Category: FUE

Hi Doctor,

I am 26 and have been losing my hair at the centre, back and recently at the front.

I consulted this week with a doctor in Dubai and he classified my hair loss as pattern 4 class 5 (Hair characteristics are color:black, quality: wavy,thickness is average and density is average). He told me i would have to undergo the FUE procedure. His treatment recommendations were 2 sessions of 3000 hair follicular units at the center and back, another 3000 at the front. The total cost of it being 45,000 usd with a 3 month gap in between these surgeries.

What puzzled me the most is that he just had a look and told me that i would have to undergo this surgery. My concerns are that the price quoted is too expensive for me and i want to know if there are any good doctors out here in Dubai who could do this for a lesser cost. I would greatly appreciate your opinion on this. Thank you.

More examples of nuts

This is nuts! By just looking at you, he knows your hair density? My opinion is that no doctor can do 9000 grafts total in 3 sessions over a period of 6 months without really examining you, knowing your density, scalp laxity (for strip surgery), etc. And to add insult to potential injury, recommending it blindly every three months on the schedule outlined above is either the work of God, or possibly a doctor who has a streak of larceny (small or large) in him. Maybe I am just overreacting, knowing that I have a human type of limitations.

In other words, I’d seriously think about what this doctor is trying to sell you, and whether it is even possible for him to do what he is suggesting with any consistent quality. You wouldn’t want to pay for something and only get a small percentage of hairs actually taking and growing, leaving the other grafts too damaged to be of any good. Maybe Dubai does not have laws that protect consumers (nevermind, they do), but I would be suspicious, at the very least.

Hi,
I was wondering if you could tell me if it would be better for me to get strip or fue? I have already had 1 strip procedure 5 years ago (3300) and feel I need more hairs to fill my thinning frontal area. I am worried about fue because I heard the back of your head may appear as if moth eatin. Also, I exercise so I want to recover as quickly as possible. I used [name removed] before and that’s who I plan to use for my next procedure. Any recommendations? Thanks.

The things that make a follicular unit extraction (FUE) surgery produce a “moth eaten” donor area include:

1. the use of larger punches
2. low density donor hair

If you already had a strip procedure, another strip may be a better choice for you, but if you are a hair transplant ‘virgin’ (not your case) then FUE is a much more clear decision process. Going the FUE route will make for a very fast recovery with full activity, including swimming, scuba, and professional level exercise. I do not generally make recommendations for doctors here.

Results from FUE are variable while the strip procedure is predictable nearly 100% of the time-Does this mean the strip method is the better option as its more certain. And if this is true why would you tell people and/or use this method rather than the strip method at NHI.

I test everyone to determine how good their follicular units will come out with follicular unit extraction (FUE). I call this test a FOX Biopsy and I insist on doing this so that I am comfortable that wastage is not a problem. It is hard to match the quality grafts that a strip-method hair transplant can produce. With an FUE procedure, the bottoms of the follicular units can be stripped of their fat and supportive structures; in a strip procedure, the follicular units are all perfect. If you saw two follicular units side-by-side (one from a strip harvest and the other from an FUE), you would see a significant difference. I believe that when this problem occurs, the growth from an FUE with stripped infrastructure should not, in theory, grow as well or as thick as a strip graft. The benefit of the FUE technique, of course, is the lack of the linear scar in the back of the head, allowing for a very closely cropped haircut without noticeable scarring. We perform both techniques at NHI.

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I have a hypothetical question:

I know, that in general you don’t transplant more than a certain ratio of hairs available in the donor area to the transplanted area. What i was wondering is if i wear my hair in a certain style (in this case a bald fade) it would’t be as important for me to have thicker hair in the back, but of course, i would want good density on the top and front. under these circumstances, would you transfer more than usual to the top and front?

I generally develop a Master Plan with each patient, unique to that patient. What I feel my job is, is to do what is in your best interests and that includes combining what you want and what I feel is ethical. Many patients have different priorities, so my job would be to come to some conclusion about your hair supply and then lay out a plan that is worst and best case possibilities to address your desires at this time.

Since your question is hypothetical, I will say that hypothetically what you’re asking for is possible under the right conditions. Also, if you were to want to do a fade hairstyle in the back (donor area), a linear scar could be visible with a strip procedure, but you’ll probably be alright with follicular unit extraction (FUE).