Hair transplant diary (ongoing)

Has anybody heard of The Grow Club? Seemly its a new place opened out near the Beacon Hospital. They are a hair transplant clinic and seemly the surgeons are hand picked from across Turkey & Europe so it seems Basically they are bringing what you get in Turkey here for €3500. Kinda sounds similar to what 3 Dental has done in the dentist industry.

Would be interested to see has anyone gone and if there any good? I have gone to Poland for a HT which cost €5000 + flights great Surgeon but only got 2000 grafts I need a second HT done for density was planning on going this year till covid hit.

The most important thing when it comes to HT's is how good the surgeon is as you can't just extract graphs and implant them any which way! As they have to go in the direction the hair grows and with how it grows on your head. Else it will look ridiculous.

But there website seems very Professional one of my mates has booked in for July.

Dellboy2007 wrote: »

It was discussed on this thread and not in the most favourable way. The owner or someone working there was also on promoting the place, on the same day that a new account was set up inquiring about the place.

These fly in surgeons just reek of malpractice to me. Just think about it this way, if I am going to fly to another country to do a job and then leave the next day, am I really going to care about it? Especially when my name is no where on the website or attached to the company in any way. You’ve got to ask yourself why is that happening. Surgeons like Dr. Nel are proud to put their name to their work. Why? Because they are bloody good surgeons and take full responsibility for their work.

This is all about risk. If you are willing to take risk of your appearance potentially ending up worse than before for the sake of a couple of grand then by all means go for it, but if you’re risk averse then it’s not a good idea.

Yea thats what I was thinking. As just because they are from Turkey doesn't mean they are good! The surgeon I went to in Poland was brilliant my only gripe was he didn't give me enough graphs but he told me my donor area wasn't great to start with and talked to me about hair nutrition etc Plus he doesn't like to over harvest and explained I would need a second HT of about 800 graphs depending on results I actually think I need more.

On this GrowClub they would hardly set up a business here and be bad could they? They are stating "We offer 100% satisfaction guarantee or will cover the cost of additional treatment"
Thats a bit of a bold statement if they cant back it up! As everyone's results are different plus if you are going down the route of a HT you will always need 2, second mighten be as big depending on results. But from my research this was always been the case.

Dellboy2007 wrote: »

What makes you think that because they are setting up a business here they can’t be bad? I think you’d be shocked at some of the malpractice cases that have occurred over the years in situations similar to these.

It’s easy to make bold statements on websites which are ultimately subjective and can be qualified in the same way your Polish surgeon qualified their work by essentially saying that they did the best they could with the donor available. You can also guarantee that you will be signing a legal disclaimer prior to the operation which will state that you have been made aware that it might not go the way you want it. This does not sign away your rights, but it will certainly make it more difficult for you to prove any liability.

Finally I would say this, do you really think making those “bold statements” is something you’d expect from a person / company performing surgery? This isn’t a car salesman trying to sell you an extra year on the warranty, this is serious surgery. It just makes them sound like a scam. Remember, if somethings too good to be true, it probably is.

True. I was just of the thinking 3 Dental started up the same way. I taught the same as you and after a couple of years and loads of good reports they are flying it and know doubt there prices have probably gone up! but even I have started going to them.

I have to say though, the surgeon I went to in Poland explained everything. Told me from the start my donor area wasn't great after examining it. Basically confirming everything I learned on researching HT for years beforehand ie there is no guarantees. He went for 2300 graphs only got 2000 and thats what he charged me for. Now he was dearer then the likes of Turkey but had proper qualifications and done everything he said. Explaining to me about proper hair nutrient and the likes. He also said the the surgeons from Turkey that go to all the hair conferences are very inexperienced. Thinks its madness that people go there but obviously he'd have a conflict of interests. But all the quotes I got from clinics in Turkey were all saying I needed a total different number of graphs ranging from 3000 to 5000! As you said yourself you get what you pay for!

dannijuno wrote: »

Are you taking finasteride? By taking finasteride, this will stop the rest of your hair thinning so you will maintain the results of the transplant.

No and I dont want too. You always have to get two HT's done. As before I got it I was researching it for years different surgeons places etc and most people said you need at least two. One for the hair line and second for density.

Homelander wrote: »

Genuinely curious as to what's the point, the hair behind's all going to fall out anyway if you're suffering from male pattern baldness.

If you are not willing to take Finasteride, you either have to accept patchy, odd looking hair over time (that realistically you would have to shave) or commit to a hefty series of transplants over time to give some sort of uniform coverage that looks natural.

An initial transplant + fin should work indefinitely, the alternative would be expensive over time, not to mention the hassle of it all.

