My upcoming surgery with Eugenix of India and Dr. Arika Bansal

[kirkland]

I am scheduled for my first HT surgery with Eugenix on Monday, October 11. Will be traveling from Canada to Delhi. 

If you have any specific questions about the clinic prior to my arrival, I will gladly answer them when I am there.

Otherwise, I hope to be posting about my experience in about two weeks time after my return.

[Berba11]

Good luck - I'll be following this thread! I'll also be following in your footsteps in late November (travelling from the UK).

What size operation are you having? And which part of your hair are you having restored?

[Melvin- Admin]

Awesome man, I'm sure I will have a ton of questions. How long do you plan on staying in India? Btw I am sure we will meet virtually haha. Dr. Sethi is one of the most hospitable people on earth, no doubt he will feed you and possibly video conference with other famous HRN members like @Zoomster @MazAB look forward to seeing your thread.

[kirkland]

30 minutes ago, Berba11 said:

Good luck - I'll be following this thread! I'll also be following in your footsteps in late November (travelling from the UK).

What size operation are you having? And which part of your hair are you having restored?

Full blown NW6 so lots of ground to cover. 

 

25 minutes ago, Melvin- Moderator said:

Awesome man, I'm sure I will have a ton of questions. How long do you plan on staying in India? Btw I am sure we will meet virtually haha. Dr. Sethi is one of the most hospitable people on earth, no doubt he will feed you and possibly video conference with other famous HRN members like @Zoomster @MazAB look forward to seeing your thread.

Will only be there for less than a week. Slipping in the day before surgery and gave myself enough time to have at least two days post-surgery to make sure everything is healing properly.

Definitely look forward to posting my story and, just like @Zoomster, hope to be a poster-boy for high Norwood success.

[Gatsby]

1 minute ago, kirkland said:

Full blown NW6 so lots of ground to cover.

Then I will definitely be following you @kirkland like a hawk! 😉🤣 Wishing you all the best!

[kirkland]

Haha - thanks @Gatsby. 😁

[MazAB]

@kirkland I'm very excited for you man! You'll get the royalty treatment while you are there! I'm looking forward to your transformation into one of the many faces that represent Eugenix😉! Would love to see before pictures if you don't mind posting them? I'll be following your journey closely.👍

[Berba11]

11 hours ago, kirkland said:

Full blown NW6 so lots of ground to cover. 

 

Well you're in top hands! I'm having around 2,500-3,000 grafts in the frontal third, so not quite at NW6 just yet but if my Dad gene's have any say in the matter, I'll be along shortly!

[SLA]

Best of luck, @kirkland! Will be following closely.

You are in the best of hands!

[Zoomster]

@kirkland...really happy for you ..

I’ll be keeping an eye out for your updates for sure ...not long left to wait 

Z 

[kirkland]

Here's my before pics taken today. You can see the red shadow on my scalp in the first pic. That's the result of an SMP gone wrong. It's called Post-Inflammatory Erythema (PIE) and it's been like this since I had the treatment in 2015. In 2018, I had the pigment removed by laser but the blush remained. You can still see in the circled area that not all of pigment was removed. That's what SMP looks like after a few years - a uniform grey shadow across the area. 

I'm fortunate to still have a lot of crown left given how much I lost up front. Plus my lateral humps are prominent. This pattern has been stable for many years but you can see in the second picture where I will be ending up. I've been on dutasteride (0.5mg x3/week) for almost 3 years and oral minox (2.5 mg/day) for over a year. I can definitely see my crown area, particularly the lower part, thickening up. 

For me this transplant is more than just boosting my ego - the red blush has been humiliating for me over these past 6 years. I'm looking forward to covering it up and moving on with my life.

[Melvin- Admin]

Just now, kirkland said:

Here's my before pics taken today. You can see the red shadow on my scalp in the first pic. That's the result of an SMP gone wrong. It's called Post-Inflammatory Erythema (PIE) and it's been like this since I had the treatment in 2015. In 2018, I had the pigment removed by laser but the blush remained. You can still see in the circled area that not all of pigment was removed. That's what SMP looks like after a few years - a uniform grey shadow across the area. 

