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~1600 FUE Dr. Konior on Sept 7, 2017


TimeForAction

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Hello all,

 

I wanted to start a thread commemorating my fantastic surgical experience with Dr. Raymond Konior on September 7, 2017.

 

I had a thread previously regarding my consult experiences, my goal was FUE from the start given my desire to keep my hair short....see previous thread here:

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/184106-compare-your-consult-docs-thanks.html

 

Consult

 

That was prior to my consult with Dr. Konior. I went to visit Dr. K in December of 2016 and thoroughly enjoyed his demeanor and knowledge of the field. He was at the end of a long surgical day but took more than an hour with me chatting. As a physician myself, I appreciated his CLEAR expertise on the subject matter of SURGICAL hair restoration, be it FUT or his approach to FUE. He took time to actually analyze my donor hair, explaining that the donor hair characteristics and ability to obtain the graft with proper surgical technique (be it FUE or FUT) were the keys to a successful hair transplant. This made a lot of sense to me.

 

He did not draw a hair line but gave an explanation and general idea on his philosophy in the recipient zone, commented that I had a good look even with my current hair loss, and offered another potential tool to combat hair loss in the interim. He offered 2000 FUE to address my hair loss, but to take my time to think about it.

 

His candid approach, his incredible knowledge of the science of hair, obvious expertise regarding surgical skill/technique, and reputation/experience led me to walking out of that office knowing that Dr. Konior was the doc for me. I didn't really need any further time to think about it, and booked with him but i had to wait until September 7, 2017, approx 9 months.

 

I am now 14 days postop and things are going well.

 

I will post more tomorrow regarding the day of my surgery, as well as obtain pics and specifics from Dr. Konior to share with you all.....he offered to provide last weekend, but I did not have time to follow up, so bear with me on those...

Edited by TimeForAction
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Sorry for the delay guys, things got a bit busy over the weekend.

 

Surgical Plan

 

 

In any case, I traveled to Chicago the day before the surgery and on the way there, I was quite pleased when the office called to inform me that Dr. Konior wanted to meet with me at 5pm the day before, to discuss the plan.

 

At this preop visit, I went over preop instructions with his excellent staff, and I was met with a warm handshake by. Dr. Konior. We basically chatted about how the surgical day would be setup, and what I should expect. He asked me what I wished to accomplish with this HT.

 

At my prior consult, we had talked about 2000 FUE, without specifics, as the Doc had mentioned a variety of coverage possibilities. Given that no hairline had been drawn during the consult, that had made me a bit nervous in the buildup- but now I could see why. Nine months had passed and my goals for this HT had changed dramatically thanks to the knowledge I had learned from reading the forums. Nine months prior, I was dreaming of large FUE session of 5000 grafts by Dr. Erdogan. Nine months prior, I was imagining a hairline 0.5 cm lower than what consultants had drawn on me. After months of thought, now all I wanted was a solid hairline to frame my face, first and foremost, so that I could stop spending so much time using dermatch. He said he could do that. I explained to him that I wanted to continue to keep my hair machine short, understanding that given my significant hair loss, I knew I would need to continue to use dermatch over the crown. I told him the crown bothered me, but that I did not expect anything more than some grafts anteriorly to help blend in dermatch, given my significant crown loss.

 

Well my impression is that Dr. Konior definitely aims to satisfy your wishes (after all, it is YOUR cosmetic procedure), but also uses his expert knowledge and judgement for the patient good and to set realistic expectations. Pretty much the way it should be!

 

Ultimately, I asked him point blank how he would do it. He said smaller, frequent sessions to gauge stepwise outcome/density and donor supply allowing for recovery time. One thing he said that really caught my attention....his patients who are in their 70s and want a NOW result, but someone like myself who has time to follow a carefully laid out surgical plan. This really caught my attention, because it made a lot of sense to me as a physician. Suddenly, I felt a great sense of relief knowing that tomorrows surgery was not going to be the 'finale' in my hair loss journey, Suddenly, I understood all those posts from the HT gurus who stated that it is a 'journey.' What scared me before, was now reassuring, especially as I sat in front of the highly respected Dr. K.

 

So I found myself countering with 'lets just do 1500 in the front then, and reassess.' A far cry from the 5000 I was dreaming of 1 year prior. Or even the 2000+ I had planned to do before I came to Chicago.

 

I was and remain fully confident that I came to the right decision, with the help of Dr. K.:)

Edited by TimeForAction
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Surgery

 

I was super excited the day had finally come, and of our conversation the night before. Had a light breakfast and followed the preop instructions exactly. I arrived at the office, was met by the wonderful surgical staff. Two variations of a hairline were drawn by. Dr. Konior, valium was given, pictures were taken, head was shaved, and off to the surgical suite we went.

