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Kev
member
One picture is a before, the other is an after. Personally, I think it failed, it looks like at most 500 grafts grew. It doesn’t look anything like what was discussed during the consultation.
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K
Kev
member
K
Kev
member
K
Kev
member
Included some immediate post op pictures. I’m guessing the transplant failed, I haven’t seen anyone with results as insignificant as mine, even people with low density transplants seem to have significantly more growth than me.
Brian1988
member
How many grafts were implanted? It looks like maybe 1200 judging by the immediate post op pics? You need like 3-4000 grafts to cover everything I’d say. If only 500 grafts grew out of 3000, yeah it’s a fail. If you didn’t have many grafts placed to begin with I don’t think it’s fair to call it a fail, it’s just not enough.
I wouldn’t lose hope yet. Looks like you have overall diffuse thinning and having implanted hairs all over your scalp could have aggravated the native hairs, I’d expect them to come back to a certain extent of you are on hair loss medications.
I wouldn’t lose hope yet. Looks like you have overall diffuse thinning and having implanted hairs all over your scalp could have aggravated the native hairs, I’d expect them to come back to a certain extent of you are on hair loss medications.
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Kev
member
They never went over the number of grafts after the procedure. It honestly looks like they took more than they implanted. I heard from other patients of theirs that they tend to take around 2500 grafts. It is $5500 for “unlimited grafts” but they just do as much as one technician is able to handle in a shift.
Based on how much they took from my donor, I was expecting pretty good results. I’m on topical minoxidil and topical finasteride. I tried topical and oral, both seemed to be similar in effectiveness so I went with topical for less sides. Been on treatment since 32, I’m 38 now.
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A_4_Archan
Valued member
They didn't even tell you how many grafts they implanted ? And they took some grafts from the unsafe zone as well ...they went out of the safe zone so it can be possible that those grafts succumbed to dht or they grew bt are miniaturized now...
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Kev
member
Yea, I’ve been feeling like maybe I got scammed. During the consult the doctor was just saying things I wanted to hear. I asked how many grafts I needed during the consult and the doctor agreed that I needed like 4k for a full head of hair. He kept promising that I wouldn’t need to use fibers any more. I then said “well then I’ll just have to get my SMP touched up afterwards” and his reply was “you won’t even need that.”
When I showed the pictures his only response was “thoughts?” So I’m guessing he was hoping I was going to somehow be satisfied with these obviously terrible results.
The kicker is he sent me the before pictures THEY took, which look a lot worse than what the actual situation was because they combed every hair on top of my head away from my scalp for least amount of coverage and then fluffed up my hair in a way no person would ever comb their hair in order to make it look as thin as possible…. I could have literally just combed my hair down properly and instantly had an “after picture”. They also had me lean my head toward their bright light, again making the before look worse than reality. It feels like they put more effort into making my before picture look awful instead of effort into making a legitimate good after picture.
Dr. Maag did my consult. Joel Torres did 99% of the extraction and implantation alone. Dr. Maag just did the prep stuff, such as the initial injections to numb it up. Dr. Maag said he’s going to take a look at it in person and then give me feedback. But if these are the final results then clearly I want a full refund because it looks nothing at all like what was discussed. I basically just lost $5500 and a shit ton of donor hair for an insignificant change.
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Prohairclinic
Prohairclinic FUE and SMP
I believe I noticed some red flags in your comments.
My advice to everyone is NOT to gamble with their appearance.
Make sure the clinic you pick is reputable, with a long-proven track record of superior results.
And yes, top surgeons DO turn down patients if they feel they can't deliver what is expected. Stay away from those that promise you heaven while others informed you that your expectations may not be realistic.
My advice to everyone is NOT to gamble with their appearance.
Make sure the clinic you pick is reputable, with a long-proven track record of superior results.
And yes, top surgeons DO turn down patients if they feel they can't deliver what is expected. Stay away from those that promise you heaven while others informed you that your expectations may not be realistic.
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Kev
member
This is another worry. One of the reasons I went with them was because of their portfolio. They had some really good before and after pictures of clients. I looked up one of their past clients, and the pictures he posted on his instagram look nothing like what the clinic showed me. It looks like either hair fibers or straight up photoshop because of how different the results look compared to what they showed.
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Bigmac
Administrator
Staff member
Hi Kev. It does look as though your hair has worsened since you posted your other thread. You could be losing more native hair or you could have an underlying condition that is causing the transplanted grafts to fail. You may need to see a derm to make sure you don't have LPP or scarring alopecia etc.
LPP is pretty rare (clinics always mention it whenever they want an escape clause to blame a patient as to why their results suck) so based on your recount of the surgery it is so much more likely that the clinic is simply shit. Also as you are a diffuse thinner its possible they transected the grafts when they implanted them which might explain the limited growth
You provided some pretty clear donor extraction pics ... if you care enough it would be worth going through them and counting the number of extractions, and then counting the incisions as well. That would give a good indication of what you should have expected from surgery, Superficially though can already tell your results were always going to be pretty low density and nothing great
And tbh those results you posted from other patients arent that great either. They have some growth, the hairlines aren't great and look pluggy. They have some growth which for some good enough, but as you are a higher norwood you actually required some planning. It' s a good thing you posted here because now maybe you can find a decent clinic to help
Sorry for what you are going through. This stuff is horrible.
