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2500 FUE with Dr Ball – Maitland Clinic

Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Yes, it is very good. Maybe try a picture using the mirror.
 
bullitnut

bullitnut

4 awesome repairs with SMG
Congrats on your surgery dude you chose an excellent clinic I'm sure your result will be amazing. The work looks very clean and refined in the post op pics.

Sounds like you had a very positive experience as expected from the Maitland clinic.
 
HTP1

HTP1

member
Some certainly have, but not them all. I can feel the 'bumps' over both area where the implanted hairs have shed.
 
K

Kingsey

member
Firstly, I’ve never posted on here, but I used this forum as one of the resources over the last three years’ of research into a HTP.

So a thank you to those on here who take the time to help others navigate a quite murky industry, full of hyperbole and misleading claims.

I met and interacted with a few clinics over the past couple of years. I’m fortunate enough that price was low priority for me and I was also willing to travel anywhere. I wanted the right surgeon and team the first time. I was unwilling to make any compromise and was in no rush to jump in and have surgery.

This was my first HTP and the only other thing I have done in relation to my hair previously is take Finasteride. I am going to add Minoxidil to my routine, too.

I met David Anderson in London in late 2019. Those who know David from the hair loss community will know he’s had quite the journey with his hair. I like talking to people who have ‘skin in the game’ and know what it’s like to go through the experience themselves.

David sets the tone for the clinic. Highly knowledgeable, friendly, and patient-focused. There are lots of reviews about the Maitland Clinic where either David or Dr Ball have pushed people away from surgery, either to see what will happen on meds, because someone doesn’t need one or is unsuitable for a HTP.

That integrity is of fundamental importance to me. That sells itself and is something too few businesses appreciate.

I met Dr Ball at his clinic in Portsmouth for a consultation. He spent over two hours with me going through every aspect of potential surgery. He is wholly patient-focused. The word ‘passionate’ is overused, but Dr Ball clearly loves his job. Ask him about it and he’ll talk about it all day. If you've taken the time to learn a bit about the subject yourself, it feels like talking to an extremely knowledgeable friend.

I had my pre-op consultation the day prior to surgery. Dr Ball once more spent over two hours with me and finalising every last detail.

Due to my indecision I was still deciding whether to do FUT or FUE the day before surgery (poor on my part),but there are pros and cons to each (as you all know).

Thankfully this wasn’t an issue for Dr Ball and we talked it out over a couple of hours (he’s never in a rush when with you) and decided I decided on FUE. My head was shaved and the hair design finalised.

At 07:30 the next day I arrived for my surgery. I had blood-pressure taken, weight measured and some other basic health checks.

Dr Ball operates upon one patient per day. You are the entire focus for the day, no matter how long the procedures takes. I was at the clinic for 13 hours or so.

The clinic and theatre are immaculately prepared and clean. Everything is fully explained throughout and nothing is done to you without you understanding what is going to happen.

I started off by having the numbing injections (local anaesthetic). The vibration tool they use helps reduce the sting, but they’re no big deal. I felt nothing else throughout the rest of the day though topping up the injections and pain killers.

Dr Ball began by designing the hairline by making the incisions where the donor hair would later be placed. Only he did this.

After a break we moved onto extracting the donor grafts. This took over three hours and we were able to achieve the upper target of 2500 FU. Dr Ball extracts every graft himself.

Once removed they are collected by a technician who then hands them to three other technicians who prepare the grafts for their placement. This includes separating the grafts under microscopes into 1s, 2s and 3s etc. The Maitland team even separate 1s into different categories to achieve a natural result.

The team at the Maitland Clinic work like clockwork. Seamlessly transitioning from one phase to the next. They are consummate professionals. They are all for personable, engaging and have great chemistry together. When appropriate, they are also fun and humorous (like when having a collective debate as to which radio station to listen to!). This all adds to making a long day relaxing and pleasurable.

After the extractions, I had another short break before Dr Ball made some further recipient incisions due to the higher graft count (2500 was at the top end of what we were aiming to extract). The technicians then spent over 4 hours placing all the grafts into Dr Ball’s designs. Again, I was able to watch TV / listen to the radio whilst this process was in progress.

It was a long day but I’d challenge anyone to look at any of the team and try and guess whether it was the first or 12th hour. A reflection of their focus and expertise.

