Balding occurs to some extent in two-thirds of all men and a smaller percentage of women. Heredity, hormonal factors and age are the three most important factors in determining hair loss. Thinning and receding of the hair is progressive throughout life.

How a person sees himself and how others see him are important to his self-esteem and to his success in life. Our society emphasizes having hair and having a youthful appearance in general. Thus, many methods for treating or covering baldness have been developed.

The technique of hair transplantation was developed in the mid 1950s. Women as well as men can have successful hair transplantation. Better techniques have been developed and today we can offer a very natural, virtually undetectable hair transplantation.

Before the procedure is scheduled the doctor and surgical staff meet with you to talk about your personal goals and outline the best possible program for you, taking into account your family history, present age and donor area. At this time the surgical plan and costs are discussed. A good hair transplant surgeon must have an artistic bent as well as the foresight to plan for future hair loss. We ask that you go home and think about what we discussed and the step you are about to take. It is very important that you feel comfortable with your surgeon since this is an on-going process and we are going to be friends for many years to come.

Once you have decided on Hair Transplantation please call us at least one month prior to your surgery to set up your surgical date. A pre-operative appointment should be made at that time and we will go over pre-operative and post-operative instructions, draw blood for lab work and give needed prescriptions.

You will be given a mild sedative. This virtually eliminates discomfort and anxiety.

We will excise the donor area from the back of your scalp. This area will be closed with surgical staples. We ask that you let your hair grow before the procedure to about 1 to 1 ½ inches so the staples will be undetect- able. The staples are removed in one week.

Our staff prepares the tiny grafts using dissecting microscopes. The grafts will range from 1 to 5 hairs.

While the grafts are being prepared the doctor and nurse start the placement of your grafts into the previously agreed-upon areas. This whole process is virtually painless.

When the procedure is finished you will have on a gauze coated with antibiotic ointment covered by a surgeon's cap. You will need to be driven home by a family member, friend or taxi. (Make these arrange- ments prior to your surgery.)

The next morning you can remove the cap and bandage and wash your hair in the shower. You will be given a special shampoo to use for a few days. You may blow dry and style your hair using a minimal amount of hair spray. You may also return to work the next day if you have an inside, air-conditioned job. If you work outside in the heat we ask that you not return to work for about 3 days.

We use a combination of 1-5 hair grafts, whose size, number and distribution depend on the patient and his needs. Only single hair grafts are used in the front hair line, with larger grafts behind them to give volume, while still maintaining a perfectly natural look.

A minimal amount of crust may form around a few of the grafts. This is generally removed with the shampoo, but for any crust that still remains you may dip a cotton swab in hydrogen peroxide 3% and gently loosen and remove it. The antibiotic ointment we give you should be applied to soften the crusts and keep the grafts moist for a few days. If you are currently wearing a hair piece, you may continue to do so but must remove it nightly and shampoo your scalp to prevent infection. No stren- uous exercise, straining, jogging, or heavy lifting for the first week. This is to prevent the grafts from popping out, perspiration, and bacterial infection which could cause the grafts to die.

The transplanted follicles are shocked into a "resting phase" for about three months. The new generation of hair appears after that time and grows at the usual rate of 1 centimeter a month. When a large number of grafts are placed in the frontal area of the scalp, there is the possibility of slight swelling of the forehead. To help prevent this you should use ice packs on the forehead and grafted area as much as possible for the first 48 hours. You will also be given a cortisone medication to help prevent swelling.

Some men have a large bald area that is too large to cover thickly with the available donor hair. These patients have the following options:

• Surgically remove or reduce some of the bald area in the back of the scalp. The scalp reduction may be repeated in order to remove even more bald area. The resulting smaller area can then be covered with available hair.
• The hair is transplanted only in the front half of the scalp leaving the back unchanged. This frontal forelock frames the face and removes the bald look from the front.
• The frontal area is transplanted as in option 2 and the area in the back is thinly covered with transplanted grafts.

In general men require a minimum of four hair transplant session for optimal density. We charge by the session with each session ranging from 400 to 600 grafts, 600 to 800 grafts, 800 to 1000 grafts, and 1000 to 1500 grafts. The smaller sessions are for men that are just beginning to recede or have a smaller area to treat, and the larger sessions are for the patient who wants the complete scalp transplanted.

The transplanted follicles are shocked into a "resting phase" for about three months. The new generation of hair appears after that time and grows at the usual rate of 1 centimeter a month. When a large number of grafts are placed in the frontal area of the scalp, there is the possibility of slight swelling of the forehead. To help prevent this you should use ice packs on the forehead and grafted area as much as possible for the first 48 hours. You will also be given a cortisone medication to help prevent swelling.

No. With the smaller grafts there is virtually no pain during the procedure and only an occasional headache afterwards. Patients are always pleas- antly surprised.

The minimal amount of time is 12 months, but this also depends if you come in for your sessions every four months, or postpone them for longer periods of time. Longer intervals are sometimes necessary due to a patient's time or financial restraints.

The average age is 30-50 years old. The majority of our patients are very high profile people, such as bankers, sales persons, lawyers, doctors, dentists, professional athletes; a lot of our patients you see on T.V. on a regular basis. (Note: These are people who can afford to go to any doctor they choose. I believe this says a lot for our workmanship and our professionalism.) We also have a lot of young businessmen just starting their careers. We do not like to start any patient younger than 25, because their hairline has not receded to a degree that we can predict how much they will need.

The donor hair is taken from an area of the scalp that is genetically programmed not to lose its hair. As long as you follow our post-op care program and do not let the grafts get infected in the first few weeks, the hair follicles will grow forever.

In most cases, the patient can return to work the next day. However, most people wait 10 days before returning to heavy or strenuous exer- cise, i.e., jogging, weight lifting, or athletics.

The hair grafts go into a dormant stage for about three months but then grow about 1/3 of an inch a month. If you have sessions four months apart you should have good hair coverage in one year.

The cost depends on how much coverage is desired. We do a minimum of 400 grafts per session. We charge by the session, not by the graft. You can decide how many you want and how far apart your sessions are. We feel our prices are very competitive and our results are exceptional.