You provided some pretty clear donor extraction pics ... if you care enough it would be worth going through them and counting the number of extractions, and then counting the incisions as well. That would give a good indication of what you should have expected from surgery, Superficially though can already tell your results were always going to be pretty low density and nothing great
And tbh those results you posted from other patients arent that great either. They have some growth, the hairlines aren't great and look pluggy. They have some growth which for some good enough, but as you are a higher norwood you actually required some planning. It' s a good thing you posted here because now maybe you can find a decent clinic to help
Sorry for what you are going through. This stuff is horrible.
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MaxMidlander
member
Why procedures are sold offering 'unlimited grafts' I'll never know . So scammy !
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Kev
member
M
Marketing gimmick. During the consult he said I needed around 4k to 5k grafts. I asked if they’d do that many for the price. He said “of course, we don’t charge per graft? We charge for results.” But then I found out that they never do more than 2500 grafts in a session and rarely even hit the 2500 mark. So it’s around 1500 grafts for $6000, so it is $4 per graft.
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Kev
member
Just a short update so people know to stay away from honest hair restoration / Dr. Maag.
After a bit over a year of the first transplant I talked to them about my results, or really lack of results. They clarified that they took and implanted 1500 grafts. I ended up with a weird gap in my hairline and very little if any growth behind my hairline. They offered me a free second procedure, and I can definitely say I regret wasting any more donor hair with this clinic. The second procedure they did 1400 grafts. They managed to fill in that weird looking gap that they completely missed during the first procedure, but again pretty much negligible results outside of that very small spot that they managed to fill in. When I look at my before and after pictures from the top it is hard to tell the before and after pictures apart.
I’m over 18 months since the second procedure and now just looking for a reputable place that can give me results when I go for my third attempt at getting my hair fixed. I think a big part of why the second one failed was because during the 9th hour of the procedure I had grafts popping up and they actually used a hair dryer, on hot, to “set” my grafts into place. You can’t dry a graft and then expect it to still get the bloodflow it needs to survive. I don’t know if they did this during the first procedure because I was asleep, but I’m confident that their stupid hair dryer technique ruined any chance I had at results. Luckily I have enough that I can style it and use fibers, but I had that before the first procedure was even done.
After a bit over a year of the first transplant I talked to them about my results, or really lack of results. They clarified that they took and implanted 1500 grafts. I ended up with a weird gap in my hairline and very little if any growth behind my hairline. They offered me a free second procedure, and I can definitely say I regret wasting any more donor hair with this clinic. The second procedure they did 1400 grafts. They managed to fill in that weird looking gap that they completely missed during the first procedure, but again pretty much negligible results outside of that very small spot that they managed to fill in. When I look at my before and after pictures from the top it is hard to tell the before and after pictures apart.
I’m over 18 months since the second procedure and now just looking for a reputable place that can give me results when I go for my third attempt at getting my hair fixed. I think a big part of why the second one failed was because during the 9th hour of the procedure I had grafts popping up and they actually used a hair dryer, on hot, to “set” my grafts into place. You can’t dry a graft and then expect it to still get the bloodflow it needs to survive. I don’t know if they did this during the first procedure because I was asleep, but I’m confident that their stupid hair dryer technique ruined any chance I had at results. Luckily I have enough that I can style it and use fibers, but I had that before the first procedure was even done.
Bigmac
Administrator
Staff member
Hi Kev. Sorry to hear you're not happy with the second procedure they did. Using a hairdryer to set your grafts is a first for me. Would you be able to add some pictures? How is your donor looking/available grafts left?
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MPBsucks1234
Valued member
A hair dryer?! They sound clueless. Feriduni in Belgium does alot of repair work, he performed my first two as well.
David Anderson
Valued member
Hi Kev, Sorry to hear of your disappointing second experience. It highlights a valid point, should you consider going back to a clinic just because it is free when they couldn't get it right the first time. The popping of the grafts and the mushy scalp you mention in another post could well be a factor for the poor growth but the hairdryer to set them is beyond belief.
Are you doing anything to prevent further loss? Was there a reason for the popping of grafts which is you bleeding a lot. Are you on medication that can cause your blood to thin or have high blood pressure?
As to what you do now, I really would see a few reputable Doctors in person for consultations and see if they feel that you are a candidate for another procedure. Got to ones that use Trichoscopy in the consultation so they can examine your donor hair properly. Perhaps see a dermatologist too and rule out any scalp conditions that could cause poor growth.
Are you doing anything to prevent further loss? Was there a reason for the popping of grafts which is you bleeding a lot. Are you on medication that can cause your blood to thin or have high blood pressure?
As to what you do now, I really would see a few reputable Doctors in person for consultations and see if they feel that you are a candidate for another procedure. Got to ones that use Trichoscopy in the consultation so they can examine your donor hair properly. Perhaps see a dermatologist too and rule out any scalp conditions that could cause poor growth.
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mania
member
A failed transplant at nine months suggests a serious health problem, most likely rejection, in which the recipient's immune system targets the transplanted organ, causing it to stop functioning and necessitating dialysis or additional medical treatment. Infection, the long-term side effects of immunosuppressive drugs, or problems including persistent rejection are some other reasons for failure.
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MPBsucks1234
Valued member
I would not jump to this conclusion, It is clear here that the clinic was subpar, if a top clinic was visited we could be talking about a positive result and not a negative one.
