Dr. Pong in Thailand / Asia ? Any experiences ?

[garet]

This is a good point. I did notice that some of the testimonials on his site, supposedly written by Australians and Americans, were written in broken English.

 

I did verify that he used to be part of Dr. Path's team. I had a consultation with Dr. Path and one of his doctors that did the consultation confirmed this.

 

Dr. Pong is tempting because it is about 40% cheaper than Doctor Path. Too bad there isn't more feedback about him.

Edited August 24, 2010 by garet
grammar mistake

[crablungs]

Hi Garet (and hello everyone else!)

 

I too am considering Dr Pong for an HT, likely to be next year.

 

I had originally booked an appointment for an HT with Dr Pong in May this year but it coincided first with the ash clouds over the UK (flights cancelled twice) and then latterly with the uprisings against the government whilst I was in Thailand at the 3rd time of asking.

 

I've been through Dr Pong's patient gallery over and over and have to say pretty much every example I've seen has been pretty impressive. Of course, the sticklers I have found is why is it so much cheaper than everywhere else and why can I find so little about him on the internet? Irrespective, THC does say that if you are unhappy with the first transplant then he will do it again free of charge (subject to terms, I would imagine).

 

I'm intending on documenting my hair loss story (which, I'm sure, many people will probably be able to relate to!) and would love to also speak to and consult other Dr Pong clients for verification before I book and go ahead with the procedure.

 

I do wonder whether many of his clients are from Asia, hence the lack of English testimonials on these forums?

Edited August 27, 2010 by crablungs

[garet]

Yes, most of his patients are asian as you can conform if you look in the photo gallery. Having mainly Asian patients doesn't say anything about the quality of his work, so I'm still looking for more info from his patients

[garet]

Hi garet. a few things

 

[1] in another thread you mentioned Dr. Pong was trained by Dr. Path, however I don't think this was ever verified, but rather mentioned offhandedly by some random post.

 

[2] Also, its VERY interesting how many english-speaking clients Dr. Pong has had and yet on the testimonials, many of them have broken-english recommendations.

 

[3] Most forum posts mentioning Dr. Pong originate from unique accounts that are only a couple of days old with only a few posts to their name. None from senior forum members.

 

Dr Pong could be an amazing HT surgeon. just not sure that all the facts are available, or even what is a fact.

 

I asked Dr. Pong and Dr. Path's assistant directly and they both confirmed that Dr. Pong used to work for Dr. Path, but offered no additional information. I have no idea if it was an amiable split, as they are now competitors in Thailand, though not in the same city.

 

Since Dr Pong has been on his own for at least 7 years, I would think that should be enough time to gain enough experience to do good work. I do need more direct information from actual patients, with before and after photos before I would go with Dr. Pong.

[RodG]

Hi,

 

I had my HT surgery exactly 4 weeks ago at DHT clinic whilst on holidays in Thailand. I did consider having a hair transplant with a couple of surgeons in Thailand but in the end I chose to go with DHT Clinic.

 

Absolute Hair Clinic (Phuket ) charges 55 baht per graft and the surgeon has recently completed his training with Doctor Pathomvanich. I also considered Doctor Pong but after extensive research I found minimal feedback (all positive) regarding his HT outcomes.

 

I swapped a number of email with Oravan from DHT Clinic and she stated that to be experienced in HT procedures a doctor should have completed over 400. She also stated that it just isn't the surgeon skills that affects the outcome but the team can either make or break a HT. In the end I decided to pay a bit more and to have my HT procedure with an organisation that has so much positive feedback. Price was also a consideration for me because I had to cover a large area of balding scalp. I was able to have the procedure completed at DHT clinic and use there technicians.

 

If you really need to save even more money why not consider Doctor Madhu in India. He is recommended at this forum and TomA has recently had his second HT with them (first with DHT clinic). I edited my post because it was a bit confusing.

 

Good luck with your decision.

