jayc

Ken Washenik, M.D., Ph.D., Exec VP of ARI (Bosley Group) has been talking about a 5 yr cure for this since 2001 or so. The fact that these are press releases and not published articles in peer reviewed journals indicates that this may just be promotional to continue interest in hair mulitplication. Hopefully ARI will show us some scientific results of the trial soon through publications in peer reviewed scientific journals.

Lorenzo/Harari - can you tell me more about histogen and the news about hair cloning. I have read about companies such as ARI/ Bosley, Intercytex, Follica since about 2003-2004. At that time, they predicted a five yr timeline to hair multiplication. How about 7 yrs later, I don't know if there is any new informaton. I looked up pubmed - publications in peer reviewed journals- no new articles can be found on this topic. Can you send me some links?

your hair looks great man! wishing you the best!

I've met Dr. Rahal in person and I think he seems like an excellent hair transplant surgeon.

lorenzo - You're a funny guy. You seem to post a whole bunch which is great, but I don't think that deems you any authority on the hair transplant industry nor this forum. I don't see an MD next to your name. or am I wrong? You're providing your opinion which you are entitled to. I'm providing mine just as well. I've seen excellent FUE results in good hands. I do think its a viable new option in well trained hands with the apparent risks. And just because your doc- Hasson - does not do it, nor has a desire to move in that direction, does not make it a bad option. Nor does it make it a bad option just because Feller thinks so either. However, experience and results are important which I agree with fully. Lastly, regarding the scar - if you cut your hair short than the scar matters in my opinion.Having had prior strips (including one from Dr. WOng - hasson's partner), I see the value of clean lines and no evidence of a cosmetic procedure. Regarding the shaving the head - I do see this as an issue. Dr. Wong required it. It takes some planning. Again, this is my opinion. You are entitled to your own. Keep up the posts.

As a Norwood VI who has had 5 prior hair transplants with some of the best: i.e. Rassman, Wong amonst others, and still have diffuse thinning, I would suggest to tread cautiously. First - do you have enough donor supply. Would they be able to cover your crown? Personally I don't like the approach of doing the hairline and leaving the crown without hair - i call this the VP look as in our VP Biden. Second - details about how many procedures the doc thinks are needed. Each transplant procedure is a hassle in terms of your time. Many request that you shave your entire scalp. Then you have to explain that damn smile scar. Lastly- i know strip is most efficacious esp in norwood 6, but if i were to do it again today- i'd go fue route. yes, its more expensive. yes, you should go with someone who has does done this for years. would also only go to someone who does it by himself and doe snot have technical staf taking out follicular units. but, if it does not work out well you can shave your head and don't have to worry about a damn scar. my suggestions based a 11 yr experience researching hair transplantation

spex- i follow ya buddy. I've seen alan about his concern regarding this, and at times going to battle with those proponents of BHT (Umar). I agree where are the photos. What is the success rate? Good questions. Nevertheless, I don't agree that giving a Norwood 6/7 guy a frontal hairline and completely neglecting the crown is cosmetically sound. Often it is these patients that are also too far ahead to be helped by propecia, so no help there either. Going bald is probably better than going on for a traditional strip or FUE scalp. COnsidering the circumstances some of us are willing to risk BHT. Innovators like Feller must find a way to increase donor supply for a cosmetically sound outcome. People are still hesitant about FUE scalp yield, and although it still has hurdles, the technique seems to have improved with improved instruments and training. Those well trained in FUE seem to be getting a higher yield. Hopefully the same will go for BHT, or there will be a way to duplicate scalp hair to increase donor supply.

terry bradshaw's norwood 7 - man he could use a few

Do you all know of any football players who have undergone hair transplantation, if so whom?

HairToday -read your story buddy. I feel for you buddy. i started losing hair at age 19. Must congratulate you for your courage, and Umar for your initial results. You're looking great buddy. Will be watching your progress closely. Wishing you the best!

I've had a few (100 or so ) body hair transplants placed utilizing my chest hair. I'm not sure about the yield as they were mixed with scalp hair. However, there are thinner appearing hairs in the region of the mid scalp that look different from my other grafts and may be a result of the BHT from chest. Its really hard to estimate a yield.

