My Armani consultation, pretty good price... Few Questions..

[HT55]

Hey guys been a while since I posted. I`ve been talking to a rep from dr. ********`s clinic in belgium and pretty much got all my questions answered. Very professional and honest. I am seriously considering them, very close to confirming the procedure. Going for 4000 strip + 1500 fue

Why would you have 4K strip and 1500 fue ? If you already have a strip scar the only time FUE would makes sense would be for a small (maybe 3-400 graft ) touchup where you didn't want the recovery time from strip.

I never heard of anyone planning a surgery like that.

If at all possible I would get your surgery done in the U.S.A.

 

[gr0]

well i think around 4000 is the most i can get with one strip with my density and without over stretching. my density is a little below average at 70 units per square cm and i`m trying to get minimal scarring here.

according to dr.b 4000 will only cover up to the crown but not place anything in the crown. so adding the fue to get coverage everywhere.

 

[Petchsky]

Dr ******** has a good rep, and have seen some great work on-line, Dr Cole has done some good work in the past, but i think he's falling down the pecking order nowadays.

After a year or so most can buzz the back down to a #3 or a #2

 

[HT55]

well i think around 4000 is the most i can get with one strip with my density and without over stretching. my density is a little below average at 70 units per square cm and i`m trying to get minimal scarring here.

according to dr.b 4000 will only cover up to the crown but not place anything in the crown. so adding the fue to get coverage everywhere.

I would check out Hasson and Wong, in fact if you need that much work that is the ONLY clinic I would let touch you period !

If you have a virgin scalp and he can only get 4K strip I would be very carefull as that is Very low donor

How old are BTW ?

 

[HT55]

After a year or so most can buzz the back down to a #3 or a #2

Actually very few can buzz that low after a major strip surgery. Very few surgeons give that kind of scar to a person with a large strip surgery even using the tricho.

Hasson and wong, Shapiro, feller are the only guys I would trust and none are going to make that type of guarantee. For most a #4 is a very good scar

 

[gr0]

I'm 26, I'm actually already exchanging e-mail with hasson and wong. The scar is really putting me off as a lot of people seem to be saying #4 guard is the shortest they can go

If only I can get a guarantee on that 8000 fue that Armani and Cole are saying I'd do 5000 now and still have 3000 for the future...

 

[HT55]

You need way too much work for FUE, as I said stick with HAsson and Wong and get as much strip done in one shot as possible. Then use a small FUE procedure for any touchup you might need as well as putting grafts into the scar.

You might find you are satisfied and don't even need the FUE


Armani's mega FUE sessions have been lacking big time to say the least.


BTW a transplant of the size you need is VERY risky at your age

 

[PersonGuy]

Hey I've just been reading your thread.

I would absolutely stay away from Armani. Lately his work has been less than desirable with some patients reporting little to no growth (not all...just a few). I don't think that's a chance I'd take. Even with a great FUE procedure he's not getting 95% survival from the grafts. On the other hand, if you normally keep your hair at a 1 or 2 then strip is not going to suit you either. And don't let anyone convince you that you can shave to a 2 without it being noticeable. Maybe it happened once to the luckiest guy in the world but it hasn't since and I wouldn't gamble on it. My advice would be to do exactly what you're doing; get as much info from the docs as possible and then make a decision from there.

I would also try to up your meds. I know you're on finasteride and minoxidil. If your not using Nizoral then I suggest you go that route as well. As far as your minoxidil though I would consider getting on the Xandrox 15% Plus from Dr. Lee at Minoxidil.com. I haven't used it yet but it's been getting a lot of hype on this board as of late and it's worth a try. Whatever you choose I hope it all works out for you.

 

[HT55]

And don't let anyone convince you that you can shave to a 2 without it being noticeable. Maybe it happened once to the luckiest guy in the world but it hasn't since and I wouldn't gamble on it.

You can put Fue grafts into the scar and get a #2 cut

I can almost pull off a #2 now but I find a #2 and a #4 aren't really much of a difference

 

[gr0]

Thanks for the input guy, I've been on nizoral for a long time , I don't think it does anyhting besides keeping my scalp clean. I started using hair cycle shampoo recently aswell. I also do the supplemt thing from immortalhair's site.

I really like the fast drying foam, I can't see myself waiting for the liquid to dry. Someone should make a stronger foam.

I've given up on Armani now, the negativity on the net is overwhelming and the rep never got back to me anyways.

Still undecided as to strip or fue but will most likely go with just fue, I figure I can always shave it down if I don't get the density I want.