You dont lose your transplant hair. So in theory most people will need 2 on average. Some less some more. I think Callum best has had 3 or 4.

I know you don't, but if you have a receding hairline that's a result of MPB and you're getting HT, you will have to get further HT's as the natural hair continues to fall out due to MPB.

There is a reason the majority of surgeons recommend fin/propecia, because without it, HT have pretty limited effectiveness for most men affected by MPB, versus those with naturally maturing/receding hairline where it's not quite as crucial (though still effective).

Transplant + fin is the current most effective answer to MPB. It's difficult without, as well as very expensive.

Good to have a results from a decent sized study, when Finasteride concentrations are being discussed:


Objective:
We attempted to determine the effect of finasteride on scalp skin and serum androgens.

Methods:
Men with androgenetic alopecia (N=249) underwent scalp biopsies before and after receiving 0.01, 0.05, 0.2, 1, or 5 mg daily of finasteride or placebo for 42 days.

Results:
Scalp skin DHT levels declined significantly by 13.0% with placebo and by 14.9%, 61.6%, 56.5%, 64.1%, and 69.4% with 0.01, 0.05, 0.2, 1, and 5 mg doses of finasteride, respectively. Serum DHT levels declined significantly (P<.001) by 49.5%, 68.6%, 71.4%, and 72.2% in the 0.05, 0.2, 1 and 5 mg finasteride treatment groups, respectively.

Conclusion:
In this study, doses of finasteride as low as 0.2 mg per day maximally decreased both scalp skin and serum DHT levels. These data support the rationale used to conduct clinical trials in men with male pattern hair loss at doses of finasteride between 0.2 and 5 mg.

Link:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3481923/#!po=40.2439

EltonJohn69 wrote: »

There are also studies that show a link with propecia and suicide.... if it was harmless every guy would be taking it

I'm not suggesting that anybody should or shouldn't take anything, which you seem to be implying. I don't know why you are making out that somebody here has stated that Finasteride is harmless. I can't see any posts to that effect. Unless I'm completely misinterpreting your post, yours was a confrontational post, that blatantly tried to twist what I wrote. Strange.

I cited a study on % reductions in both systemic and scalp DHT, measured after a short trial with different Fin concentrations. I did this because there were suggestions in this thread that lower concentrations of Fin might be ineffective in lowering DHT. That was my post, as simply, clearly and bluntly as it was.

Anyone who considers taking Fin needs to talk to their doctor first.

suave.4u wrote: »

EltonJohn69, even Elton John took Fin:

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/elton-john-hair/

*********************************
“It’s what is called ‘getting older,’ it’s called ‘maintenance,'” he said, joking that he didn’t have the head shape appropriate for a bald look, like he said actor Patrick Stewart has. “I’d look like Shrek,” he noted. He also mentioned both the Propecia and Rogaine medications.
*********************************

Most male celebrities have to take it... for most the only side effect is decreased libido.... in rare cases the side effects are catastrophic.

And Elton is wearing a wig... no amount of fin/transplants is getting his hair back

Random question here, when using nizoral should you use a conditioner afterwards? The "bro scientist" in me worries using a conditioner would make nizoral less effective or something.

Also would it be worth starting a general hair loss thread? As this thread can easily get away from strictly being a hair transplant diary.

Thought others in this thread might find this interesting, but it looks like 1mg fin has actually been licensed in Ireland since October on HPRA, someone might amend the link here to be clickable

hpra.ie/homepage/medicines/medicines-information/find-a-medicine/results/item?pano=PA22753/002/001&t=Finasteride%201mg%20film-coated%20tablets

Does anyone know if this means it's now actually available here already, or still a while away until we can get it?

iebamm2580 wrote: »

Balding can cause people to be suicidal as well so not that clear cut to link it to finasteride.

I am on balding and on fin for the last 9 years. Where does that leave me

iebamm2580 wrote: »

2 negatives equals a positive ha. Has fin not stabilized your loss though?

of course, hairline is intact due to fin

Have you all talked to your doctor and got hormone blood tests done before taking Fin?

Talking to your doctor is always the first port-of-call but I've recently been reading about getting proper blood work done which can give you an indicator of how well fin may work and chances of side effects.

Also, to re-iterate what another poster posted in regards to the 1mg Fin tablets authorised since October, that would make taking it that much easier.

BorneTobyWilde wrote: »

0.20 of Fin a day is enough. I just got another prescription on webdoctor, took 2 minutes, click click click, and they post out prescription , can then get it at any pharmacy.

any idea if they would prescribe Loniten? It is minoxidil tablet