fanto
Member
It s been approximately 6 weeks since I had a combined technique surgery with Dr Patrick Mwamba at his clinic in Brussels, Belgium. I had meant to write a report, review etc long before this but a mixture of being involved in work, life and general laziness just stopped me doing so. But for the record - here it is now:
My surgery took place on the morning of Feb 4 2012. I had travelled from England via the Eurostar train the night before and booked into a great little hotel literally 2 minutes walk from the clinic. The weather was freezing (-10) and ice and snow were all around - I was very glad it was a short walk back.
I arrived at the clinic at 8:30 a.m. and was greeted by the good Doc and his wonderful team. I hadn't really felt anxious until this moment - then suddenly the realization that I m going to be cut, stitched, injected etc hit me but one of the nurses, a lovely American lady called Mindy put me totally at ease. It was Mindy and 2 other nurses: Claudine and Giselle who for the most part, worked on me and my head - they were all very sweet and caring people. Dr Mwamba shaved my head and then the stubble was dyed a light brown colour for easier visibility - all relevant photos were taken and then I took some valium to settle nerves - it does the trick;-)
I d been dreading the injections - not just the pain but also the possibility of the heart racing adrenaline effect. I can truthfully say that the pain was minimal and very bearable and the heart racing never happened at all. I sat on the chair and was given a pile of DVDs to choose and watch - I chose a whole season of Seinfeld and chuckled my way through the entire procedure. Like I said, the efficiency, professionalism and caring nature of the Doc and the team was outstanding and made the whole op seem effortless and strangely, the most relaxed I d felt in ages.
Just a brief reminder about my case - I am, by society s viewpoint: Middle aged and closer to 50 than 40 - However I ve never really adhered to all that ageist nonsense and lived life as a free and youthful spirit. Most people seem to think I m 10 years younger and I ve had 20 odd years of yoga, pilates, barefoot running, weight lifting and a fantastically healthy diet - I m a primal/paleo eater but have also been raw. I m 5ft 10, weigh 10 stone and am lean, cut and toned with a low body fat percentage - so biologically younger than some guys half my age - Think of Sting at 46 but with a bit less hair But I do have that older guy mentality of realistic expectations - I know I m not going to have the thick, lustrous hair of boys in their teens and early 20s nor the sumptuous waves of certain older foxes like Clooney et all. I am a repair and I am looking for an improved version of what I have - I m still vain enough to care but do accept that there will be limitations.
In the late 80s I was sort of conned into a stupid pluggy HT and stupid enough to return to them for more - my donor was ravaged as a result and the cosmetics were not great but bearable - for a while. In 1998 I saw Dr May in London who did improve it, a little, with two small strip repairs but despite good haircuts and my red/blonde turning to white and thus softening the whole effect, I was never happy ( that s an understatement).
Here is what Dr Mwamba predicted might be possible after our first consult in July 11:
PLAN/COMMENTS
Reddish blonde hair before ï¨ turn to white now
Goal: Increase density from front to back.
Plan:
1. Poor Donor density with open donor scars+ linear scars from FUT
2. White hairs white skin ï¨ Less contrast. Very favorable for the patient.
3. Surface to treat by order of priority
Central part (55 cm2)ï¨to graft at 15-20 FU/cm2
Crescent moon (25 cm2)ï¨ to graft at 15-20 FU/cm2
Frontal Zone (20 cm 2)
Top R-L (16cm2)
Frontal Zone + Top R-L : to graft at 10 FU/cm2
Vertex R: 28 cm2
Range total: 2000 to 2500 grafts
Procedure recommended: Combo Strip (600-1000)+FIT(600-1000) shaven+BHT(remaining with beard hair)
And here is what actually happened:
Day one
A 21cm long and 1cm wide strip harvested 840 grafts most of which had 2,3 and 4 hairs
The average density in my virgin scalp had a follicle density of 71 FU/cm2 - Hair density 150 hairs/cm2. The FITs harvested a further 948 grafts using a 1.0mm punch
1,s 95 grafts 2 s 470 grafts and 3 s 383 grafts.