Once the grafts we placed I went through the post-care procedures with Karen and was given a bag containing everything would use in the following two weeks (neck support to sleep, ATP spray, a written plan and much more).

The surgery looks immaculate and I’ve not needed to take any pain killers even on the first day after the surgery. I am months away from seeing the full results, but am confident that any variables in the control of the clinic were completed to the highest standard.

I couldn’t be any happier with the experience. I’d suggest if you’re considering a HTP, at least meet with the team at the Maitland Clinic and have them as one of your options.

I'd make exactly the same decision again.

I have suffered baldness of the crown and front hair line. One of the big things I like about Dr Ball is he’s very much thinking of the future. He isn’t going to give you a hairline that’s going to cause issues later down the line if and when further hair minimises / is lost.

I wasn’t bothered about lowing the front much, just drawing a ‘line in the sand’ and having a defined hair line. Dr Ball wasn’t keen on any further lowering in any case due to the aforementioned thinking of the long-term – it’d have also used up more donor hair as the temples would have come into play.

I think it was a 1800 / 700 split to the crown / front, but of course the crown will have more hairs relative to the FU count as it’ll have a lot of the 3s placed into it.

I’ve got a lots of donor hair left and I’ll see where I am in a year’s time. One of the things I like about Dr Ball is he seems to do so much with less hair.

Here I am on day 4. If you want to know any more about my experience etc then ask away.

Thanks.

Would you recommend The Maitland clinic for 3000+ Fue ops?
 
HTP1

HTP1

member
Would you recommend The Maitland clinic for 3000+ Fue ops?
Sorry Kingsey, I missed this post.

From what I understand, my 2500 was the largest FUE Dr Ball has done in a day. I think is grounded in how careful and the time he takes with extractions.

I don't know if he'd be able to go to 3k in a day or whether he does multi-day surgeries.
 
HTP1

HTP1

member
Nearly at 6 months now so time for an update. I've tried to get the crown and hairline in critical lighting as well as one that captures the whorl at 5 months.

I've also attached the crown 'before' picture as my post-surgery picture doesn't show how bad it was.

The mid-scalp, that still had some native hairs remaining, is pretty much covered now. I wish I'd started finasteride years before I did and I may have been able to save more crown to support the HT.

Don't think I can ask for much more at 6 months. The crown hairs are still clearly young. They're thin etc so clearly they have a way to go. I think I'd have taken the 6 month hairline before my surgery.
 

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HTP1

HTP1

member
Forgot to add, grade two of the donor area. No evidence of extractions as I fully expected given you could really tell after 2 weeks.

Also shows how young the crown hair is still.
 

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Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Looking good HTP1 for 6 months. Your hairline already looks very natural. As you know crowns usually take a little longer to grow in but there is a clear difference in the before and afters. The whorl is taking shape. Like you, I wish I`d been on Finasteride earlier, it can be a game changer.
Your donor looks in excellent condition.
Thanks for the update.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Do you think you're seeing any improvement to miniaturised hairs with Finasteride?
 
HTP1

HTP1

member
Do you think you're seeing any improvement to miniaturised hairs with Finasteride?
I saw some very miniaturised hairs get saved and return on the crown. They remained miniaturised (from what I understand once they go below 50% they pretty much can't be fully saved). They didn't provide any visual difference, but were indications fin was working.

I think it saved and helped some of the hair in the mid-scalp, but can't be sure.

The main benefit has been to dramatically slow my hair loss down, so it's done / doing its job.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
I've met a few guys whose miniaturised hairs that looked like vellus hairs but they recovered with the help of Finasteride and Minoxidil.
Good to hear it's doing its job for you.
 
HTP1

HTP1

member
Slightly better look at the hairline. Any hair in front of the hairline is native hair that either fin is clinging on to or for some reason was more resilient to DHT.
 

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Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
I have the odd few hairs below the hairline that reappeared which I presume is because of Finasteride.
Your hairline is looking good, plenty of single grafts to give a natural look.
 
HTP1

HTP1

member
I've never used any concealers before. My friend suggested I try DermMatch. I put a really small amount on and had no idea how effective it was in conjunction with the HT at 6 months.

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Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
I used DermMatch and Nanogen fibres for a number of years to help conceal my crown. Both worked really well. Your crown looks to be making good progress in your 6 month update post. Adding the DermMatch has added that bit extra. Hopefully`, once you reach 12 months you can ditch the concealers for good.
 
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