3395 Grafts Fue Grafts Dr B I S A N G A, Belgium

jayboy61

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Hi,

I've been a silent member for a little over a year now and used this forum to gain knowledge and understanting to help me make my choice in having a hair transplant, so i thought it was only right i share my experience:

I started noticing i was losing my hair around 5 years ago, i made a bad mistake in putting it to the back of mind and trying to completely ignore it.... 2 years into my loss i made the decision to contact a well known clinic in the UK to try and do something about it, they prescribed me minoxidil and propecia which i would pay on a monthly basis (at a hefty price), i did this for a few months didnt notice much difference and decided it wasn't worth the cost, if only i found this forum back then i would have stayed on propecia and saved a huge amount of loss!

Fast forward to the begining of August 2017 and now with a rapidly receding hairline and mid scalp i decided i needed to really make an effort to save what i had, i found this forum and began looking into hair transplants and doctors. This was a minefield for me, i never really knew how many different surgeons there was and how the level of skill contributed to the final result! After months of researching i narrowed my search down to 2 doctors; Dr Ferudini and Dr B. I emailed both doctors my pictures and began exchanging emails straight away, both Dr F and Dr B's representatives were extremely helpful and quick with their responses. After a few exchanges with Hilde who is part of Dr B's team i felt really confortable and liked what they had to say, the Doctor had suggested rebuiling the frontal area and adding good density with between 2500-3000 grafts. They also had availibility within 5 months of me contacting them whereas Dr F had an extremely long waiting, so i booked my slot for surgery for January 23rd/24th 2018.

Once it was booked and with a lot more knowledge i finally made the decision i should have made years ago and ordered finasteride, i started taking it around early October and with the only sides being a slight bit of brain fog i have stayed on it ever since. To make things worse around 3 months into taking 1mg a day i noticed my hair was not only improving in both thickness and quality but i was growing lots of little new hairs around the hairline and temples, if only i'd stayed on it all those years ago!!

The Surgery

I booked my eurostar train from London to Brussels the day before my surgery so i could have my pre-surgery consultation with Dr B, as soon as i met him i felt comfortable with my choice and was happy to be there. The consulation was extremely informative and after Dr B had carried out all his checks, drawn my new hairline for me to see and then taken all my pics i had my bloods taken and went back to hotel to relax ready for the big two days ahead.. now i wont bore everyone with all the fine details about the surgery but it went really well, was tough at times espcially the numbing injections but overall it was fine and i couldnt wait to get home!

I will try and keep updating as much as possible as long as people are interested that is!

My breakdown was:

1's: 591
2's: 1307
3's: 1411
4's: 86

Total grafts: 3395.

I'm on day 14 now and have started slightly shredding which i'm absolutely dreading, fingers crossed for good growth!

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Rocknroutlaw

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Thank you for sharing this. Your hairline design looks great!
Would you mind if I ask...what was the fee scale? I was informed :
For the FUE procedure, €5/graft for the first 1000 grafts and 3€/graft for the additional grafts.
For FUT, 3€/graft for the first 2000 grafts and 2€/graft for the additional grafts.
Does this sound right?
Were you offered the non-shave option?
It appears that you did not have any thinning across the top section at all. What was your Norwood scale pre-op please?
Were you bothered by the pain during the procedure at all?
Please keep us updated on your progress.
 

jayboy61

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Thank you for sharing this. Your hairline design looks great!
Would you mind if I ask...what was the fee scale? I was informed :
For the FUE procedure, €5/graft for the first 1000 grafts and 3€/graft for the additional grafts.
For FUT, 3€/graft for the first 2000 grafts and 2€/graft for the additional grafts.
Does this sound right?
Were you offered the non-shave option?
It appears that you did not have any thinning across the top section at all. What was your Norwood scale pre-op please?
Were you bothered by the pain during the procedure at all?
Please keep us updated on your progress.

Thanks! I'm really happy with the hairline design.
Yep those prices sound exactly what I was quoted and charged.
I didn't have the conversation about shaving as it wasn't something that bothered me, Ive had so many compliments on how good my hair looks short.
I do have some thinning across the top section however the 4 months on meds seem to have thickened it up.
I'm not 100% sure but I'd say a Norwood 3 or nearer a 4, I'm sure others on here can tell better than me.
For me the only bad sides of surgery was the numbing injections which for me hurt a lot and I'm usually good with pain I've had multiple tattoos and the time having to sit still as I'm really not good at staying in one position!
Other than that it was fine and I'm happy so far.
 

Rocknroutlaw

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I won't lie. I am terrified of all aspects of the procedure. I would like to keep my hair long, and FUT seems like what I will opt for.
I guess you barely felt the implanting after the numbing injection. I'm also terrified of needles... I suppose in order to numb the frontal 1/3, injection was on the forehead? was there also one at the back?
 

jayboy61

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I won't lie. I am terrified of all aspects of the procedure. I would like to keep my hair long, and FUT seems like what I will opt for.
I guess you barely felt the implanting after the numbing injection. I'm also terrified of needles... I suppose in order to numb the frontal 1/3, injection was on the forehead? was there also one at the back?

