Dr. Bisanga - BHR Clinic Brussels - FUE 2698 Grafts - 27/06/22

[LurkNoMore]

Hi all! I've been lurking on this forum for a while, and now that I went ahead and completed my HT I figured it's only right to contribute.

Some background on me: I'm 35 years old and have been losing my hair pretty slowly starting when I was around 28. At that point, I began using topical minoxidil. For the most part, things were going well except for slight balding in the crown area (which didn't really bother me too much). But about a year ago, that changed. My hair started falling out very rapidly and I immediately went on finasteride to try to stop it. Unfortunately, the shedding that comes along with finasteride may have made things worse for a bit, and I lost quite a lot of my hairline.

Here are some pics from then:

After about a year and half, I got really tired of having to wear a baseball hat every time I left the house. I started doing research (including lurking on forums like this) and it led me to BHR and Dr. Bisanga. I was fortunate enough to meet Dr. Bisanga in-person for a consultation when he was visiting the US. The consultation was pretty seamless, and I was surprised to find out how personable and friendly the Dr. is! He classified me as a Norwood 4V and let me know that I'd have to do the crown separately if I wanted to coverage in both areas. For now, I primarily wanted to rebuild my hairline and he assured me that I was a good candidate for a FUE procedure. 

The clinic was super helpful in planning the trip, beginning with recommending hotels, giving me a list of things I should bring, and what I should expect. My patient advisor Ian was also really fantastic at helping manage my anxiety as the procedure neared by answering all the questions I had and offering lots of reassurance.

Dr. Bisanga oversaw my surgery, designed my hairline, and then split the punching and extractions with Dr. Kostis (who was also super friendly). I wanted a conservative hairline that would continue to look natural in my 40s, so we went with a rounder design. My hairline also always had a cowlick in it which I wanted to keep, and Dr. Bisanga assured me that he'd be able to recreate it by punching the holes at specific angles. 

My procedure went well from what they told me, and it wasn't too bad in terms of pain. The valium really helped, and the hardest part was a bit of stiff neck from lying in a chair for 10-12 hours. 

Graft Count: 2698

1 FU: 467
2 FU: 1153
3 FU: 1036
4 FU: 42

Some pics from that day:

I really like that I still have some hair growing in front of this hairline (around the temples) which I'm hoping will make this look more natural as it grows out.

Right now, I'm 6 days post-op, and besides for some pain at the donor area, the recovery is going really well. I'll try to continue posting updates but feel free to ask any questions! Here's where we are now on Day 6:

Edited July 3, 2022 by LurkNoMore

[GaryStruthers]

This looks really good. I dig how Bisanga takes the age appropriate approach. Will be following. 
All the best!

[Mike10]

Another example of the effects of Minox waning off with time. Some still do not want to believe it.

[New_Barnet_Please]

Great username! And you’re in the safest of hands, you’re going to enjoy your result 🙂

[Raphael84]

@LurkNoMore

Thank you for creating your patient thread. 

Primarily Im very pleased for you now that you surgery is completed and you are back in the comfort of your own home and healing is progressing nicely.
Thank you for the shout out and I am pleased that I was able to help in any small way and ease some of your concerns as your surgery day approached.

Your hairline design when considering your facial shape, dimensions and distance between features will be very age appropriate and fitting.

Great write up that will be appreciated by many no doubt and will be very nice to have the support of the community throughout your journey.

It has been a pleasure and I look forward to enjoying the next 12 months worth of updates and evolution.

[MachoVato]

21 hours ago, LurkNoMore said:

This is cool, here you can see the technicians using the KEEP implanter tools. 

I was really impressed with the care Bisanga gives to angles. I think you'll have a great result!

[LurkNoMore]

Yesterday I hit my 4 month mark and I couldn’t be more excited. Over the last few weeks, I definitely saw a ton of growth in the front — and even if this is as thick as it will get (which I doubt, it’s still pretty early!) I’d be pretty thrilled.

It looks like my left side might’ve had a bit of shockloss but it’s really not that noticeable in person. Overall, I couldn’t recommend Dr Bisanga more and I’m so grateful for the amazing job he and Dr Kostis did!

[Hairy Henderson]

Nice looking start

[thetdog666]

Coming along nicely

[mrmane85]

Looking great

[Smacias15]

Any update?

[Melvin- Admin]

How’s it looking? Dr. Bisanga is notorious for early growth, it showed in your last post. 

[LurkNoMore]

Hi all, thanks for your continued interest!  

I just hit my month 5 mark and have really been enjoying having a full hairline again. It’s such a weight lifted to not have to wear hats everywhere, think about how my hair looks in photos, etc. I’ve already felt a huge confidence boost in just the last few months! 

