Dr. Bloxham ~3700 FUT August 2022

[FormerFutureKrillin]

17 hours ago, BaldV said:

good result overall but one temple is seriously lacking

 

14 hours ago, stephcurry30 said:

I agreed. OP you should be pleased. I would possibly go for a second one for a more dense appearance. 

 

1 hour ago, Davies said:

Quite good though a touch up would likely be best. How is the scar looking now? Did you have stitches or staples ??

 

33 minutes ago, StillAlive said:

Put your pre-op photo next to your current one. It's impossible not to see a great improvement.

Up to NW4 I think that we all secretly hope that we'll be 'one and done' procedures, especially after 40. It's important to remember that HT's provide 'illusions of density' rather than the actual thick hair we had at 25. Anyone looking at you post-op would have to be certifiably insane to think 'Yo Baldy!'. A little bit of thinning after a certain age is looks quite normal and as long as your face is properly framed, can even be flattering.

Think of the kind of hair Kevin Costner has now. He's not one of those twenty year old Instagram werewolves, but it looks quite age appropriate and dignified. 

Of course you are the master of your head and wallet and if you wanna go in for more procedures, nobody can stop you. But I'd give it a couple of years before deciding on anything. 

 

Thanks all for the feedback. It’s really good to hear that others think it looks good/natural. I also want to make it clear that I do not deny this is a definite improvement from pre-op, and am well aware that HTs are just an illusion of density. I don’t mean to come off too harsh, BUT:

- I guess I expected more (whether that’s right or wrong) from nearly 4,000 grafts, recognizing a good number went to my temples. I would definitely be more satisfied if I could style it “up” without having to rely on so much hair fibers. 

-As Im sure anyone would be, I’m a little worried that I haven’t been offered any sort of possible explanation. Everything is my conjecture at this point. I’m having a hard time thinking about going back for another procedure without having something plausible offered - otherwise I just think “how will I know this won’t happen again if nothing is done differently?”. It is leaving me questioning “what if” constantly and trying to pinpoint the issue.

-I am not as convinced this will be a simple touch up. Everywhere a graft was implanted but didn’t grow there is now scar tissue. Given the high implantation density of the frontal area I’m concerned about this.

-I’m certainly not going to rush into anything, but I’m leaning toward getting a second procedure on the frontal third (regardless of whether I go back or somewhere else). I haven’t yet been able to put hair loss behind me so to speak, although im in a better place than before. When I started this journey, I told myself I wanted to go all in, and especially take care of the frontal third by as young an age as I can (that’s the part that really bothers me). 

- There are some minor things about the hairline design that bother me, nothing anyone else would notice though.

I will try to get a pic of the scar soon although it looks about the same.

[StillAlive]

This will always be a sore point. 

No one, not the best doctor in the world can predict with 100% certainty the outcome of a hair transplant, nor attribute poor growth to any specific reason. If it was that simple, we'd be able to fix it as well, or have surgeons with 100% success rates.

Getting an HT is always a bit of a gamble and that is why I'm wary of ever going in for a second procedure myself. If the first was 75-80% successful with zero complications and an easy recovery, who's to guarantee what'll happen with a second one?

I'd rather be the gambler that leaves the casino with modest wins than chasing the dragon down a cliff. 

[HairEnthusiast101]

I 1 million percent understand OPs disappointment. I mean the side that is lacking is lacking. It doesn’t look very good. If it was uniform on both sides then that’s one thing but for how expensive hair transplants can be I think we all want a great result. Of course one pass density is rare but this result could’ve been a lot better than what it is. If OP was nw6-7 and got this result I’d be ecstatic but I 100% understand his disappointment. I’m sure anyone would be disappointed with this especially because it isn’t some cheap hair mill.

[FormerFutureKrillin]

Hi all. Hard to believe it’s now been 12 months. For this update, I’ve decided to go more in depth on my thoughts overall now that it is probably the final result. I’ve tried to wait until 12 months to comment on a lot of this up until now, to be as fair as possible

Overall thoughts:

1. It is a clear improvement from pre-op and I think in most conditions looks natural
2. I think (I hope you all agree) that the temple closure looks fairly natural and the angles look good.
3. Lack of growth on the left side. I’m sure this is no surprise to anyone who has followed this thread. While the left side has improved slightly over the last few months, it is clear it is going to fall short (as was fairly clear at 7.5 months, as well). Still unclear what the ultimate cause is, but I have to believe the facts that (a) I had pain on that side of my head during the last 30-45min of the procedure, (b) heavier bleeding on that side and (c) heavy crusting/scabbing on the exact spots that are weakest are all either related or at least all part of the problem. 
4. Lack of growth (or lack of implanted grafts) behind the hairline. Haven’t talked about this one as much because it’s harder to see with the hair worn down (which is how I’ve worn it most of the time since surgery), but similar to a couple other Bloxham patients, the area just behind my hairline is very weak. I don’t think this was a lack of growth of implanted grafts, but rather just not enough grafts implanted in the area. This was made worse by the lack of growth along the left temple.
5. Hairline design. I’ve held my tongue on this so far as I wanted to wait until 12 months, but I’m a little disappointed in aspects of the hairline design. Mainly, very sharp angles/macro-irregularities were used, particularly at the front of the hairline leading almost to a defined point. I’ve never had a widows peak nor did I ask for one, and one of the reasons I went to Bloxham is that he tends to do more rounded hairlines almost to a fault. If you look at the pre-op lines, we agreed on a rounded hairline with micro-irregularities. While I fully understand the ultimate hairline is not going to be exactly as drawn, mine appears to have ended up very differently in a way that is atypical. I think it doesn’t look quite right and my old hairline did not have such sharp angles. I think it also works against creating an illusion of density due to my rounded/sloped head shape (the sharp angles allow light through the hair from the sides, which frustratingly actually means the front-facing view looks weaker density-wise than my side profile). It’s unfortunate and I don’t know why this approach was taken. 
6. As a side note, there are also multiple closely spaced, prominent multi-grafts right at the front of my hairline right at the center of my forehead. This is a clear mistake and not one I would have expected given the clinic reputation. Overall, given my hair type I would have generally expected my hairline to be a little softer.
7. Scar. The scar is about the same as last update. I think it is wider than I would have expected based on how I typically scar. It’s also unfortunately wide enough on the side of my donor that is lower natural density that I have to keep my hair at a longer length all around to cover it. Haven’t tested it, but I’m doubtful I could go down to a 4 or 5 on the buzzer. I have seen some wiry hairs coming through it recently, so perhaps there is still some shock loss resolving.

Overall, I’d say I’m about a 5.5/10 on the result - it’s better than pre-op, but I’m not overly thrilled. Lukewarm is probably the best word. This is particularly the case given how many grafts were used. I am open to any feedback. Thank you.

Pictures in all light conditions below:

Down, no product, slightly dirty

 

Pulled back, no product, slightly dirty

sharp angles:

 

Wet

Styled no concealer, indoor

 

Styled no concealer, indoor more favorable lighting 

styled no concealer, outdoor

Scar

 

Edited August 6, 2023 by FormerFutureKrillin

[cloudyhaze]

Thanks for sharing. I had my transplant 3.5 weeks ago with Bloxham and it looks like my hairline will turn out something like yours. Some days I look at it and feel it could have been improved, but other days I feel okay with it, because it filled in the corners that were lost for over 10 years. 

I forgot his exact response when I asked him why it seemed less dense behind the hairline, but when I had my staples taken out he did mention something about competing for blood supply as a reason for not implanting as much behind the hairline.

With the multigrafts' placement near the front, do you think that the technicians messed that up or was it intentional by Bloxham?

Edited August 6, 2023 by cloudyhaze

[A_4_Archan]

@FormerFutureKrillin

1 - agree

2 - agree 

3 - the reasons you mentioned may have played a role

4 - in normal lightning conditions it doesn't look that sparse and its acceptable and surgeon will have one thing to say that he/she did this intentionally so that you don't face blood supply issue 😅

5 -100% agree with you 

6 - agree there are multis and i don't know how many but 2/3 can be mistakenly slipped in by anyone as i have seen ths mistake (though rarely) happening with many elite surgeons though if there are more multis than its a clear lack of attention to that thing and unacceptable when you go fo such a reputed and pricey doctor...

7 - this thing can happen as even doctor don't have 100% control over it and there are many factors affecting this so i would just pass him with a benefit of doubt to it and this is the shortcoming of the method itself other thn surgeon(though i can understand your expectations when you go to such a surgeon) 

Side Note -

You have got fairly good outcome and you need to be happy with what you have achieved though i would agree with few things which you have pointed out and the imp one is hairline..imo its not upto the mark and even i believe that macro irregularities don't often work and don't look natural ...my personal choice would be micro irregularities and i explained the same to my doctor and he did the same...too much of wavy pattern in the name of naturality isn't good and normal people's hairlines aren't so unnatural/wavy..though this is a subjective thing and people will have different opinions and preferences 

I liked your well balanced and matured criticism of the result...At last i would say as most of the knowledgeable people say that "HT is NOT perfect" and i know you would probably know ths thing and you have accepted the reality...so better enjoy your life and adore your new hairs and move on happily and normal people even won't able to notice this details...

