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2650 FUE with Dr. Bicer

K

Kopkin

member
Hi All

I wanted to report on my 2650 hair FUE surgery with Dr. Bicer. I’m 45 and although I had taken finasteride fin my 20‘s i decided to stop in my 30’s which led to recession at the temples and more recently in the frontal area meaning I was no Longer comfortable to wear my hair spiky/messy at the front. I’ve been back on finasteride since January.

I decided i wanted FUT and spoke to various doctors. Dr. Farjo suggested I needed approximately 1600-1800 hairs but the price of around £6k was ultimately more than I wanted to pay so I opened my search again. Dr. Bicer seemed to have consistently good results and feedback in these forums. She had a 6-month waiting list but i got a call from her team on Friday explaining that she was doing a seminar and wanted a case study so was prepared to see me on her day off (the following Tuesday). This seemed like fate so I decided to go with it.

On the day, Dr. Bicer recommended FUE to me. She felt if I was committing to surgery i should aim for the best result and that with FUT she could not get sufficient Hairs (max around 2000). She worked with me on design and showed me what was achievable with FUE vs FUT. I went in convinced I wanted FUT but the FUE hair line looked so much more desirable that she was able to change my mind. she also had concerns about my skin’s elasticity which was not ideal for FUT. I genuinely felt she wanted the best outcome for me and this was backed up by the fact she was sacrificing her FUT case study (that she had cancelled her day off for). She even offered to do the work at the FUT price.

I couldn’t believe how easy the day was. All the team are lovely and there was a very relaxed atmosphere which made me feel at ease. Walking into the surgery room I felt more like I was going to have a beauty treatment rather than an operation. Surgery lasted about 9 hours (Starting late morning) And followed 1 hour of prep. Surgery was painless. I could feel the anaesthetic “jabs” which felt like some sort of took was used to puncture the skin but it really didn’t hurt to much compared to what I know others have felt. i felt sleepy during the procedure and the time went fast. The only uncomfortable bit came at towards the end where the pad (towel?) started to feel really hard against the back of my head. Nothing to bad though.

i was surprised how well I slept well that night. I didn’t have a neck pillow and Dr. Bicer advised me to sleep between pillows/clothes to avoid me turning onto my front. luckily this worked fine. I had a checkup the next morning and with everything good I flew home that night. First night’s sleep at home was a bit less comfortable but I couldn’t say I felt pain. All-in-all it’s been a very straightforward experience and seems to have gone more smoothly than I could have hoped.

So far I am delighted with my decision to have a transplant and to go with Dr. Bicer altough of course I will reserve judgment until I see the final results in a year or so. I’ll post my pre/post op photos below and would be interested to hear what you guys think as there are some very knowledgeable people on these forums. I’ll try to update my journey as hopefully my experience (good or bad) will help other people.
 
K

Kopkin

member
My pictures.

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K

Kopkin

member
Thanks kev. I think I am pleased. It looks good to me. Most hairs appear to be growing. Although noticeably there are a few at the front which are much shorter. Is that a bad sign or is it all too early to tell? I asked doctor Bicer what density she said she had achieved and she said 40-50 per cm sq. That seems low to me but I notice they not many surgeons talk about density so again maybe that is not a good way to judge eventual outcome?

day 12 photos attached. I thought I posted day 8 a few days ago but they seem to have disappeared (or I just did it wrong)


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Kevboy

Kevboy

Valued member
It is a good thing if they continue to grow because the healing and looking normal will be easier. 40-50 is a good density that most clinics aim for. All the scabs are nearly gone, most likely there will be none left in a day or two.
 
K

Kopkin

member
Thanks Kevboy. Nice to hear that. Day 18 photos below. I think the hair is growing well but I feel like there are some areas with less growth. I’m also a little concerned about the redness which I hoped would have faded by now. Dr. Bicer continues to be very responsive and I have a video call with her later to discuss my progress.