 

In all honesty, the surgery itself was a breeze. Thanks to the meds, and the fact that I was exhausted from work/travel, I literally slept most of the day, in fact I would go as far as saying the day was restful, of course the 3 doses of valium played a big role in this. ;) The only uncomfortable part for myself was when the donor had to be extracted from the center back of my head, just due to head and neck positioning. Doc had warned me that this would be the worst part the day before, and he was right. I was very happy when that was over and we moved on to donor extractions from the side of the head, and I could rest my neck. The numbing injections really didn't bother me. Just felt like many tiny pin pricks that were over pretty quickly.

 

Dr. Konior was involved in the entire procedure of course. I think we finished around 5pm. He was really excited and felt the operation went very well, giving great words of encouragement. It was SO reassuring to know that he was there the entire procedure and controlled all aspects of the surgery. This element cannot be understated.

 

Postop I looked at my head and what looked back at me was exactly the pics I had seen on these forums. A scalp that looked incredibly clean despite undergoing a full day of surgery. In fact, one would be hard pressed to say that I had even undergone a surgery! .....save for the dressing that remained over the donor area. :P

 

I left the clinic feeling satisfied and amazed that the day had come and gone so effortlessly. Having seen many surgeries and postop wounds during my days in residency training, I went to the hotel and looked in the mirror and marveled at the good Doc's postop work- such high quality and indicative of a surgeon with master technical skill.

 

Attached are pre and postop pics.

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POD 24

I am POD 24 in these pics. These are taken in very bright artificial light. I have not had a haircut yet.

 

Regarding recipient, most of transplanted hair (80%) has fallen I would say with some minor shock loss just behind the new hairline. Not a big deal. Redness is really minimal right at the front of the hairline and gradually fading, otherwise completely gone elsewhere from what I can tell . Probably the biggest thing I have noticed in the recipient zone is a very dry scalp and I have been aloeing more frequently. Dr. K feels most likely due to sebaceous gland issues that he would expect to resolve within 4 months, and he has never had a patient experience long term dryness.

 

Regarding the donor, it is a bit thinner on the right side of my head than the left, but that could just be how the hair grows. There is a spot posteriorly that seems to have a bit of shock loss. Dr. K mentions that regrowth should occur in coordination with graft regrowth as the dormancy process has the same etiology and physiological response.

 

 

Most exciting is that I have the go ahead to have a machine haircut which I will do in a few days, the sides are driving me crazy as they have not been this long in years! Looking forward to the haircut, and will take photos right after to post.

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  • Senior Member

Awesome! Thanks for continuing to update us on your experience and progress. It's no secret the Dr. Konior enjoys a stellar reputation for this skill and patient care. I'm sure you'll be impressed with the final result when it's all said and done.

 

 

 

Best of luck!

David - Former Forum Co-Moderator and Editorial Assistant

 

I am not a medical professional. All opinions are my own and my advice should not constitute as medical advice.

 

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • Regular Member

sorry its been a while as I have been busy with work

 

these photos were taken at day 30 after my first haircut postop.

 

As you can see i buzzed down to a #1 on the sides and it looks fine, a little thin in spots though it might be bright lighting effect and no chance anyone can tell ....any thinning I expect that gradually improve after 3 months. So I am very satisfied with this aspect, as maintaining my ability to buzz down without any obvious scars was the main goal after my surgery, even if I had ZERO growth on top.

 

Speaking of on top, it is buzzed down to #2. In these pics I have lost approx 80 percent of the transplanted hairs I would estimate. Some minimal redness right at the hairline. I stopped needing any advil/tylenol around this time as well, no further discomfort. Sensation on top is gradually improving.

 

Overall, I am very close to my preop stage now, without any significant complications or nagging side effects, so it was a quick recovery really.

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Wow, that’s awesome that you are able to buzz your hair that short with no signs of scarring. No matter what happens down the road, you always will be able to buzz it down short and look good. The worst days are behind you. I would just keep it short until the growth starts. You look good with a buzzed haircut and have a good head shape for it. I can’t wait to see your pictures at 6 months You made a great decision to go to Dr. Konior. Congratulations

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  • 3 months later...
  • Regular Member

Thanks for the encouraging replies everyone..

 

Sorry for the long time between posts, I got busy with the holiday and then life, work especially.

 

Wanted to post a quick update set of pics, these were taken Jan 15 so just over 4 months postop...

 

These photos are directly after a buzzcut, and I just decided what the heck, let me buzz it right down.