I hope this helps you ...congratulations and wish you all the best for future...

 

Edited August 6, 2023 by A_4_Archan

[FormerFutureKrillin]

1 hour ago, cloudyhaze said:

Thanks for sharing. I had my transplant 3.5 weeks ago with Bloxham and it looks like my hairline will turn out something like yours. Some days I look at it and feel it could have been improved, but other days I feel okay with it, because it filled in the corners that were lost for over 10 years. 

I forgot his exact response when I asked him why it seemed less dense behind the hairline, but when I had my staples taken out he did mention something about competing for blood supply as a reason for not implanting as much behind the hairline.

With the multigrafts' placement near the front, do you think that the technicians messed that up or was it intentional by Bloxham?

@cloudyhaze I would not worry about the hairline design yet - firstly I don’t find your hairline design quite as sharp,  secondly on some patients it can work very well just from viewing many results online and thirdly I would give it time to mature because it is impossible yet to say how it will look grown out (same reason I waited so long to make the assessment). 

Yes; I know from Dr. B’s videos that his philosophy is to go lower density behind the hairline due to blood flow concerns. I guess my only point is that other doctors have demonstrated it can be done with more density successfully and also the strategy works best if you have a high number of 3-4 multi grafts or thick hair. If you have a bunch of 1-2s, not sure it’s a great strategy but then again maybe that’s just luck of the donor.

Re: Multis on hairline - highly, highly doubt this was intentional on Bloxhams part. Can’t imagine intentionally placing dark multi grafts in close proximity (with one directly on the hairline) in such a prominent spot given everything he says about hairline design. It’s just an unusual number of them close to the hairline in a prominent spot. There a 1-2 other multis along my hairline elsewhere (that to me is totally fine/bound to happen), but you can’t pick them up because they are very soft looking. Perhaps these will soften with time as well.

[cloudyhaze]

Yea I agree with the higher density behind hairline after seeing the results of some ppl on here too. 
 

Are you planning on checking in with Bloxham in office now that it's been 12 months? What are you thinking for next steps in terms of potentially getting a second procedure in general?

[stephcurry30]

I agree with the majority of your posts. The 3 big issues here are the widow's peak (which just looks completely unnatural and something I would be upset about), the left corner/temple looks like no grafts were implanted there, and the lack of density behind the hairline. I would touch base with the Dr/clinic and see his response and see if you can get a free small repair/improvement

[asterix0]

@FormerFutureKrillin For that number of grafts only in the front I would have expected a better result as well, and all of your points are well stated. I don't think you are being unreasonable at all.

Now, it is a dilemma whether to go back to where you were dissatisfied with your result, I personally would look to other doctors who excel in hairline work, and I would also go for FUE instead of FUT in your case. 

[FormerFutureKrillin]

2 hours ago, cloudyhaze said:

Yea I agree with the higher density behind hairline after seeing the results of some ppl on here too. 
 

Are you planning on checking in with Bloxham in office now that it's been 12 months? What are you thinking for next steps in terms of potentially getting a second procedure in general?

 

1 hour ago, stephcurry30 said:

I agree with the majority of your posts. The 3 big issues here are the widow's peak (which just looks completely unnatural and something I would be upset about), the left corner/temple looks like no grafts were implanted there, and the lack of density behind the hairline. I would touch base with the Dr/clinic and see his response and see if you can get a free small repair/improvement

 

35 minutes ago, asterix0 said:

@FormerFutureKrillin For that number of grafts only in the front I would have expected a better result as well, and all of your points are well stated. I don't think you are being unreasonable at all.

Now, it is a dilemma whether to go back to where you were dissatisfied with your result, I personally would look to other doctors who excel in hairline work, and I would also go for FUE instead of FUT in your case. 

Thanks, all. At my 7.5 month check in, Dr. Bloxham was very optimistic on the overall result at the time and thought the left side would catch up, and said he wanted me to wait until 15 months (instead of 12) before scheduling the second check-in and before he would make a final assessment/discuss next steps in detail. This seemed a little off to me at the time, but I decided it was better to trust but verify so to say. Unfortunately, it did not sit better with me as time went on.

As for my personal next steps, I am scheduled to see Dr. Bisanga for an in-person consultation in a few months. This may seem odd for someone who just underwent an FUT, and I don’t want to get too deep into my rationale here beyond what has already been discussed (could probably be it’s own thread), but in short, at this time I believe Dr. Bisanga’s method and philosophy are well-suited/the best for my current case - will obviously have to wait and see what he thinks, though.