I can honestly say it sounds far worse than actually is, they also provide a calming tablet to place under your tongue at the start.
Yes injections in the back to numb the donor by the nurse, Dr B then does the punching and then injections in the recipient area for Dr B to do the incisions.
 

jayboy61

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little update..

Day 19 and the shed is in full swing, I'd say I've lost around 40% of the transplanted hairs. Hard to tell which is my original hair and which is the transplanted hair though.
Donor seems to have healed fine apart from some minor itching.
Will post some more pics at the 1 month mark.
 

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Rocknroutlaw

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The old shedding...always makes you wonder. I guess it's in a way similar to the starting stages of Finasteride/Minoxidil when you see wispy hair and it makes you wonder if it's new growth or further miniaturisation.
Fingers crossed for good result! I'm becoming more keen on proceeding with Dr. B.
 

jayboy61

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The old shedding...always makes you wonder. I guess it's in a way similar to the starting stages of Finasteride/Minoxidil when you see wispy hair and it makes you wonder if it's new growth or further miniaturisation.
Fingers crossed for good result! I'm becoming more keen on proceeding with Dr. B.

Yeah the part we all dread, you never really know how you're going to feel until it happens though. Coped well with the buzzed head with a new hairline but can already feel a drop of confidence now! Anyway I'll hang on in there...
He's definitely worth contacting and finding out what he thinks is best for you.
 

vegetassj

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Thank you!

I am also evaluating between B and F! The representatives at F told me that 4-5 month is the current waiting list, so that sounds a bit strange to me.

Couple of questions hope you dont mind answering :)
How old are you? When you get back to work? Do you have or had any redness It looks fine for now? Any further pre op pics? Did you only send the pics online, no „offline“ check before?
 

jayboy61

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Thank you!

I am also evaluating between B and F! The representatives at F told me that 4-5 month is the current waiting list, so that sounds a bit strange to me.

Couple of questions hope you dont mind answering :)
How old are you? When you get back to work? Do you have or had any redness It looks fine for now? Any further pre op pics? Did you only send the pics online, no „offline“ check before?

I think I remember F's representatives saying it was a 9 month waiting list for a consultation which is also put me off as I knew I would struggle to get to Belgium for one anyway and at that the time the waiting list for the procedure was longer than B's.
I'll be 30 next month.
I had roughly two weeks off, procedure was Tuesday and Wednesday then had the following week off and went back on the following Monday.
The redness really showed for the first 15 days or so but has now died down to just a faint shadow, the more the hair sheds around the hairline I can see the red tinge still though, been using emu oil as well as a spray aloe Vera which I use 3/4 times a day whilst at work.
I'll have a look through to see if I have anymore pre op pics, pics of my original hair do you mean?
Yes all my consulting was done online and I was then booked in for a pre op consultation the day before, you can go and see Dr B before but I just didn't have the time.
Any other questions feel free to ask.
 

Rocknroutlaw

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So I seem to have noticed some shock loss this morning... :(

Interestingly, I have seen others' pics who also experienced some visible 'empty' spots above the ears, but those were FUTs. I wonder whether it's actually shock loss, or could it simply be the slight gap left from the strip removal which became visible?
I'd say if it's just above the ears, your sides could eventually cover it up anyway...more importantly, the shock loss doesn't occur to your native hair at the frontal third where the incisions were carried out, or anywhere else due to the depleted blood supply as a result of anesthetics?
Hang in there.
 
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jayboy61

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Just a little update...

2 days before the 1 month mark, took some pics today as I'm going to buzz the hair down short tonight to get a more uniformed look.
Everything seems fine, only downs are a terrible itchy and flakey scalp but seems to be better with the use of aloe vera.
Shedding seems to have slowed the past few days and some of the transplanted hairs seem to be growing with my original hair so fingers crossed will hold onto them.
 

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Rocknroutlaw

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Thanks for the update. Nice to see growth, and even better to be able to differentiate between native hair and new grafts.
Just curious...did Dr. B's team advise on any methods/products/supplements to speed up hair growth, or any other post-op care procedures?
During my consultation I expressed concerns with shaving, and they mention they would provide advise on how to promote growth...
 

jayboy61

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Thanks for the update. Nice to see growth, and even better to be able to differentiate between native hair and new grafts.
Just curious...did Dr. B's team advise on any methods/products/supplements to speed up hair growth, or any other post-op care procedures?
During my consultation I expressed concerns with shaving, and they mention they would provide advise on how to promote growth...

I did receive an email on my way home which had an aftercare attachment with it, it had hints and tips on diet, supplements and other methods to help make sure you have the best chance of a successful transplant. MSM tablets and a brand of shampoo named 'FAST' apparently help with regrowth, I used both and can say that my hair did grow really quick until I buzzed it back down to a 1 last night.
 

Trichosan

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Did Dr. B request blood test on you prior to surgery? If one was wanting to take any supplements to maximize healing, it seems a logical step to know what your body might need or be deficient in. In general, A, C, D, E vitamins and calcium helps this sort of thing. And feeding anything additional, the body a couple weeks or month prior to surgery would be good. Might be a concern over too much E and hemostasis though so run idea through the doctor first.
 

jayboy61

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A picture update just shy of the 6 week mark...

most hair seems to have shed but I am finding it difficult to distinguish between native hair and transplanted hair.
 

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