Hi all, I know this is not a new topic on this forum, and it comes with strong opinions of efficacy, cost, and outcome. However, just wanted to revisit this topic for those of us who are lacking donor scalp hair. Searching pubmed.gov there is very peer reviewed material on the topic. Surgeons - 1. Any updates on BHT at your recent ISHRS conference? Any new innovations, equipment? Are certain areas of the body better for transplant - ie beard vs chest vs nape vs extremity vs back; factors that you may have determined that improve yield. 2. If you are performing BHT: how many cases have you performed, what is your expected yield? Patients - 1. If body hair transplants were utilized on your scalp: what part of the body were the follicles removed from, how many, how do you feel about the yield and cosmetic outcome (You don't have to mention your doc, but if you want to you are welcome to)

Just wanted to drop a line regarding Dr. Rahal. I was in with another hair transplant surgeon for a repair of a scar from previous hair transplant. Dr. Rahal was there that same to visit this surgeon and came in on my procedure. He stated that he goes to visit many HT surgeons just to get ideas of what they do differently. He was doing this on his time off. I had not heard of Dr. Rahal before, but having met him I must say I was impressed with his demeanor, knowledge, and the desire to continually learn. He told me he does all of the extractions himself for FUE. He went int to the details of the benefits of strip vs FUE. He also discussed the issue of BHT. He told me that at this time he was not interested in BHT. Mainly due to the lower success rate, the time and dedication involved, and the issues of treating repair patients vs virgin scalps. We had a lengthy conversation during my procedure. I looked him up after my procedure, and was impressed by his website and the reviews from prior patients on this and other forums. Had I known about this guy before for my first hair transplant, he would be on the top of my list. We expect knowledge in our physicians. We expect technical expertise. But, you don't always have a guy that is humble and wants to continue to learn and improve, has technical expertise, and is personable. For those considering him - he really does seem like a good guy. I am short on donor scalp supply and need help with a BHT doc and unfortunately, he does not take part in this.

Lorenzo - Yes, I chose Umar for perceived ability in hair transplant repair. However, I differ on your opinion that no damage was done. If there was no damage, I would not be posting. Changing my scheduling, placing personal things into my schedule and then cancelling me at the last minute cost me my time which results in loss of income for me. The outcome was not proper.

Lorenzo, If you care to know regarding Umar's recommendation by this forum, search it. There is a post on this very topic. An update of which can be found on secondtime's forum topic " Dr. Umar Procedure 4000 grafts FUE Nape Hair." (Secondtime you seem to have a nice result by the way). A few questions were raised it appears initially by Dr. Feller, and then by the publishers - Pat and Bill - which went unanswered. It is an interesting forum. One of the questions was regarding the rate of success of BHT. In 2008, it appears Dr. Umar had 150 BHT cases. These questons it appears went unanswered. Maybe Bill can let us know if there is an update.

A direct link to Umar's website? If that isn't advertising I'm not sure what to call it. Atticus - how did you manage to get 1/6 of your grafts for free. 100 of the 600 single nape hairs?

Atticus - 1) Your photos are unimpressive. you had 600 nape hairs. 600 mostly single hair follicles. You are not even a Norwood 1. Your claims overextend the work you had done. That's just factual. 2) one only need look at your prior posts to wonder what your intentions are. Of 19 posts that you made on this forum about 17 overly support Umar. Others have wondered about Atticus' intentions as he knows well. In his prior Atticus asks - "Does that make a shill?" Does it? one of your posts does state of the 600 nape hairs, 100 were free?

Correction ... He DID NOT seem concerned when he cancelled my procedure.

Hmmm ... I wonder what the intention is of former Umar patient's to jump in talk about the work done when that was not questioned. I was ready to close the door. But I'm sorry this really bothers me. I've seen Atticus post countless glowing reports about Umar on the other hair loss forum site for "600 nape hairs". I'm not sure if there is compensation for each post for each nape hair placed but its rather troubling. Just as I closed the door this time of advertising disturbs me ... Again, never questioned Umar;s work. You can go to the other posts regarding that. I had problems with scheduling and communication with Umar and his clinic. Amongst all of his comments, Umar never commented about the fact that his clinic told me he had "a conference" in the middle of the day, now its an ID badge issue. Umar never explained this emergency that he had that he scheduled a week before by appointment for an entire morning. He now says its a "voluntary faculty" position. he didn't need to lie to me. On top of that he never apologized personally for this fabrication. He did not seem concerned that I had planned my life around this procedure. He did seem concerned when he cancelled my procedure. My vacation takes a lot of planning(as I'm sure yours does). Getting two weeks off to recover is extremely difficult. He didn't apologize for messing up my schedule. In fact he said I was "making a mountain of a molehill." Now Umar, if it was such a small deal, why not cancel your "conference" and cancel your "emergency" so that you can take care of the patient that YOU scheduled. Regarding paying before the procedure IN FULL before the procedure. Well that's arguable. Down payment maybe. 50% maybe. 70% maybe. I think I'd prefer at least going to the dealership, prior to purchasing my car, literally and figuretively .... $27,000. Regarding your work Atticus: you had 600 follicles placed of nape hair. I saw your photos. I'm sorry the results aren't impressive to my eye. 600 won't do didly for most of us who need repair. To each their own I guess.