Here’s a current pic of how things look (excuse the bed head, I just woke up) 

  

Overall, i’m quite happy with how things look. I’m in my late 30s and wanted a natural hairline and Dr. Bisanga nailed that. It’s only been 5 months so I imagine things will thicken up a bit as we get closer to the year mark.

Here are a few shots of the hairline wet and combed:

Let me know what you think!

[Jayson1361]

18 minutes ago, LurkNoMore said:

Hi all, thanks for your continued interest!  

I just hit my month 5 mark and have really been enjoying having a full hairline again. It’s such a weight lifted to not have to wear hats everywhere, think about how my hair looks in photos, etc. I’ve already felt a huge confidence boost in just the last few months! 

Here’s a current pic of how things look (excuse the bed head, I just woke up) 

  

Overall, i’m quite happy with how things look. I’m in my late 30s and wanted a natural hairline and Dr. Bisanga nailed that. It’s only been 5 months so I imagine things will thicken up a bit as we get closer to the year mark.

Here are a few shots of the hairline wet and combed:

Let me know what you think!

I think this looks quite good for 5 months even. From what I’ve seen on here there will be some definite thickening over the next 7 months approaching the year mark! Happy growing! 

[andrewfaliro]

Update?

[airporteffect]

On 12/3/2022 at 12:33 PM, Melvin- Moderator said:

How’s it looking? Dr. Bisanga is notorious for early growth, it showed in your last post. 

I thought growth was entirely dependent on the patient’s physiology. Is this more of an anecdotal theory based off of results in the forum or does he do something specific that’s proven to spark earlier growth?

[Raphael84]

The patient shared an update with me a few weeks back and he is progressing nicely and happy with his progress. I will ask him if he may be able to share an update when possible.
 

4 minutes ago, airporteffect said:

thought growth was entirely dependent on the patient’s physiology

Patient physiology will have an impact just as it will in regard to healing, redness, shedding as some patients may shed all and others are able to retain a percentage of grafts and also final result. In terms of early growth, 4 and 5 month growth now in general for our patients is really quite impressive and certain protocols have an impact on this. The way in which the grafts are extracted from the donor, handled, manipulated and then carefully placed presents less trauma to the follicle which is all conducive to early growth.

[airporteffect]

1 minute ago, Raphael84 said:

The patient shared an update with me a few weeks back and he is progressing nicely and happy with his progress. I will ask him if he may be able to share an update when possible.
 

Patient physiology will have an impact just as it will in regard to healing, redness, shedding as some patients may shed all and others are able to retain a percentage of grafts and also final result. In terms of early growth, 4 and 5 month growth now in general for our patients is really quite impressive and certain protocols have an impact on this. The way in which the grafts are extracted from the donor, handled, manipulated and then carefully placed presents less trauma to the follicle which is all conducive to early growth.

Super fascinating. The work that I just got done was nowhere near as clean as the work Dr. Bisanga does but my surgeon did use SmartGraft for the extractions — which I imagine doesn’t have much to do with limiting trauma. Anyways, thanks for the very quick response!

[Rafael Manelli]

I’d be very pleased with this growth.

[Gennox]

I may overread it, but are you on any meds? And if so, since when?

[LurkNoMore]

Hi all - quick update just after the 7th month mark:

Quote

I may overread it, but are you on any meds? And if so, since when?

Yep - I've been on finasteride (1mg) for the past few years and started 5mg of minoxidil following my HT. I also take biotin every day. 

Here are some updated pics -- my hair is a bit of a mess because I just woke up, but you can get a sense of how its thickening up. I took these pics in direct light so it's a bit harsher than it looks normally. I really like how the hairline came out - I'm glad we went with a more conservative design that let my temples have some room to recede a bit. I think it makes it look more natural.

I'm strangely still experiencing some minor hair loss (ie. a bunch of very thin hairs falling out in the shower, when I style or dry my hair, etc). Those hairs don't seem to be coming from the transplanted area thankfully, but either way I'm hoping that its normal and isn't a sign of the meds not doing their job. I guess time will tell.

Anyway, let me know what you think!

[GAT]

It looks incredible, congrats on your success.

[dolev1591]

Update?

 

[LurkNoMore]

Coming back with a year update! Can’t believe it’s already been a year since my HT. At times I completely forget I did it but other times I can’t get over how good it looks. I’m super happy with my results - but let me know what you all think!

I’m including some photos of the hairline dry and wet so you all can get a good idea of how it looks. 

 

Edited June 21, 2023 by LurkNoMore

[Marko7t4]

Looks fantastic. Congratulations 👏