Hi all,
I wanted to post some on the ground research I did in Budapest for FUE transplant.
I also had a couple of questions at the very end.
About me: I am 40, from the UK, no major hair loss however interested in lowering my hairline.
Why Budapest?:
1. Clinics from Hungary advertise heavily in the UK
2. They often provide local London consultations, which was convenient
3. Their treatments are 1/3rd the price of the UK's clinics
4. They are (almost) in EU, so there are some basic standards
5. The treatments are almost always done by a doctor (not a tech)
6. The clinics appeared to have some phenomenal results
7. And many give you a guarantee (e.g. 90% of follicles will grow back etc.)
So it sounded too good to be true, hence I decided to take a holiday in Budapest whilst doing some on the ground research.
On the ground:
I had set up 4 appointments.
Clinic 1 (I will not name) - had gone bankrupt...so no one answered the phone on the day of the appointment - I found this out from the other 3 clinics.
Clinic 2 - Phayde - It's out in the suburbs (in Pest). It's quite new and clean. Mainly set up to attract Brits.The owner is more of businessman who has a panel of doctors he hires on need basis to perform the procedure. I met one doctor who was performing a procedure on the day....but there were no certificates or qualifications of anyone so for all you know they were just techs pretending to be doctors. Overall too much of a hard sell. More importantly (and scarily) they give you blood thickeners and vallium before the treatment!!! Not a very comfortable feeling. Price ca. EUR 3000 for 1600 FUE grafts. Asked for references got none.
Clinic 3 - HairPalace - in the town (in Pest). It's quite new and clean. Mainly set up to attract Brits. Met the rep (who spoke English). Results were phenomenal. Then met a Dr. (once again who knows if she really were a dr.). They offer a guarantee of the work. To minimise their risk they want you to shave the whole head (not just the donor area), advise you 3 week downtime. Seemed very professional. No hardsell. However, they do give you blood thickeners. Price ca. EUR 1500 for 2000 FUE grafts. Asked for references got none.
Clinic 4 - ProHair - In the wealthy suburb in Buda. Met the Dr. - Thomas Mantse. He is a one man shop, who was in the process of setting up his own place (currently practicing in a larger clinic). V good results, trained in Canada/US with Dr. Walter Unger. Doesnt give you valium or thickeners. Uses needles to set the new follicles (instead of a rotary tool). Offered 5 references. I wrote to all of them , 3 came back with very glowing and positive feedback (and some really good results...mostly the density looked really really natural). Offered a written guarantee of his results. price ca. EUR 2500 for 2000 grafts.
Questions: Has anyone heard of or got a procedure done with Dr. Thomas Mantse or heard of Dr. Walter Unger?