Chicago/Rockford IL Doctor Recommendation

[Angel]

I am deciding on a hair transplant. Has anyone done the needed research already and can recommend a doctor in the Chicago/Rockford area.

Please comment on transplant experience and what type of fees are to be expected from the doctor recommended.

 

Thank You,Angel

[Angel]

I am deciding on a hair transplant. Has anyone done the needed research already and can recommend a doctor in the Chicago/Rockford area.

Please comment on transplant experience and what type of fees are to be expected from the doctor recommended.

 

Thank You,Angel

[Guest]

Only Dr. Raymond Konior has been recommended on this board. However, there have been no reports of his work quality by any members of this board. Most members of the board do not let geography influence their choice of surgery unless it just so happens that a great surgeon with verifiable great results just happens to live in their area. My recommendation: Travel to have surgery with the surgeon you believe will do the best job for you.

 

Many surgeons offer substantial travel discounts for out of town patients and many have rates that are far lower than their inferior competitors that you might encounter in your home town. Virtually every member of this board would more or less agree with what I'm saying, but I'm sure they can each explain themselves and their reasoning in their own way.

 

I suggest that you spend a great deal of time on the board learning as much as possible about hair transplantation techniques, costs, complications, risks, names and reputations of the best surgeons and after you have done all of that, you will be in a better position to make a decision on a surgeon. This will take some time if you want good results. You will run a very high risk of bad to horrible results if you are unwilling to do your homework.

 

I live in Chicago. I have had two surgeries. I knew very little prior to my first surgery and I used someone who was supposed to be a reputable Chicago surgeon. I was unhappy with the resuls. For my second surgery, to improve the poor results of the first, I travelled to Arizona to have my work done after I had thoroughly done my research homework. Even with the travel cost, I spent far less money for more grafts and results that are many times better than the results I achieved with the Chicago surgeon.

 

Again: Do Not Let Geography Determine Your Choice of Surgeon. And, second, the most expensive surgeons are rarely the best surgeons and the best surgeons are rarely the most expensive surgeons.

 

My Surgery With Dr. Sharon Keene

[Angel]

The following is a email reply I recieved from Dr. Konior's office.

 

My name is Tom Ruiz from the office of Raymond Konior, MD., Premiere

Hair Restoration.

 

Many of the e-mails that we receive inquire about the cost of the surgery and inquire about general details. I want to supply you with both types of information.

 

The cost for 1000 grafts is just over $5000.

The cost for 1500 grafts is about $7200.

The cost for 2000 grafts is $9400.

 

Depending on the density and amount of area that you want covered, you could have one or two surgeries performed. Having more than one

surgery will increase the amount of density that you will achieve. The total cost depends on your goal. I hope that this gives you an idea of cost.

 

Recovery is easy. You need to refrain from strenuous activity for a couple

of days and you will have tiny scabs on your head for about one week.

 

If after seeing you Dr. Konior determines that you are a good candidate for hair transplantation and he wants to take your case, you will receive an exact estimate of the number of grafts/procedures needed in order to

make you satisfied with your appearance. It takes several weeks to get in to see him, so please keep that in mind.

 

By the way, we have a lot of experiencing restoring hair. Dr. Konior has been Loyola University's expert in hair restoration surgery for over ten years. He has performed this surgery for 15 years, is widely known as one of the top names in the field, and is one of the most sought after surgeons for this procedure. Our office performs state-of-the-art hair restoration surgery using the follicular unit method. We are the only office in Chicago that uses this method in its complete form, that I know of, where the surgeon performs the entire consultation, surgery, and state-of-the-art technique.

 

Very few doctors use the follicular unit hair transplantation method because it requires a significant investment in additional time to

perform a surgery, it requires lengthy training of staff, it requires expensive high-powered microscopes and other special equipment, and,

lastly, lots of personal attention from your surgeon. The results, though, are incomparable and the cost is reasonable.

 

I look forward to meeting you in the office one day.

 

Sincerely,

 

Tom Ruiz

[Guest]

I made an inquiry to his office and received the identical letter. First, the method of surgery described is the most advanced, but all of the recommended surgeons on this board use Follicular Unit Transplantationan and magnifcation with high powered binoccular microscopes. But, some do much better work than others.

 

Second, why take a risk with a surgeon that no members can tell attest to the quality of the work. There are many members on the board who can discuss their work with many surgeons in great depth. In a number of cases, you can communicate with several patients of a particular surgeon.

 

Third, in the hair transplant world, I don't have the impression that Dr. Konior is in the big leagues. That is to say, he is not recognized as a leader for doing the top work in the field. Now, maybe his work is fabulous, but no one on this board seems to know a thing about his work. You can be certain that, on this board, every noteworthy surgeon has been discussed at great length many times.

 

Fourth issue is price. Dr. Koniors prices are reasonable, but this might surprise you - his prices are not the best. You can down to 4.50 - 3.50 range with the top surgeons in the country in some cases. When you think about how much money you have available to spend, you should want the most grafts for your money as long as the surgeon doing the work is a first class surgeon. A price difference that results in 300-500 extra grafts for the same money can make a huge difference in how you look after your surgery. That might not seem like it matters now, but just wait until you become a post surgery "healer" waiting for your hair to grow in.

 

Fifth issue is travel and it is a non-ssue. You get on a plane, travel one to 4 hours depending on where you live and where you've chosen to go for surgery; you get a really comfortable room right near the surgeons office which is a great spot for a couple of days of recovery and rest; most surgeons reimbursement programs that cover most if not all of the airfare and accomodation costs - and then their surgery rates are often cheaper than Dr. Konior, despite their international recognition for doing the best work.