 

Regards

 

Rod

Edited September 12, 2010 by RodG

[wb280]

RodG, i understand Dr Kulakarn is one of the assistant doc but i am sure Dr Pat cuts the strip himself. I remembered him inserting some grafts himself. There were 3 teams, Dr Pat and a hair tech, asst doc and a hair tech, the last team formed by another 2 hair techs. Total of 6. Did u not have the same? I thought i wanted to clarify in case potential patients misunderstand that Dr Kulakarn is the one cutting the strip. For my case, its Dr Pat, 100%.

[RodG]

Hi,

 

Sorry for posting a confusing response. I found the staff at DHT Clinic to be very professional and caring. I had my HT completed with them on 13 August 2010 and I am healing really well. I can barely tell that my scalp had 3743 grafts implanted and my strip is healing well.

 

Doctor Pong appears to have some good photographs showing his results and many good comments from all over the world but not many posts here on this forum. I decided to go with the recommendation from the site and at this stage I'm happy with my decision to go with DHT Clinic.

 

Regards

 

Rod

Edited September 12, 2010 by RodG

[garet]

Anyone have any recent experiences with Dr Pong in Chiangmai, Thailand? I'm still trying to decide between him or Dr. Path in Bangkok.

[smithmeister]

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/158800-dr-pong-chaing-mai-thailand-9.html#post2296100

 

guys, i had an HT with Dr Pong, check out my pics so far on the link above. so far so good...

[noobineub]

Hi guys, can I ask those of you who've gone with Dr Pong what method he uses for inserting the grafts? Is it the lateral slit technique?

[HARIRI]

The problem with Dr. Pong is that he doesn't accept all patients. He prefers virgin patients most of the time. My workmate is a repair patient who had a bad 2400 grafts hairline job in Dubai was rejected although he was accepted by many clinics. I sent him finally to Dr. Radha and she accepted him directly. It seems Dr. Pong is a good doctor but not good in handling challenges like recommended doctors here. Also he only practices FUT (Strip). I tried to search him in the net and unfortunately he is not recommended in any networks or any forums but the great thing about him that his after photos is very good and very clear that he has a section in his thai hair clinic website called (Illusions vs real objects) discussing lightining techniques used in many top clinics in the world. He is using the "open technique" just like Dr. Path " which is using a single-bladed knife along with a pair of skin hooks inserted into the small stab wound and pulled in the opposite directions while cutting perpendicular to the line of tension between the hair follicles. This enables individual hair follicles to be directly visualized and protected from transection during the harvesting process. This technique is extremely efficient since it allows the surgeon to visualizethe hair follicles before cutting, without needing to constantly guess the correct angle, while it requires more time and more experience, it provides an invaluable benefit to you. Higher and healthier grafts are obtained as a result." Addition to that they use "Fascial and Trichophytic Closure Techniques" to minimize donor area scarring. He charges $2 per graft up to 2500 grafts then every 100 grafts the rate goes $0.4 lower onward. Good luck :-)

[OnTheMend]

I did a write up about my 2837 graphs done by Dr Pong. Have a read on my page. My user name in OnTheMend.

[OnTheMend]

Dr Pong was great, have a look at my profile. I had 2837 graphs and did a write up about my experience. :-)

[Mouse]

Hi guys, I am new to the forum and wishing everyone best of health. I will second the experience and feedback from OnTheMend because I just did my HT with Dr. Pong on 14/9/12. I was suppose to have about 2500 graft to fill my M-shape frontal hair loss (Norwood class III). Unfortunately due to the scalp laxity at my donor area, it did not permit as Dr Pong say it will over-stretch the stitches if wider donor area were to be extracted. We finally manage to get a total of 2092 graft from the donor area which is about 400 lesser than our original target. However, Dr Pong was positive that I will be satisfy with the result after 8-12 months as the graft at my donor area was thick. He say I can come back again next year for some touch-up to add the balance of 400-500 graft. I stay in Chiang Mai for 7 days and Dr. Pong & his staff was very kind and ensure me that they will take care of me during my 7 days stay and even offer to have my hair wash FOC everyday. I had 18 stitches in total at the donor area and the first 3-4 night was uncomfortable. Again, different people have different threshold of pain as some of his patients experience no discomfort the following day. Its still very early to see the result, however, I will update you guys again in another few months.

