Hello all,
Please excuse me, if my post is not correct, and pls. do correct me.

I am new to this forum but not so new to this problem and I am new to San Diego.

I have been reading this forum for some time now, and was researching on good doctors in and around San Diego. Looking for HT within my budget , I am told… I may require around 2500 (my case is around 5A).

But, after reading all your comment on Dr. Wong (Vancouver), I was considering if I can afford his services. I know it is difficult to say how much it will cost, but does some one have a rough estimate as to how much do they charge, also do they reimburse the travel expenses ?

Regards
New@SD

New@SD,

Thanks for considering Dr. Wong and H&W. We have many patients that come to Vancouver from Southern California. We charge 5.00 per graft up to the first 2000 grafts in a session. If you have more than 2000 grafts then the additional grafts are 3.00 each.

There is a 5% federal tax but to help out with that we do offer a travel reimbursement program for all of our international patients that allows us to deduct half of your airfare from the cost of your procedure up to 400.00. We also pay for two nights lodging while you are with us.

If you have further questions I suggest you contact the office so we can discuss this further.

Dear fellow 5A.....

Have you checked out this link to the Norton scale? http://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/Hair-Loss-Treatments/hair-surgery.asp

I just had a little over 2500 myself, and I'll probably need another 2,000 or so in the future if I don't want to have a thinning look. Why am I writing this? I learned that doctors have different philosophies regarding session sizes; and if you could really use 4,000 some will recommend 2500. Not that they are wrong, but a couple of factors play into it, imo.

First, some clinics "max out" at around 2500 so that's what they do.

Second, some doctors think it's best to go with a couple sessions rather than a 'mega'.

Third, being a 5A you might need more than just 2500, so going with a mega-session dr. might be best if you have the finances. But, from what I've seen Dr. Wong is an excellent choice no matter the size of the session. But, I think session size is a personal choice.

I'm not in the industry so this is just an opinion. Five months ago I didn't know jack....

Hi Jotronic,
Thanks, I will do that.

Hi Dewayne,
Thanks for the information that was helpful. Monetary wise I was wondering if I should opt for doing it in installments? :-) …will that cause any ill effects ?

I had been to just one consultation.. and I was told, I am at 5A as per Norwood-Hamilton Scale. I am having hard time coming to terms with that :-) will post my photos soon ...hope to hear I am not :-D

Whether to finance or not will bring about as many opinions as number of grafts, but as someone with thinning hair AND a job as a financial planner; I'll chime in on this.

First, don't do anything to get yourself in trouble financially. Try and do without something like a new car, etc.

Second, a hair transplant in 2008 is a hell of an investment, imo. A lot better than a 2008 Chevy Tahoe, Maxima, 4-wheeler, etc.

Third, you can get a better deal paying in cash so if you've got a credit card offering 12-months no interest, etc., it might be worth a look.

I am of the school of thought that you'll most likely improve your earning power (by way of confidence and other things) over the next few years that will more than pay for any interest you've paid.

With all that said, again it's not worth staying awake at night wondering how you'll pay 21% interest. If you're young, start saving like hell now.

SD-

If you're NW5 and you're wanting anything close to being restored, i.e. having the appearance of a pretty full head of hair, you'll need at least 5000 grafts. I was NW5 before any HT's, just had my 3rd HT giving me 7501 grafts, and when grown in, my hair will be pretty much restored but I'll still have a little bit of a thin look at the very base of my crown.

I don't know any of your history and don't want to make blind recommendations to you so if you can share your age and post some pics it would help.

As for Dr. Wong, I'm partial since he did my last two HT's but take a look at my blog and the work........it's top notch. I can tell you this, he does the MOST, with the LEAST number of grafts that I've seen, IMO. In other words, he seems to have the ability to make a 3000-4000 graft session look like alot more.

As for cost, within reason, H&W is about the same cost as any of the others. Most will give you a big discount when you go over 2000 grafts, and it sounds like you're thinking you'll need to.

Hope this helps!

Hi Dewayne,
Thanks for the valuable advice, it does make sense.
I am 31yrs old, will get married in about 6+months, Definitely not a rich guy :-)
Ah, about looking for some deal from credit card company.. I need to look in to that.
I will be attaching the photos shortly…
Regards
New@SD

Hi hairbank,
Well, I am 31years old. My dad’s side and my mom’s side relatives did not have this kind of hair loss. My dad had absolutely no hair loss at this age. My maternal uncles still have perfect hair.
I started losing about 10years back, and I did nothing.. just 2-3 months back I started using Rogain, but haven’t seen any improvement.

I have uploaded few photos, I am sorry it’s low resolution as I had to use the Web Cam (with live feed makes it easy to see the image and click). I did not moisten the hair, cropped the hair to spread evenly camouflaging the scalp.

Next week I have a consultation, need to see if they too categorize me in 5A.

Regards,
New@SD

Picture.JPG (58 Kb, 37 downloads) is_it_5A

new_at_SD,

Welcome to our forum.

According to your last picture, it appears that you have a norwood 5A or even a 6 pattern, which is exactly where I was. If it wasn't for hair transplantation, I'd be completely bald by now. I'm also 31 years old.

Firstly, because it appears that a lot of your hair on top is miniaturizing, consult with a physician and consider gettong on Propecia (finasteride) asap. This may help stop your existing hair loss and possibly even stimulate hair regrowth. If you don't mind the regime, consider using Rogaine as an adjunct treatment which is a growth stimulator.

I would personally consider using these for a good 6 months to a year to see how these help you before considering a hair transplant.

Though I wouldn't expect a miracle, at the very least, hopefully they will help stabilize your hair loss and strengthen the existing miniaturizing ones which will minimize the risk of permanent shock loss to these dying hairs.

I hope this helps.

Falc