After a lot of thought, I just wanted to put some closing thoughts on this. I appreciate all of your comments, including those of Sanusi Umar. As much as I think that many of Sanusi's comments are not completely factual, I appreciate his time. I could rehash all of his comments with my version and emails - but I don't think that would resolve anything. Ultimately, its a he said she said and its about feelings. Yes, I was frustrated with him and his staff. But there were no unkind words spoken to them. If his staff felt I wanted any special treatment or had bad feelings, I apologize. Final thoughts: Based on the positive results, Dr. Umar seems to have a unique talent and niche practice that can help many patients. I congratulate him for this service. Dr. Umar's price of $7 FUE including BHT is fair compared to other practices. His request for payment in full one month in advance was unusual for me, but as stated it is his practice. Communication is difficult in medicine. I'm sure Dr. Umar and his staff have done an excellent job with others. My experience did not go that way. I hope the experience with me teaches his office to improve on scheduling and communication with future patients and truly wish him well in his future practice in serving those with a similar need.

Wow. I read it again, and Umar keeps stating that I demanded to pay after the procedure. That's just not true. I find this unfortunate. Umar's clinic did not respond to several requests by email and phone for a scheduled date. After many attempts, I got an email from his administrator. As soon as I found out about the procedure, I contacted the loan officer at Surgery Loans and the loan was approved. The procedure was three months away so after a few weeks the Loan company discontinued the loan. as soon as I found out that Umar required a payent one month in advance, I recontacted the loan company. They had to restart the loan process & it was my intention to pay the amount in full. The loan process did take long then expected. But I fully intended to pay in full and made that clear to his administrator and I belive to him as well by email. In fact just before Umar decided to cancel the procedure due to what I was told was an "emergency" and now he states are "voluntary faculty rounds", I told his administrator my intention to pay. It bothers me that they told me it was an emergency. Why not just tell me the truth that they scheduled wrong. Why wait till the week before. Why the ask patient ot pay for your disorganization?

The problem with S Umar is he refuses to apologize for mistakes he and his clinic made. Blaming the patient is unfortunate. 1) I find it troubling that Umar does not find it poor practice to schedule things during the time he has scheduled surgeries. If you can't make it on a particular day, why schedule a patient on that day? I was flying from 2000 miles away to pay him $27000 for a procedure. I still don't understand why did he schedule to get an ID card in the middle of the day I had an appt. One week before my appt, I was told Umar had an emergency. Now he says he is voluntary faculty at a medical school. Is being voluntary faculty an emergency or is a patient who is paid customer of higher priority? Why is your clinic so disorganized that it did not block the days off? Why not apologize whole heartedly for making this mistake. Changing the patient's schedule seems to be at no consequence to this clinic. 3) I never demanded to pay after the surgery not did I demand free grafts. I had loans being arranged and that company called "Sugery loans" was near completion of a transaction to complete the loan process which was communicated to his administrator. I wanted to be compensated for the changes he made - placing something in the middle of the day on my appt and having "emergency voluntary faculty rounds". I felt that compensating me for travel and housing was reasonable. 4) It was not that I am a fellow physician that I requested a call back. It was that I was his patient. I was having trouble having confidence in this clinic's commitment to patient care. Communication is something I hold close in a medical practice. I thought it was appropriate for a physician to call back his patient considering this circumstance to provide reassurance. Umar does not think so obviously.

Just so there is no misunderstanding Dr. Umar's clinic did not receive any financial compensation from me. My prior deposit was supposed to be refunded in full to my credit card - I have not checked yet, this happened only a few days ago. I did not get the opportunity to pay the remainder of the fees as my procedure was cancelled before that. Also, for full disclosure, Dr. Umar offered a physician discount of .25 per graft. The total still for the procedure was to be $27000. Again I did not pay Dr. Umar. But, I did lose time and money related to lost work/vacation. Also, I had planned for time off after the procedure to recover, which is now not useful. I don't know Dr. Umar and this is not a comment on his character, certification, or skills. Again, this is not a comment about his team's technical skill or patient's outcomes. Every patient wants to be treated like a human being and be heard. Sometimes it feels in the hair transplant industry once a payment is made, the patient is forgotten. Since hair loss is a lifetime experience, having a physician you can talk to and a clinic you can communicate with is important. This was a comment on my experience and how I felt I was treated. Dr. Umar may have not intended to hurt me but resceduling several times, having a conference scheduled during my procedure, and taking a morning off for a scheduled "emergency" is not usual and concerning. The need for additional anesthesia, OR time, and a longer surgery schedule is an inconvenience. Patient's schedules are just as important as their doctor's. It appeared this clinic did not care about how they inconvenienced me.. The hair transplant industry brings in a lot of money. My procedure alone would have cost $27000. With all the money involved and its cosmetic nature, comes a lot of advertising. What's lacking is consumer advocacy and outcomes based research. I've seen a lot of patients criticized when making any comments that do not celebrate the "favorite physicians". This discourages a true dialogue and what is left is purely promotional campaigning. Advertisements on youtube with choreographed background music & selected good results are merely that ... advertisements. A few selected patients who appear on forums commending a doctor's skills are just that - a few results. They are not a true representation of the physician's full spectrum of results. Honest science is when the physician himself has the courage to write a journal article about his outcome in peer reviewed journals . This is not to single out Dr. Umar, it is a general problem in the industry as a whole. A hair transplant surgeon who does present his outcomes data in full should be highly commended by this community. S. Umar - As long as you do not infringe on privacy, and you feel my comments about your scheduling procedures, rescheduling, asking for down payment, filling out 10 to 15 pages filled with legal jargon, asking for full payment ($27000) one month before, scheduling a conference in the middle of the day during one of my scheduled days with you, and an emergency (which you knew about the week before) for one entire morning the next day, asking me to stay an extra day, and than cancelling my appointment and refunding my payment one week before the scheduled date when I questioned all this and asked for reduction in charges is inaccurate you are welcome to rebutt. You are not welcome to reveal my identity as I have a right to my privacy. I find it stunning that you are ready to email this audience, but you were unwilling to call or email me (the patient) to discuss this with me directly. This is concerning for advertising vs whole hearted patient care.