[Tiztom]

Here's mine after about 12&1/2 months, not brushed but I usually don't bother to, I'm back in Thailand now for a few months and will make an appointment soon to have the crown area done, I just have to get off my arse and do some scalp stretching exercises first.

 

Before

 

Day of op

 

A couple of weeks ago

[john-d]

So at the end of the day do you recommend Dr. Pong?

 

I live in Chiang Mai and am thinking about going to see him for a HT.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Tiztom]

I would 100%, I've let mine go/grow and it's down to my chin now from being pretty short about 11 months ago, I'll probably go back to him in April to get the crown done.

[john-d]

I would say "let's visit" while you are here in April, but that's hot and smokey season, so I'm going to be out of town. But in the mean time, since I'm living here, if there are any questions about Chiang Mai that I can answer, please feel free to ask.

 

Thank you for your response. It's helpful to know that people would go back to him.

 

I went to see him this afternoon. I just stopped by the clinic to have a look around and he actually answered the door, and gave me a consultation right then and there. He seems like a genuine and concerned person. Probably a good hearted guy.

 

He drew a new hairline on my head, and later in the day I looked at the pictures we took of it, I don't think he quite got it right, but I can instruct him better on what I am looking for. He wanted to give me a younger man's hairline and I just want to fill in the deep pockets at the font of my scalp. I want to make the "M" of my hairline less dramatic and that's all.

 

Any other advice you have for me about Dr. Pong is appreciated.

 

Thank you!

[Tiztom]

I can't give him or his staff enough praise, they washed my hair every day for 10 days then de-scabbed my head, I think all of the girls at the time of my op had been with him for 9yrs, he is a genuinely nice guy, you'll notice most of his clientele are either Australian or Asian, I stayed in CM for 2 weeks then headed up to Fang then Chang Rai after that.

 

When I went back in July of 12 I ended up living in Udon Thani for about 5 months but then after a night of drunken debauchery I had a very small heart attack so need to stay here to make sure everything health wise pans out ok before I go back for any great length of time but so far so good.

 

When I was in the chair I modified his line as he had it too pointy at the top of the M, he happily complied, do what I did and don't sleep the night before, I took a couple of Valium, slept like a baby and probably remember 20min of the whole day

[bambam101]

Hi all,

 

First time poster from Australia. Well, Actually in Chiang Mai at the moment.

 

Presently sitting in my hotel room, day 2 post op from surgery with Dr Pong. I am 33 years old and have had one previous surgery in Australia with a Dr Barry White from National Hair Institute. Firstly, let me say that Dr Pong is in a different league to my previous surgeon. While my previous surgery did improve my hair greatly, its only now that I am realising how bad a job he really did. Im not going to go on about the previous surgery, but I will let the picture of my old scar do the talking.

 

I had my procedure with Dr Pong on thursday this week and it is now Saturday. I have felt zero pain and so far been conpletely satisfied by the whole experience with the exception of two things. We were not able to get as many grafts as I would have liked. I was hoping to go for between 3000-3500 to completely cover my balding area. It probably would have left me looking slightly thin but I would have been happy with that given I previously had 2200 grafts in Australia and I know how much of an improvement that was.

 

The problem i had was that given the size of the scar the Aussie "specialist" left me with meant Dr Pong was only about to extract just shy of 1500 grafts. All of these were transplanted to the front of my scalp, leaving a very thin crown. I know this is not a fault of Dr Pong and he did make me well aware of it before the surgery. On the bright side, he did manage to remove about 90% of my old scar with his new "zigzag" cutting method.

 

As I said, I really wanted to do this surgery once and be done with it. I know how EXTREMELY painful my last surgery was. Not the actual proceedure, although I could feel the Aussie "specialist" pulling and my head and tearing the skin. I had blood pouring down my gown and i remember thinking that htis guy was incredibly rough. That night, my entire head swelled up so bad that you could literally insert your index finger up to the first knuckle in to my forehead. No lie. It was disgusting. The pain was a 10/10. So much so that I ended up being taken to the emergency room that night and sedated. The lovely "specialist" charged me $12000 for the experience. Hence my apprehension in having a second procedure done, even 10 years later.

