Much of a man’s mojo is in his hair. Ever notice how the presidential candidate who’s got more of it tends to win? Dr. Robert Bernstein has. A Columbia University clinical professor of dermatology and a pioneer in the world of hair-replacement surgery, Bernstein has made a name for himself treating bigwigs (excuse the pun) from around the world. If his East 55th Street office in Manhattan is closed on a weekday morning, it could be because he’s doing a discreet consultation with one of his VIP clients from the world of fashion and entertainment—or maybe even a politico looking to puff up his mane. “Celebrities are very matter-of-fact about it,” he says. “It’s a business decision, so sometimes we need to be a little more aggressive. In 1995, Bernstein wrote a game-changing paper on follicular unit transplantation, a hair-grafting technique that’s now partly performed by robots in a handful of operating rooms worldwide—including his own. But despite his expertise, the 59-year-old specialist doesn’t always recommend surgical intervention. Hell, he’s bald himself. (He grew into the look back in the days when the only other option was bad hair plugs.) “Surgery is a personal option and a serious business, so I don’t oversell it,” Bernstein says. Baldness, he points out, can be inherited from either the mother’s or father’s side, and medicine (like Propecia or Rogaine) is in many cases the most effective preventive measure. Some patients, of course, come in expecting too much. “One thing I laugh about is patients bringing in a pile of childhood or teenage pictures,” Bernstein says. Some hairs even this wonder-worker can’t bring back.

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