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S

subterfuge

member
I'm about a week ahead of you. Similar hair loss pattern and skin looks similar too. From what I've seen online, you can expect that redness to last for way longer than what the clinics tend to say! I always hear them say 'you'll be red for 3 or 4 weeks' when in reality, it seems that most people have redness for like 3 months! We're both pale too. Sucks having to wait it out. Just praying it's worth it in the end, but i'm already panicking a bit lol. Good luck. I'm watching the thread
 
K

Kopkin

member
Thanks mate. Good luck to you too. We’re you with Dr. Bicer too?
I also read 3-6 months. Funny that I never saw that mentioned anywhere when I was researching. Not sure how I am going to explain the redness when I am back at work lol.
update: she whatsapped me earlier. said there was nothing to worry about but suggested I take anti-inflammatories for a week so I started on ibuprofe. Will be interesting to see if it helps. She repeated she is confident about me getting good density. I wonder what they look for to give them that confidence
 
D

djkillab

Valued member
Yeah the redness normally lasts for a couple of months. It gradually fades each week though. I bought some E45 shampoo which I found really helped
 
K

Kopkin

member
Yeah the redness normally lasts for a couple of months. It gradually fades each week though. I bought some E45 shampoo which I found really helped
Thanks mate. I will give that a go. I also read another post advocating aloe vera. One point of interest here is that Dr. Bicer did not ask me to use a saline spray. I asked her a three time about this and other products. She pulled a funny face and suggested a lot if these things are just “marketing”. I do wonder if the spray might have reduced the redness a little more. I also wonder whether it woud have been a good idea for me/others to be on anti-inflammatories for longer after the op. I still had some predanol left (just took as prescribed by the clinic) and will start and finsish it over the next few days, I’ll be interested to see if it helps.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hi Kopkin. Everything sounds like the initial contact and surgery went very well. Those 2650 grafts should produce a very nice hairline for you. The work looks nice and clean. Your healing looks right on track too. As for saline, it helps keep the area moist, prevents excess scabbing and I believe helps the area heal quicker. Redness can linger on. Aloe Vera certainly helps reduce it for most people. It also helps with itching.
Thanks for sharing your story.
I will look forward to following your progress.
Allthe best.
Bm.
 
K

Kopkin

member
You my at four weeks now. Donor area looks great. Still some minor itchiness occasionally but nothing they really bothers me. A bit more worried about the front. Shedding started about 3 weeks and went very patchy. I was already paranoid about this side as it didn’t see as much growth in the first 3 weeks as elsewhere. I have no idea if I should read anything into that or not? What I would say is that there were different technicians planting the hair on the left and the right.

interestingly the hair transplanted to the temples seems to have grown very quickly (long) although it doesn’t seem to have much density. It is very blond so difficult to photograph.

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K

Kopkin

member
Posting a few more that I shared with dr. Bicer today. She is pleased with the progress.

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D

djkillab

Valued member
Very early days yet mate. You've shed a lot but that's normal. Shedding seems to be a lottery really. Most important thing at this point is that you're healing well and u seem to be
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Everything looks on track and normal. Worrying is part of the process for some but try to relax as in a few more months you’ll be past the hardest stage.
 
K

Kopkin

member
So about 2 months in and I’ve just noticed that a lot of the hair which I thought had shed is still there and growing well. My hair is very fine and I simply couldn’t see it before. Is it possible that this hair has got thicker like new growth hair is supposed to? I should point out that you still can’t really this unless you are close but hopefully the area should start to get boosted with net hair growth from next month (month 3)

I hope that this growth the growth I’ve seen is a good sign and that I’m on course for a nice result.

still alot of rednesss unfortunately. Also I had a misunderstanding with the barber who shaved the back of my head. Allows you to see the marks left in the donor area.

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R

Ronnie

member
Out of interest, how was your experience with Dr Bicer? I am very much considering using this doctor for my surgery.

EDIT: Apologies, you gave a good write up in your first few posts, you can ignore this question if you like!
 
K

Kopkin

member
Lol that’s ok mate. I’m not sure what else I can add beyond what is in the original post but feel free to ask me any specific questions. Other people have dm’d me to ask as well. I guess the one thing I should say is that the clinic is a lot less formal than we would probably expect from a uk clinic which you may view as a good or a bad thing but doctor is still very responsive to any questions I have (normally video calls me back the same day) so I would have to say the aftercare of excellent and not the sausage machine that some places are accused of being. So far I would 100% recommend her to anyone but ofc we need to see the final result to really know how successful my choice was.
 
R

Risingforehead

member
Congratulations on your transplant it sounds like you had a good experience. Your write up is superb and I'm enjoying following your picture progress.
 
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