Just wanted to write you guys about my experience with Dr. Umar's clinic. I never got hair transplants there. This should not be seen as a comment on his technique, just as a concerned patient regarding my experience prior to arriving at the clinic. Over the last 2 years I have read some positive comments about Dr. Umar's body hair transplant results. I was impressed with what I saw on you tube, Dr. Umar's website, some comments by a patient on here. The commercials seemed very contrived with the choreographed music in the background but anyway ... I had many emails with Dr. Umar which seemed to have gone well. He was responsive and informative. After considering the costs, time, and the need to shave my head, I decided to move forward with my hair transplant procedure. Having had prior hair transplants, I was long awaiting this procedure to try to correct problems from a prior hair transplant and to better my look. Things seemed to have been going well until the communication lead to scheduling. Dr. Umar had agreed to a date by email and asked me to contact his office to schedule an appointment. I tried several times by phone and email without response. Finally after many attempts connecting with the administrator my dates were re-scheduled. This was disruptive with my work schedule; however, it felt like I had no choice, and I accepted the change. They told me that I could not schedule without 10% deposit. After I sent the 10% and about 10-15 pages of paperwork with a great amount of legal jargon, my dates were scheduled - this was about 2 to 3 months before the scheduled date. About a month and a half prior to the procedure,an office person contacted me stating the contract stated that I must pay for the procedure (> $25,000) one month prior to the procedure. This was very different from my prior procedures where I did not pay until the day of the procedure or directly after, but I accepted this as well & was arranging for a loan payment. Three weeks before the procedure, I was informed by an office person that Dr. Umar would be leaving for a conference for a period of about three hours during the day of my procedure. He would return later in the afternoon to complete the work that day. In addition, one week before the procedure, I was informed that Dr. Umar had an emergency and would not be available one entire morning of my scheduled 3 day visit with him. The office asked me to stay an extra day and leave the following afternoon. They said they would offer me one night hotel stay and a fee for flight change. I was extremely concerned that Dr. Umar was not commited to his time with me. I had three days scheduled with him, and he had a conference in the middle of the day on one day. The next day he had an "emergency" for the entire morning. I was worried that he would not have his full attention on his work with me. When, I expressed this concern with his office staff, the office staff asked for me not to be concerned. I had also expressed the concern of having to stay an extra day. I asked that Dr. Umar consider compensating me for my additional time with hotel stay for the 4 days and my flight to LA. I received a call from the office staff about 5 days before my scheduled trip to LA stating that they refused to take care of me. For all of us who are hair transplant patients, awaiting a procedure date is an exciting and anxious time. I was extremely disappointed in Dr. Umar's actions. It hurt that he had all the power to change my schedule, put things in the middle of the day when I was under local anesthesia with holes in my head, and have a scheduled "emergency" during my procedure time. It also hurt that just because I raised concerns, they cancelled my visit. I am a physician. I have never treated a patient this way. My last email to Dr.Umar - "I have not experienced this behavior or disservice in my medical career where a physician schedules a "conference" during the time that he has a surgical procedure scheduled. Has an "emergency" during the time of a scheduled procedure which somehow he already knows about the week before. In addition cancels a procedure a few days before without concern for the patient's welfare, monetary loss, loss in work, and loss of time. You have done me a service by not participating in my care." I have yet to receive a reply from Dr. Umar. I felt like I was not treated like a human being. I'd hate for any of my patients to feel the way I did. I am still hurt from this experience. After all this, I still need repair work and am searching for a qualified hair transplant professional who does body hair and treats his patients as a human being and not just $$ instant cash. Wishing you all well on your journey. Please write me if you can help me.