Day Two
The BHT harvested 1 s 600 grafts, 2 s 69 grafts and 3 s 30 grafts.
So, in summary, The first day strip and FIT got 1150 grafts and the 2nd day FIT and BHT got 1337.
So I appreciate that for some of you 2500 might be nowhere near enough for what you want but I m very pleased and am just keeping my fingers crossed that all goes well. The grafts, during surgery, were non problematic - no popping out. And Dr Mwamba told me that I exhibited absolutely no signs of further thinning or loss so you never know, this could be good enough for me for the rest of my time - tho I am aiming for 105 years of age
The grafts were divided evenly with most of the BHT going in the crown/vertex area, the FIT and strip all going into the central part and some more BHT going into the pluggy area at the front. I intend to keep the style short and forward
The first night post op was mildly painful -but one pain killer was enough to take it away and I never needed another after this. The scabs all fell, cleanly, off after 7-9 days and the scar feels pretty much healed - still a little pink and visible - all the absorbable sutures fell off naturally after 4.5 weeks. I ve had a few little sore pimples but no problems at all.
During my time at the clinic I and my girlfriend were treated like royalty - not like the experience of those British Clinics - We ate with the Doctor and staff and it was some seriously good fare : I had a Belgian steak and masses of salad and cooked vegetables which kept me going all day. The days are long, I wont deny that - 12 hours at a time in the chair but, hey, that s a small price to pay, right? Throughout my stay I was treated kindly and respectfully by the team and loved them for that.
I m now looking at my thin scalp, still pinkish, and hoping for the growth to begin
I m still apprehensive about hitting the exercise regime again - I was told it may be ok after 4 weeks but you hear different stories about weight lifting causing scar stretching and some guys even leaving it for 6 months whereas others hitting the gym again after 3 weeks. I m going to go slowly and light and see how I feel.
Would i recommend Dr Mwamba and the MWHT clinic? Yes, at this point most certainly and if I get the results I m looking for within the 4-9 months, then most wholeheartedly.
Wish me luck, fellas - and the same to u all.
My surgery took place on the morning of Feb 4 2012. I had travelled from England via the Eurostar train the night before and booked into a great little hotel literally 2 minutes walk from the clinic. The weather was freezing (-10) and ice and snow were all around - I was very glad it was a short walk back.
I arrived at the clinic at 8:30 a.m. and was greeted by the good Doc and his wonderful team. I hadn't really felt anxious until this moment - then suddenly the realization that I m going to be cut, stitched, injected etc hit me but one of the nurses, a lovely American lady called Mindy put me totally at ease. It was Mindy and 2 other nurses: Claudine and Giselle who for the most part, worked on me and my head - they were all very sweet and caring people. Dr Mwamba shaved my head and then the stubble was dyed a light brown colour for easier visibility - all relevant photos were taken and then I took some valium to settle nerves - it does the trick;-)
I d been dreading the injections - not just the pain but also the possibility of the heart racing adrenaline effect. I can truthfully say that the pain was minimal and very bearable and the heart racing never happened at all. I sat on the chair and was given a pile of DVDs to choose and watch - I chose a whole season of Seinfeld and chuckled my way through the entire procedure. Like I said, the efficiency, professionalism and caring nature of the Doc and the team was outstanding and made the whole op seem effortless and strangely, the most relaxed I d felt in ages.
Just a brief reminder about my case - I am, by society s viewpoint: Middle aged and closer to 50 than 40 - However I ve never really adhered to all that ageist nonsense and lived life as a free and youthful spirit. Most people seem to think I m 10 years younger and I ve had 20 odd years of yoga, pilates, barefoot running, weight lifting and a fantastically healthy diet - I m a primal/paleo eater but have also been raw. I m 5ft 10, weigh 10 stone and am lean, cut and toned with a low body fat percentage - so biologically younger than some guys half my age - Think of Sting at 46 but with a bit less hair But I do have that older guy mentality of realistic expectations - I know I m not going to have the thick, lustrous hair of boys in their teens and early 20s nor the sumptuous waves of certain older foxes like Clooney et all. I am a repair and I am looking for an improved version of what I have - I m still vain enough to care but do accept that there will be limitations.
