I Had 4 Different Surgeons Give Me 4 Wildly Different Assessments of My Donor Area

Hello Doctor
I am having consultations with well respected surgeons in Europe. I’ve had two strip HTs in the past and i’m looking into another one. What astounds me is the very diverse opinions i’m getting regarding my donor area supply for another strip. One surgeon tells me it is depleted, another tells me it can yield no more than 1000 grafts, another one tells me i could have as much as 1300, the other one claims he can safely extract at least 2000 – 2200 grafts, and the last one claims i could have 800 grafts but it comes with risk.

I understand that the donor assessment is quite simple elasticity + density + strip size. Shouldn’t there be more or less unanimity on how much grafts can be extracted? How come i get such diverse opinions?

The answer is simple — there is no formal training that hair transplant doctors go through, so their experience and assessment can be highly variable (as well as their credentials).

Another possibility for the large graft range difference could be that some doctors are not equipped to do a 2200 graft case, and may only be able to do a 800 graft case (having less experienced staff or skills).

Out of curiosity, if you previously had two hair transplant surgeries and the results were satisfactory, why did you consult with four different doctors for your next procedure? My point being, if you were perfectly happy with the first surgeon and you trust him/her, wouldn’t you go back to the same surgeon?