I'm fortunate to still have a lot of crown left given how much I lost up front. Plus my lateral humps are prominent. This pattern has been stable for many years but you can see in the second picture where I will be ending up. I've been on dutasteride (0.5mg x3/week) for almost 3 years and oral minox (2.5 mg/day) for over a year. I can definitely see my crown area, particularly the lower part, thickening up. 

For me this transplant is more than just boosting my ego - the red blush has been humiliating for me over these past 6 years. I'm looking forward to covering it up and moving on with my life.

You’re in the best shoes for a high Norwood. High sides and relatively small crown is ideal. I’m eager to see your transformation man.

[SLA]

Lots of potential for a great result. I'm rooting for you!

[Britanium]

This has massive potential 😉

[MazAB]

@kirklandyou are in an incredibly strong position. Mark my words, Eugenix will mint you up brother!

[rob7331]

I believe in you!

[kirkland]

Thank you all for your words of encouragement. That's why I love this forum.

[sunnysideup]

Hey everyone, all the best @kirkland !! I have mine booked at Eugenix around beginning of November too! I am flying in from Canada as well. I was about to travel to Turkey and do it from Veraclinic. This forum totally changed my view about hair transplant. Hope i am making a wise decision. 

[Britanium]

Just now, sunnysideup said:

Hey everyone, all the best @kirkland !! I have mine booked at Eugenix around beginning of November too! I am flying in from Canada as well. I was about to travel to Turkey and do it from Veraclinic. This forum totally changed my view about hair transplant. Hope i am making a wise decision. 

The wisest 👍🏽👍🏽

[kirkland]

That's great. I'm glad this forum guided you to a better choice for surgery. Where in Canada are you located?

 

 

[sunnysideup]

Burlington, Ontario. 

[kirkland]

Are you going on a medical visa?

 

[navyblueau]

Wow your pattern looks almost exactly like mine, very interested to see how you go!

[kirkland]

I touched down in New Delhi earlier today. Everything from the Eugenix side of things has been great. Anil, Maudit and their staff have been really helpful. I was met at the airport by a driver arranged through Eugenix and taken to a Doubletree Hilton in nearby Gurgaon. The clinic is a short ride from this hotel. All transportation was arranged by Eugenix. I went to the clinic this evening to have the remaining bloodwork done for the surgery that I couldn't get done in Canada. It seems that Eugenix outsources its blood tests - it's not covered by Eugenix. A clinician shows up to take the sample and has to be paid on the spot so if you are planning on completing the required bloodwork through the clinic, make sure that you have cash (rupees) on hand. 2000 rupees ($32 Canadian) is the price. You can exchange money at the Indira Ghandi airport after landing and clearing customs and its a good idea to have some on hand. You don't need to change much - just enough to tip drivers if you want and to cover the costs of blood tests. Otherwise, Eugenix is on top of everything else. Communication and logistics has been very good with Eugenix. However, the overall experience of flying into India was challenging. I flew in from a connecting flight in London and there might be some retributive political actions going on between the UK and India which is impacting the travel experience. So if you have a connecting flight through the UK, be forewarned. Customs delays are generally longer than normal. Two British expats who came on the same flight said that it was unusual for the delays and suggested it could be politics between the two countries. Maudit at Eugenix also suggested that some tensions between the two countries over reciprocating travel restrictions is likely the cause.

Also, flights to India have to skirt Afghani airspace so the flights from Europe are extended by about another hour. That may also apply for direct flights from America and Canada depending on which coast you are flying from. In addition, passengers inbound to India have to wear clear face shields AND face masks (and middle seat passengers have to wear a medical apron - don't ask me why) throughout the entire flight and in the airport. This is what we were told when we boarded. Many passengers removed the face shields mid-flight because it is impossible to get comfortable and eat in the cramped seating space on the airplane. But do be prepared if you are recently flying into India that this may be required on your flight.

A couple of other things of note: all passengers on my flight to India had to take mandatory PCR tests at the Indira Gandhi airport -which cost about $8. You can pay by credit card for this test. It is a swab test. They stamped my paperwork stating that I had to quarantine until October 20 even though my outbound flight back to UK/Toronto leaves early Friday morning, October 15. We're trying to figure out what is going on because the new rules don't require a PCR test inbound if you are vaccinated and show a negative PCR test. I will post about my findings. Also, remember to bring an open shirt for the surgery. I will let the forum know how easy it was to arrange my 72-hour PCR test to be allowed back into Canada. My surgery is scheduled for early tomorrow morning. If anyone has any questions, please let me know.