 

Sixth issue is don't believe what a DR. or a Dr.s representative tells you about the quality of the surgeon's work. They all say their work is the best. That's why there are several patient forums like this one, which is the be IMO. It is the patients who will give you the real scoop, the real deal, the results, the quality of care you can expect. The surgeon or his representitive always has a high opinion of the surgeons work whether bad or good. Just think about it: could you imagine a surgeon or his representative saying:"Dr. X does use the latest techniques, but he is just average in the quality of results he gets. That's not bad, average. Someone has got to be average, Angel. So, won't you come and get average work with us?"

 

Obviously, no one will say that. Everyone says their work is the best. So, AGAIN, LISTEN TO MEMBERS ON THE BOARD WHO HAVE YEARS OF EXPERIENCES, GOOD AND BAD, WITH MANY SURGEONS. If you read enough of this board over the next couple of months you will begin to realize how often patients have deep regrets and severe depression because they got bad results before boards like this existed. The worst cases can be the people who are kicking themselves because they didn't pay attention to the suggestions and advice of members and just went ahead blindly thinking they knew enough to procede.

 

Last issue (for me): Last I looked, Dr. Konior did several types of cosmetic surgery. If he only does hair transplants now, then that is a recent change in his practice. My very strong advice is to work with a reputable surgeon who has been doing ONLY hair transplantation for several years. It is not only a science, it is an art form that takes a long time too build a well-oiled surgery team that knows how to deal with all of the various hair types, balding patterns, scarring issues, and aesthetic issues. Just because a Doc knows how to make a good looking nose, that does not mean he knows exactly how to use a limited hair donor supply to mimic the natural appearance of our natural hair growth.

 

Good luck, Angel.

 

PS: Go the Mentor site if you want to talk with members who have had surgery with a number of different recommended surgeons. Learn, first hand from people who've had both bad and good experiences and how they learned about making sure they got good results. Most members can also answer questions about money, travel, healing etc. In many cases, the members will give you a more realistic picture of what to expect than many surgeons will.

 

My Surgery With Dr. Sharon Keene

 

[Angel]

Thanks for all the tips - See you all in the Mentor site.

[Guest]

And, anyone out there who might have had experience with Dr. Konior's work, I hope you'll share your experience. He is the only Chicago surgeon recommended on this site. If he is doing very good work, some first-hand accounts would really be appreciated. Chicago is, unfortunately, the home of one of the original most frightening hair mills. For such a large city, we need to know about first-hand experiences with excellent surgeons who base their practices here.

 

Paul

 

 

Paul

 

My Surgery With Dr. Sharon Keene

[backnats]

I had a consult with him. In my opinion, he's a good surgeon, but might not be the best or a top notch hair transplant doctor. Why? Because like Paul said, he does more than HT's, he does noses, eyes, butts(i'm kidding), i don't know, but he's not just about Hair. I asked Tom why, and he said, oh because Konior would get bored if he did only hair. That to me was a red flag. That doesn't show he's into as I'm into it and trust me, the next person that touches my head will be into hair COMPLETELY. Also his fees are higher than the best clinics/practices out there. For a scar revision, u know how much Tom said they charged? $1800. That's right, just scar revision. And if you wanted to transplant grafts, of course they woud charge you additional. Dude, these doctors are businessmen first, don't fool yourself. That's why they're in this field, to make big dollars quick. We can all do hair tranplants if we wanted to without all this medical schooling/expenses. Sorry, let's get back to Konior now. I wouldn't go to him after my correspondence with him and his office manager Tom. I'd rather go to those who excusively give you the best for the lowest price. And I will, God willing.

 

Let it Grow.

[kilroy45]

I have met everyone who does hair transplants

in Chicago. Dr. Konior was recommended to me

by someone who had work done by him. He was

the most highly qualified and I saw his work

with my own eyes (on my friend). His plastic surgery training didn't bother me. He was the only one who could repair past scar tissue like I wanted it done. It makes

no sense to travel out of town to someone

selling cheap grafts or claiming to be the

top in the country. My experience in Chicago

tells me that you can consult with several

doctors here and find the best one.

[arfy]

I just wanted to mention one clinic you should avoid at all costs: Physicians Hair Transplant Centers (PHTC) in Rosemont Illinois.

http://www.chicagobody.com/hair/staff/

 

Formerly named "Cleveland Hair Clinic" which was owned and operated by Dr. Carlos Puig, some of their staff is still the same. Including the same "consultant" (salesman) Dick Malmin, who is a professional liar and belongs in jail, in my opinion.

 

Avoid like the plague any clinic or doctor connected to the Cleveland Hair Clinic or Dr. Puig, in my opinion they are some of the all-time biggest crooks in the industry.

 

Here's a link about a malpractice lawsuit against that clinic. A woman went there for liposuction and developed "flesh-eating disease" (necrotizing fascitis) over 60% of her body (!)

http://www.malpracticeweb.com/stein_ts.htm

 

(This shows it is the exact same cosmetic surgery/hair transplant clinic in Rosemont Illinois where Dick Malmin still works, and they still perform hair transplants): http://www.chicagobody.com/physicians/

 

When I say avoid these quacks like the plague, I mean it!!!

 

Meanwhile, this clinic is still open for business, and nobody is doing anything about it.

 

[This message was edited by arfy on October 25, 2003 at 03:04 AM.]