion is very biased and a little uniformed.

[topcat]

Roger I have been on the forums since the late 90’s. I have had 4mm punch grafts, mini, micro’s, hair lift scalp reduction and fue I speak from my own experience. As far as this forum is concerned I think it is well run but it was not even around back then and if it was it’s news to me.

I learned about fue a very long time ago as Dr. Woods was the only doctor performing it at that time and that was back in 2001 as the patient Timetested posted various threads on other forums. I don’t know where you get your information but I am always open to learning and admitting when I am mistaken. As far as anyone bringing the procedure to the forefront that would be Dr. Woods.

Roger please tell me about your own experience and history so I can understand where you are coming from along with how credible you are.

Either way the point of the original posting it that fue does achieve exceptionally high yield when in skilled hands, for strip only clinics to say otherwise is complete disinformation.

[RichardDawkins]

So you say you admit mistakes? I am just curious because to me it seems you dont.

You repeat the same thing over and over again

"Industry is devilish"
"I am a Veteran"
"All i wanna do is inform"

Well this is of course nobel but its just the same thing every time again and also you are absolutely ignoring and sometimes bashing Gho for no apparant reasons. You bash him and you admit that you never looked that much into it.

So this wont make you a real good helper nor does ot make you a Veteran.

If you really wanna help people, then t is your obligation to look into HST and learn about it, because otherwise it seems like a FUE advertisement for Bisanga Studios rather then education.

Also you pointed out Dr Woods, funny thing in the beginning a lot of people mocked Woods and said that FUE will never work.

And you do the same thing in regards of Gho, this is hippocritical

[topcat]

RD I asked you politely to start your own threads on HM. You want to compare something with zero proof to something that at the time fue was actually showing patients. I also stated that maybe I was mistaken about the history of this industry as a way for anyone with other information to take the time and post it.

RD when you actually have your HM procedure and have some actual experience than maybe you will have something worth reading. Maybe when you are around long enough and understand the industry maybe you will be worth listening to.

As far as any personal decisions I have made they were all based on information I was given by doctors in the industry. I now have a better understanding of who all the players are and where they fit into the big picture. I look forward to hearing about your experience when you actually have something to talk about. In the mean time here is a short history lesson for those that think they know who and what this industry is about. This posting is from August/2001 by Dr. Woods himself.



8/2001

Reply from Drs Woods and Campbell

From our own experience and from the word of clients and from Farrel and Spencer it was clear that the hair transplantation industry did not want the changes we were proposing. I am on record for saying to journalists as early as 1996 and to Spencer Kobran 2 years ago that we wanted to make strip excision surgery obsolete and that the individual removal of follicles via 1mm microsurgical incisions would replace it.


Doctors in this industry have tried to misrepresent and discredit us. We decided not to reveal our technique to doctors who were hostile to our commitment to changes in this industry because we felt that they would further misrepresent our cause.
We believed that doctors would say, "yes we have seen and are familiar with the Woods technique and it is inferior"
We have been accused of being paranoid but we have been right, as doctors who have never seen our technique have made similar comments.


As I made clear to Farrel and Spencer our intention was to create a frenzy of interest. To advertise in American magazines and create a "pressure cooker" effect......the public would be convinced by living indisputable truth and evidence, that our approach was the end point in hair transplantation surgery.


It is our belief that this would not come from the doctors in this industry. However once the public became aware of the truth they would force a change.
We thank all our clients who have told of their experiences and spread the word. We thank all the posters who have not actually seen us but have the ability to do thorough research. Your intelligent clear thinking has maintained a high level of debate and prevented the hijacking of our achievement, future hopes and principles.


We hope to establish an international clinic and training facility based on the following unshakeable foundation principles-


1. That everyone is a candidate for the WoodsTechnique and strip excision is definitely not done
No Biopsy or test procedure is required.
2. The entire procedure is to be preformed only by a doctor fully trained and accredited in our technique by Doctors Woods and Campbell
No one else touches the patient’s head
Absolutely no assistants
3. The entire procedure adheres strictly to microsurgical cosmetic principles, which defines our technique.
4. There will be no routine legal disclaimer or waiver.
5. The doctor must be responsible for the removal of and the placement of each and every follicle,ensuring a virtually perfect result each and every time.


To my knowledge Dr Campbell and myself are the only cosmetic surgeons in the world who operate without routine legal disclaimers and waivers
For all the people out there who want to make a difference. We ask that you be vocal and spread the word and be part of this fight.


We want everyone to know that it was through the journalistic integrity and courage of Farrel Manne that the truth is told. Farrel had the 'sheer guts' to present us on his website despite opposition.


As far as Spencer is concerned. Approximately 2 years ago we contacted Spencer Kobran and told him of our achievement - He appeared to be fascinated and told us that we would be on his radio programme. With great excitement our entire staff was informed and we anxiously waited to tell of our achievement and our vision for change to the American public. However within a week Spencer called me to state that it would be impossible to interview me on his radio programme . We have never since been asked to be on Spencer’s radio programme. We gladly would have done so at any time.


We offered to fly to New York to show him hundreds of case studies never before seen by anyone else - I even offered for him to come to Australia to observe a procedure. Spencer told us not to come to New York and he declined our invitation to come to Australia. Our American patients have actively pursued trying to go on to Spencers show. It was due to Spencer himself that he refused to have our patients on his show.
Three days ago was the FIRST TIME we were ever asked to write a statement for Spencers website.


We are now very pleased to provide the above statement to Spencer .
Dr Ray Woods and Dr Angela Campbell

[topcat]

As far as me promoting I promote FUE as the best way for anyone even thinking about a procedure to get started. It is safe with high yield and in the majority of cases minimal risk. But there are only a handful of doctors that can perform it with skill regardless of what many profess. Find out who that handful is and make your own choice. If someone chooses a different road than there is nothing wrong with that but they shoud at least be given honest information.

I would further add that this post is about those in the industry not being completely honest. You see that is the way the majority in the industry like to operate. They like to make statements like fue gives low yield. What they fail to mention is that it is too difficult a procedure for most to learn and the profit potential is vastly lower. There are only a few that have mastered the technique. You see technically what they are saying is true but they conveniently leave out important information. Just like many of the consultations going on today they leave out important information which is critical in making an informed decision.