Is the hairline too conservative? (Photos)

I agree with assessment of your doctor. It is very important the natural appearance of the hairline. You cannot have a hairline like you had at teenager age. The age and the face morphology are important. Lower hairline cannot be a good idea.

Thank you for your question and for your photos. An in person consult is best recommended. I would advise you
to schedule a consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon for a
detailed examination to discuss all possible treatment options and what your
expectations are. 

Given the hairline is of greatest concern to most men because it’s the area seen the most, physicians consider the following factors closely when developing a hairline restoration plan:
AgeFacial StructureExisting HairlineQuality of HairLong-Term GoalsTreatment plans are developed based on your personal hair restoration goals.Best, Anil Shah

An age-appropriate and ethnicity-appropriate hairlines is crucial for a good cosmetic result after FUE hairline reconstruction. The design depends on surgeon and patient preference/goals and the proposed number of FUE grafts.

Your doctors opinion seems very reasonable, given your current facial structure and age. You must design a hairline that sits naturally over a matured facial morphology. Often a hairline redesign that looks too conservative on paper turns out to be abundantly rich post-op. It’s also not merely where you draw the line that counts, but the surgeons artistic prowess and technical capability, so be sure you are going with someone who is a specialist and a veteran in the field.

It depends a great deal on your age, your anticipated future hair loss, your family history of hair  loss and your donor area.  Being aggressive with the hairline can set you up for failure later in life.  Furthermore, the hair style you choose often conceals the hairline location so grafting lower is often a waste of money and grafts.  It never hurts to be more conservative.  you can always build a lower hairline.  It is much more complicated to elevate a hairline if this needs to be done later in life.

A slightly higher natural appearing hairline is better than a unnatural lower hairline any day.  It also depends on many other factors including but not limited to facial features and shape, age of patient, family history of hair loss and patient expectations. You do also have some temporal recession that could have been addressed on a conservative basis.

Everyone's goals and expectations are different and seeing a photo cannot determine if the hairline is natural. It may be best to seek a second opinion with a doctor in person who can examine you.

The goal of a hair transplant is to provide fuller coverage while preserving a natural appearance. An assessment takes into account such factors as the apparent thickness and curl of your donor hairs, the color contrast between your scalp and hair, your hair loss pattern, your age, and many other factors. The state of the art technique is FUE (follicular unit extraction), performed with a hybrid blunt punch that minimizes graft transection to less than 4% while allowing for the use of the smallest possible punches to minimize donor site scarring while maximizing regrowth.
With FUE, the back and usually the sides of the head will be shaved down. Sometimes patients have a partial shave in which just the lower half of the back of the head is shaved, which either can be covered up by somewhat longer hair above it or if you have shorter hair it looks just like you had a “fade” hairstyle.  A no-shave FUE technique is also possible.
In your situation, I believe the hairline projections are appropriate. They look natural, and it is better to be modest and add more later on than to add too many grafts and have the hairline look unnatural. 

Gary Linkov, MD
Hair Specialist
Manhattan

I agree with the hairline placement. An average hairline is about 3-4 inches above the mid brow. It is better to be conservative as a hairline can always be lowered slightly in a subsequent procedure however if it is placed too low initially than it is very difficult to correct.