In the late 80s I was sort of conned into a stupid pluggy HT and stupid enough to return to them for more - my donor was ravaged as a result and the cosmetics were not great but bearable - for a while. In 1998 I saw Dr May in London who did improve it, a little, with two small strip repairs but despite good haircuts and my red/blonde turning to white and thus softening the whole effect, I was never happy ( that s an understatement).
Here is what Dr Mwamba predicted might be possible after our first consult in July 11:
PLAN/COMMENTS
Reddish blonde hair before ï¨ turn to white now
Goal: Increase density from front to back.
Plan:
1. Poor Donor density with open donor scars+ linear scars from FUT
2. White hairs white skin ï¨ Less contrast. Very favorable for the patient.
3. Surface to treat by order of priority
Central part (55 cm2)ï¨to graft at 15-20 FU/cm2
Crescent moon (25 cm2)ï¨ to graft at 15-20 FU/cm2
Frontal Zone (20 cm 2)
Top R-L (16cm2)
Frontal Zone + Top R-L : to graft at 10 FU/cm2
Vertex R: 28 cm2
Range total: 2000 to 2500 grafts
Procedure recommended: Combo Strip (600-1000)+FIT(600-1000) shaven+BHT(remaining with beard hair)
And here is what actually happened:
Day one
A 21cm long and 1cm wide strip harvested 840 grafts most of which had 2,3 and 4 hairs
The average density in my virgin scalp had a follicle density of 71 FU/cm2 - Hair density 150 hairs/cm2. The FITs harvested a further 948 grafts using a 1.0mm punch
1,s 95 grafts 2 s 470 grafts and 3 s 383 grafts.
Day Two
The BHT harvested 1 s 600 grafts, 2 s 69 grafts and 3 s 30 grafts.
So, in summary, The first day strip and FIT got 1150 grafts and the 2nd day FIT and BHT got 1337.
So I appreciate that for some of you 2500 might be nowhere near enough for what you want but I m very pleased and am just keeping my fingers crossed that all goes well. The grafts, during surgery, were non problematic - no popping out. And Dr Mwamba told me that I exhibited absolutely no signs of further thinning or loss so you never know, this could be good enough for me for the rest of my time - tho I am aiming for 105 years of age
The grafts were divided evenly with most of the BHT going in the crown/vertex area, the FIT and strip all going into the central part and some more BHT going into the pluggy area at the front. I intend to keep the style short and forward
The first night post op was mildly painful -but one pain killer was enough to take it away and I never needed another after this. The scabs all fell, cleanly, off after 7-9 days and the scar feels pretty much healed - still a little pink and visible - all the absorbable sutures fell off naturally after 4.5 weeks. I ve had a few little sore pimples but no problems at all.
During my time at the clinic I and my girlfriend were treated like royalty - not like the experience of those British Clinics - We ate with the Doctor and staff and it was some seriously good fare : I had a Belgian steak and masses of salad and cooked vegetables which kept me going all day. The days are long, I wont deny that - 12 hours at a time in the chair but, hey, that s a small price to pay, right? Throughout my stay I was treated kindly and respectfully by the team and loved them for that.
I m now looking at my thin scalp, still pinkish, and hoping for the growth to begin
I m still apprehensive about hitting the exercise regime again - I was told it may be ok after 4 weeks but you hear different stories about weight lifting causing scar stretching and some guys even leaving it for 6 months whereas others hitting the gym again after 3 weeks. I m going to go slowly and light and see how I feel.
Would i recommend Dr Mwamba and the MWHT clinic? Yes, at this point most certainly and if I get the results I m looking for within the 4-9 months, then most wholeheartedly.
Wish me luck, fellas - and the same to u all.