 

All I can say now is how unbelievably happy I am having chosen to go with Dr Pong. He was 100% professional. He was kind, gentle and very attentative. His nurses were amazing. I felt absolutely no pain what so ever. Having said that, I did fall asleep last night laying down and woke up during the night in a reasonable amount of pain. Once I sat upright for 10 minutes or so, the pain was gone. So a little tip, sleep upright for a few days. Even if you feel comfortable sleeping laying down, the blood will rush to your head and it will start hurting.

 

Funnily enough, the night of my surgery, I was in such a good mood, mixture of happiness that I had finally had the surgery done, and relief that I wasnt in any pain, that I actually went out to a local restaurant and had a nice meal and a few beers. Huge contrast to my last surgery spent in hospital.

 

My only other disappointment from this experience is that Chaing Mai is actually kind of boring. Ive been to many countries. This place isnt on my priority list to return to. But I will return. Next year for my second procedure with Dr Pong. Hopefully he can get many more grafts for me then!

 

If anyone has any questions about the procedure, feel free to ask. Im couped up in this hotel for another couple of days so will have plenty of time to answer! lol.

[Tiztom]

Good to hear you are happy with him, I'm over the moon with the work he did on me and will be going back within a few months to get the crown and back area done, I was the first westerner he did the zigzag cut on nearly 3yrs ago, one thing I really need to do is start doing the scalp stretching exercises so he can get a lot more grafts.

 

I've actually grown the previous graft long so I can comb my hair back and cover the new grafts as I have to walk my daughter down the aisle later in the year, nearly reaches my chin lol.

 

Only complaint I had which is really trivial is that the back of my head still feels a little numb after all this time, only notice it if I lean against a wall or lay flat on the floor.

 

I stayed near the night markets and found the town quite interesting and if you haven't done one - go do an elephant, ring neck tribe, tiger, orchid, snake tours, well worth the $40ish dollars and the zoo is really good too and not that far from his surgery, lots of panda's.

[bambam101]

Hi tiztom.

 

Was this your first op? It was my second but I do remember my head being numb for about 2.5 months after my first surgery. It's to be expected. I think the next time I see Dr Pong, the only thing I will ask is for them to slow the anaesthetic injections down a bit. Allow one part to start numbing a bit before they do the next one. I couldn't see but it felt like there was two or three people all jabbing me at the same time. It wasn't unbearable but wasn't pleasant. Maybe I was just being a wimp due to my previous experience.

 

I think next time I will bring someone with me. I am here on my own now. I was resigned to the fact that I would be couped up in a hotel for a few days though. Keeping myself entertained but am only here for a few more days though. With the military coup and the 10pm curfew at the moment, the nightlife isn't really inspiring.

 

But yeah, next time I will adventure a bit more and hopefullly have someone with me. Truth be told, I was nervous as hell for the 3 days prior to surgery because of my previous experience. Next time, I will be fine!

 

Thanks for your info! Hope your next op goes as well as the last!

 

Take care!

[Tiztom]

Yeah I wouldn't say I'm looking forward to the next op but last time I didn't sleep the night before on purpose and had about 3 valium when I got there, but I slept through probably 80% of the day and will do the same next time.

[Johnny2go]

Had my frontal area done in july last year and going back in august next month to have the crown done. Pretty much agree with what everyone else has said about Dr pong. Definitely recommend him

[thickandthin]

I've seen and heard nothing but good results about Dr Pong. I'm thinking of doing a HT with Dr Pong.

 

Can someone kindly give me an outline of some other minor details with Dr Pong from consultation to post-op, so I can mentally prepare.

 

For example:

 

Consultation:

 

What sort of questions did you and Dr Pong ask each other?

How much freedom did you have designing hairline?

Did you have blood pressure test and heart rate test?

HIV test?

 

Day of surgery:

 

Were you allowed to fall asleep?

Food and music to help relax?

Nerves?

 

Post op:

Payment method?

Money saftey?