 

So this is a #2 on top and a 0A on the sides and back (even shorter than my previous haircut). so exactly the SAME haircut I used to get before the surgery.....No sign of any white dots or scarring, and I would never buzz any lower than this (next lowest would be a #0 skin blade), so I am thrilled about that.:D

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Edited by TimeForAction
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This is looking great. I think the front and midscalp is gonna fill in nicely. Even though the hairline hasn't had the time it needs to fill in at 4 months, you can already see the way it's beginning to frame your head and face when comparing these images to your pre-op photos. The back is undetectable. There's no evidence of persistent redness in the grafted zone. I bet no one even suspects you had something done. There are so many good things to take away from your most recent update.

 

Thanks for sharing. Congratulations on the progress.

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  • 1 month later...
  • Regular Member

here is my 6 month update

 

hair buzzed right down #1.5 on top, and #0.5 on the sides, so cant get much lower than that. by now i think its clear that there is no real evidence of having an FUE even at 0.5 near shave.

 

otherwise, not too much change from 4 months, some thickening up, redness pretty much gone and definitely unnoticeable to the casual observer.

 

some pockets along the hairline still lagging, lets see what the next 3 months bring.,,,

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Thanks for the update. Looks like you've had a fair amount of growth so far! I think it may be easier to judge month to month progress if you grow your hair out a little bit, as I believe with transplanted hair that's what allows you to get the illusion of density. Definitely a lot more growth to look forward to as well :)

 

Your donor area looks great. I wear my sides at the same length and also have undetectable scarring after an FUE with Dr. Konior. I ask my barber all the time if he can see any scars and he always tells me he is shocked because he can't tell any difference from the way it looked before.

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Hi Justin

 

I actually agree with your thoughts about the illusion of density,...when i grow it out for 3-4 weeks, it defintely looks a lot thicker. That is something I could NEVER do before the transplant, I was getting it buzzed 7-10 days because I was self conscious,

 

Only issue is that I hate the balding in the crown, which is why I keep it buzzed down still, and am anticipating a second procedure to solve things once and for all.

 

I figured it also makes it easier to compare photos.

 

But you are right, it defintely takes away from the 'illsusion'

 

Somewhere along the line in the next couple months, I will post photos with the hair grown out right before I get it cut.....thanks for the suggestion.

 

Just checked out your thread, happy growing, cheers...

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The results are good there is no doubt about that.

thats a very small area covered with 1600 grafts .

 

I have read other reviews where patients have 2000 grafts to cover , temples , hairline and crown.

Your temples were nor at loss prior HT neither covered post HT .

 

My total head may have 2000 donor grafts and I want to spend maximum of 1200 on hairline if possible.

I would love to have it done by dr konior , willing to fly from london to chicago but his waiting list is very long atleast a year.

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  • 4 months later...
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For this 10 month update, I decided to post something different..... direct BRIGHT sunshine overhead pics

In fact, some of these pics (10-1, 3 and 4) are taken on top of a mountain peak 7000 feet with direct sunshine on my head ... over July 4 weekend, the sun was actually blinding that day, and there was no concealer involved in these photos. As you can see compared to a previous direct sun at high altitude taken 2 years ago (IMG 3263), I had no hairline to speak of, thus the change is striking!   

Thus, one can safely surmise given the direct sun overhead pics, that the doc has given me a hairline, which is what I asked him to provide. The result is very natural, it does not look dense packed in front with a bald crown, which is what I did NOT want. See pic taken same weekend ( inside 10-2).

You can however note that The density is a little behind on the left side (I think that is due to the direction of my hair from left to right).... Note that In pic 10-4 from a distance with my head to the side, you can see that the sun reveals that my left temple zone has significant recession, and I am planning to talk to the good doc about addressing the left side/temple, at my next session in January.

 

I will post another update at 12 months around mid september. thanks

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Edited by TimeForAction
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1 hour ago, ndubya said:

The 4th pic is after the transplant?

From the side, yes it is. Just goes to show you how unforgiving the camera is under BRIGHT direct sunshine, it exposes the temporal recession on the left side . To be clear, On the initial hairline draw on surgery day, Dr. K wanted to address the temporal regions, and he drew such a hairline-  but I opted to go for a lower hairline in front without addressing the temporal recession. These harsh pics make me realize that it needs to be addressed at the next session. The right side does not show that level of recession. 

Of course these pics are extreme bright conditions, and the fact that I have a defined hairline at all under these conditions was a huge  change from the pic 2 years ago-  it truly is the 'illusion of density' and the importance of 'framing the face' effect here,.

 

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Thanks for updating is everything looks great, so your plan was to get a hairline but not densely packed because of the crown?


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  • 3 weeks later...

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