As I pasted above cole is claiming 7000 with fue on the average person. So this morning I e-mailed the rep some question bout pricing and dates, right after sending that e-mail I notice a consultation document in one of the previous e-mails where cole states 180cm squared is the average donor size and 80 grafts is the average density. If you do the math with the 40% extraction rule you get just under 6000... So I send off another e-mail right away asking the rep to explain this. Within minutes I get a reply to the first e-mail with prices and dates, but several hours later still no reply about the graft count, figures... Seems cole's rep only interest is to get a down payment asap. I'll resend that second e-mail tomorrow if I don't get answered till then.

Who are the top fue doctors? I want to contact them all, I given up on feller I even called then and they told me to e-mail the photos again. That was 2 days ago and still no response whatsoever. I found out about Dr. Umar just now, will contact him tomorrow.

 

[HT55]

I would not give up on Feller because he is the only Dr performing FUE and Strip who will tell you the truth about FUE. It's oK for some people but IMO you need way too much work for FUE

Try contacting him here, tellhim you think his work sucks and he should be on your casein about 3 mins, LOL Just kidding. PM him or tap right into his thread.

 

[Petchsky]

Or contact spex, his uk rep....don't matter that you're not in the uk, but he can get your photos in front of feller.

 

[PersonGuy]

And don't let anyone convince you that you can shave to a 2 without it being noticeable. Maybe it happened once to the luckiest guy in the world but it hasn't since and I wouldn't gamble on it.

You can put Fue grafts into the scar and get a #2 cut

I can almost pull off a #2 now but I find a #2 and a #4 aren't really much of a difference

HT55 is definitely right about this. I plan to get some FUE into my scar eventually and MAYBE a big maybe touch up the top at the same time.

It sounds like you're doing your research which is good. I had my hair transplant with Feller about 9 months ago. I'm still waiting to report on the recipient area so I'm not going to give you my opinion on it as of yet. Although I will say I expected more at 9 months, but to be fair I'm not saying anything solid until 12 months. The only part that bothers me is the scar, it seems to have stretched but that really can't be blamed on Feller as I had a tight scalp to begin with and so it really depends on the specific person's scalp laxity. Whatever you choose I hope it goes awesome.

 

[gr0]

there's a pretty good video on a scar repair using facial hair by Dr. Umar on YouTube. It's pretty impressive the guy had 2 pretty bad scars and now he can go to a #1 I'm kind of putting that into consideration now

 

[Petchsky]

I'm think about that too, get some FUE done in the strip scar, as long as i can buzz it to a grade 2 i'd be happy.

 

[gr0]

BTW I just pm'd an Armani rep I worked with and that $5 graft is DEFINITLTY for a last minute cancellation rate as it's $7 graft for the for 2,000

apparently not, I just got a msg from the rep saying that there`s an opening in January and there will be a slight discount if I take that date....

I`m calling tomorrow morn to check what the discount is. Also I did not mention that these prices are in Canadian Dollars so the $5 it`s more like $4.00 USD

the pricing is really tempting I have to say, besides it being so cheap if I do the procedure in Canada I can claim it on my taxes and should get $4000-5000 of it back.

but then again I can`t put a price on the lost donor grafts if the yield is bad...

another thing, I booked a consultation with Dr. Cole, I`m gonna be flying down to Atlanta on the 10th, I`ll let you guys know how that goes...

 

[scar5]

I think your strategy regarding FUE only is sound. Stick to it. I can't believe the casual way strip is suggested to you - but that is another thing. I also suggest looking into other FUE surgeons and by-pass the discussion that pits Armaini Vs Strip surgeons. I believe all docs know that Fue yield is lower than strip (even Woods) , but that is a fair tradeoff IMO, and down the track it will tell. Do yourself a favor and don't get talked into drawing a linear line drawn across the back of your head to save bucks.

 

[Devender]

Do yourself a favor and don't get talked into drawing a linear line drawn across the back of your head to save bucks.

I agree.

 

[gr0]

thanks for the input scar and devender , never liked the idea of the scar anyways, the yield difference is not that much of a concern to me , the only thing that of concern is that I could probably get 2000 more grafts in total if I got with strip first...


HT55 you were right about the cancellation rate , I just got off the phone with the rep and he quoted me the exact same price :roll: he said regular is $7

Also I asked that question I was supposed to ask way back about the length of the procedure the number of technicians , for 3200 grafts it`s 7 to 9 hours with 8 technicians

8 technicians!!! I believe Cole is working with 2.

 

[HT55]

Just rememebr Armani was charging $14 graft for Fue 6 months ago and was supposedly backed up for months. Now he cuts his price 50% and even less for a cencellation rate.

Regardless of what anyone tells you his mega FUE is failing and very badly !!! The amount of patients who need touch ups is growing every day.


You only have so many grafts and Fue leaves more scarring than strip, something that could effect future surgery.

I have a strip scar, it's no big deal and I can almost shave a #2, when i throw some FUE in my hairline and scar I will get to a #1