lately, as i have become more obsessive and immersed in the the hair loss world , i have taken to reading old posts here and elsewhere and have noticed a very familiar trend...the online buzz.
At various stages over the past 4/5 years certain doctors will be talked up to the high heavens, regularly appear on the top 3/5 personal preference list of various posters of the time and then drop back into the pack to be replaced by the new buzz doctors of the month.
A couple, like h+w,have a consistantly high buzz factor and right now i think dr rahal is the current online hair loss flavour of the month/year doctor(and with good reason)
Its just funny in that for example dr nagkatsui, another canadian coalition physican, who is in my opinion equally as talented as dr rahal but has an almost zero online buzz factor.

All just a casual observation.

i guess it all depends on how many of these Dr. s patients participate in the online forums.....and how often the docs post pictures and add comment to subjects...

Hey josh-b,
They call it the ebb & flow,But like wanthairs said if more of these Dr's and their patients would show more of their work and up-date their websites they would have a bigger piece of the pie.

Let's not forget that some doctors have been buzz worthy for many years, while others are just becoming noticed--- ala Dr. Rahal who has been doing great work for some time now, but only in the last 6-8months has been sort of universally recognized.

Take Care,
Jason

I think *partial* credit for buzz is the ebb and flow of "showcase" patients that happen to be walking through a doctor's doors. Rahal, for instance, undoubtably does premier work, and he deserves a *very* lofty placing on a Who's The Best list; but, I've noticed that a lot of his patients that I've seen had really good inherent qualities, that combined with his skill produced results that draw the envy of the follicularly challenged.

Very True.

It's also just luck I guess as well. Look at how many people are acutally active contributors on here as well. Not too many from Dr. True although, he in my opinion is a great , top doc. There are many satisfied patients out there who just don't belong to the forum. At the end of the day , the BUZZ is just information which someone can use to seek a qualified doc. It should not be a substitute for meeting them in person and doing other research.

Josh,

You bring up a great point!

This is something I recently wrote and posted on another thread:

There are a number of our physicians (Coalition and Recommended) at the Hair Transplant Network that do NOT regularly use the internet to present patient results. Though this is a shame in my opinion, it does not mean they do poor quality work. Coalition and recommended physicians alike are reviewed on an annual basis and those who cannot produce evidence of quality work at least privately are promptly removed from our network.

I recognize that it is IDEAL that our patient community see photos from these physicians and their patients on a regular basis. Getting our physicians involved in our online community has been a long uphill battle that Pat has had to fight alone for a long time. With my help this year, we will at least be able to double our efforts.

Do NOT buy into the hype that the the physicians who discussed the most and that show the most readily available online patient results are the ONLY excellent physicians. Many physicians who have not yet used the internet to its full potential to promote themselves online are sadly falling behind in popularity while others are gaining all the glory!

Once again, however, it is up to the seeking patient to do their due dilgence in researching physicians they are considering. Research is key to ensure a successful hair transplant experience.

Falc