Edit: One other detail. If you are not traveling with a SIM card for your phone and just plan on using wifi at the airport in Delhi to contact the clinic, etc, it becomes difficult because you can only access the free wifi service if they can send you a verification code via SMS. You have to wait to you have cleared customs and then go to the information kiosk near the exit of the airport to get a free passcode for the wifi. I will see if I still have the piece of paper with this code so you can use it much earlier in the journey through airport customs to make contact with your Eugenix rep upon landing.

 

 

 

Edited October 10, 2021 by kirkland

[BoldnotBald]

56 minutes ago, kirkland said:

I touched down in New Delhi earlier today. Everything from the Eugenix side of things has been great. Anil, Maudit and their staff have been really helpful. I was met at the airport by a driver arranged through Eugenix and taken to a Doubletree Hilton in nearby Gurgaon. The clinic is a short ride from this hotel. All transportation was arranged by Eugenix. I went to the clinic this evening to have the remaining bloodwork done for the surgery that I couldn't get done in Canada. It seems that Eugenix outsources its blood tests - it's not covered by Eugenix. A clinician shows up to take the sample and has to be paid on the spot so if you are planning on completing the required bloodwork through the clinic, make sure that you have cash (rupees) on hand. 2000 rupees ($32 Canadian) is the price. You can exchange money at the Indira Ghandi airport after landing and clearing customs and its a good idea to have some on hand. You don't need to change much - just enough to tip drivers if you want and to cover the costs of blood tests. Otherwise, Eugenix is on top of everything else. Communication and logistics has been very good with Eugenix. However, the overall experience of flying into India was challenging. I flew in from a connecting flight in London and there might be some retributive political actions going on between the UK and India which is impacting the travel experience. So if you have a connecting flight through the UK, be forewarned. Customs delays are generally longer than normal. Two British expats who came on the same flight said that it was unusual for the delays and suggested it could be politics between the two countries. Maudit at Eugenix also suggested that some tensions between the two countries over reciprocating travel restrictions is likely the cause.

Also, flights to India have to skirt Afghani airspace so the flights from Europe are extended by about another hour. That may also apply for direct flights from America and Canada depending on which coast you are flying from. In addition, passengers inbound to India have to wear clear face shields AND face masks (and middle seat passengers have to wear a medical apron - don't ask me why) throughout the entire flight and in the airport. This is what we were told when we boarded. Many passengers removed the face shields mid-flight because it is impossible to get comfortable and eat in the cramped seating space on the airplane. But do be prepared if you are recently flying into India that this may be required on your flight.

A couple of other things of note: all passengers on my flight to India had to take mandatory PCR tests at the Indira Gandhi airport -which cost about $8. You can pay by credit card for this test. It is a swab test. They stamped my paperwork stating that I had to quarantine until October 20 even though my outbound flight back to UK/Toronto leaves early Friday morning, October 15. We're trying to figure out what is going on because the new rules don't require a PCR test inbound if you are vaccinated and show a negative PCR test. I will post about my findings. Also, remember to bring an open shirt for the surgery. I will let the forum know how easy it was to arrange my 72-hour PCR test to be allowed back into Canada. My surgery is scheduled for early tomorrow morning. If anyone has any questions, please let me know.

Edit: One other detail. If you are not traveling with a SIM card for your phone and just plan on using wifi at the airport in Delhi to contact the clinic, etc, it becomes difficult because you can only access the free wifi service if they can send you a verification code via SMS. You have to wait to you have cleared customs and then go to the information kiosk near the exit of the airport to get a free passcode for the wifi. I will see if I still have the piece of paper with this code so you can use it much earlier in the journey through airport customs to make contact with your Eugenix rep upon landing.

 

 

 

great to see your courage to have taken the plunge.

and it looks as if you´ve already mastered the first challenges - i suppose as a sort of warm up before the upcoming ones. 😉

 

in terms of asking questions it would be good to know how / on which ground / based on which calculation eugenix will be able to predict

1. how many grafts would be needed to cover your bald area

2. how many grafts can be extracted in total

a. from your scalp

b. from your beard

3. which tools / formulae they use and which and how many trichoscopic measurements they would take pre-op from which areas