Will be sure to keep you all updated once my path forward is more clear.

[JJOE]

What did Dr. Bisanga think of your case?

[JoeD]

Any updates? Hope it worked out well for you. 

[GeneralNorwood]

 

Yeah, generally the hair callibre in the hairline looks too thick. And some double grafts are visible.

 

 

 

The scar is wide, and not in one place, but along its entire length. 

Possibility of widening of the scar is the only thing that discourages me from FUT

 

Overall, touching up the hairline with FUE and extracting some double and thicker grafts is now an option. 

Edited November 27, 2023 by GeneralNorwood

[FormerFutureKrillin]

On 11/27/2023 at 7:36 AM, JoeD said:

Any updates? Hope it worked out well for you. 

Not much has changed in terms of the overall result or my feelings about it. The scar has stayed about the same as well (~7mm almost all the way around, on one side it thins out fairly well towards the very end near the temple).

I will have a more fulsome update next month, which will document my next steps. I have decided to move forward with Dr. Bisanga. Unfortunately my HT journey is going to be much longer than it probably should have been, but I believe I am making the correct decision for my case.

 

[Sunset Dune]

I don’t see the problem your result looks decent and there’s definitely a cosmetic improvement compared to pre-op (entire front was nearly receded).

[FormerFutureKrillin]

10 hours ago, Sunset Dune said:

I don’t see the problem your result looks decent and there’s definitely a cosmetic improvement compared to pre-op (entire front was nearly receded).

A few points:

1. I have chosen relatively favorable pictures throughout my posts in an effort of fairness given HTs are, after all, an illusion of density. However, I could easily take pictures to illustrate problems. Or, I could just style my hair the opposite way and you would be able to see how weak and unnatural the other side looks (which is a problem generally).

2. If you don’t see the problem with the scar, then I don’t know what to say. Maybe I am unlucky and scar poorly, that is possible. I absolutely have to have my hair scissor cut, I can’t use a buzzer.

3. There are additional big problems not evident by the photos. Those will be very clear next month.

Overall sure. I can’t argue that it does look ‘better’ when styled exactly the same way as pre-op. But that is part of the problem - I can’t style it any other way without dumping a can of toppik in my frontal third. And even then, I can only style it carefully in one particular direction to hide the weak side, and the multi-grafts in my hairline still stand out. I’m not confident at all in styling it up and still feel very anxious on windy days.

This is all just my personal view and if you would be happy with this, great - but I am not, and I don’t think I’m being unreasonable.

 

 

[JoeD]

While it is definitely a big improvement compared to the preop pictures, I agree, I wouldn’t be satisfied with that outcome for the amount of grafts, cost, scar and caliber/reputation of the doctor.  This is coming from someone who has had two procedures with him. Sorry you’re in this situation  

 

Given that, I agree with your concerns. I would want to know very specifically what will be done differently the second time around (regardless of same doctor or different) in the hairline and why the outcome would be expected to be different.  
 

 

 

Edited January 21 by JoeD

[jjalay]

2 hours ago, FormerFutureKrillin said:

A few points:

1. I have chosen relatively favorable pictures throughout my posts in an effort of fairness given HTs are, after all, an illusion of density. However, I could easily take pictures to illustrate problems. Or, I could just style my hair the opposite way and you would be able to see how weak and unnatural the other side looks (which is a problem generally).

2. If you don’t see the problem with the scar, then I don’t know what to say. Maybe I am unlucky and scar poorly, that is possible. I absolutely have to have my hair scissor cut, I can’t use a buzzer.

3. There are additional big problems not evident by the photos. Those will be very clear next month.

Overall sure. I can’t argue that it does look ‘better’ when styled exactly the same way as pre-op. But that is part of the problem - I can’t style it any other way without dumping a can of toppik in my frontal third. And even then, I can only style it carefully in one particular direction to hide the weak side, and the multi-grafts in my hairline still stand out. I’m not confident at all in styling it up and still feel very anxious on windy days.

This is all just my personal view and if you would be happy with this, great - but I am not, and I don’t think I’m being unreasonable.

 

 

You have a big number of chunky and double grafts right in the front of the hairline. Did you get an explanation for this from your doctor?

[baddecisions]

I am so happy you are considering dr Bisanga for the repair. He is not only a great doctor with experience in repairs but also ethical.

Let's be honest. The result is really poor and I, if I was a doctor, would be ashamed to produce such a result and not taking full responsibility of my actions.