Feller Medical PC, NY

[nimrod]

Given my excellent treatment at Feller Medical I feel I owe it to everyone involved to write a short review to appraise their work as well as to help others!!

 

 

Background

 

I first noticed hair loss at age 18 and started visiting clinics when I was 20. I first went to a clinic in Harley Street, London. Before the doctor even introduced themselves to me they remarked to their partner, right in front of me, ‘awww he’s just a baby’. Young guys are even more vulnerable in this industry, not only because of the added desperation caused by the pressure of their age group but also because most of the good/’ethical’ surgeons will not think twice about operating on young guys and, of course, often with good reason. Still, what an A-HOLE, I thought, how condescending. The next day I went to meet a consultant for a large chain with operations all over the world. This guy recommended nearly 4000 FUE and told me exactly what I wanted to hear. So, for the next 6 months I was set on going with this company. It was a gut feeling that prevented me from eventually going with them (sleazy adverts and an overtly sale-sy and ostentatious ethos; WARNING: DO NOT BE SWAYED BY A FANCY BROCHUE/ADVERT/WEBSITE SHOWING SOME GUY WITH THE HAIRLINE OF A 12 YEAR OLD, this in NO WAY reflects the quality of the surgeon, it is manipulative and is that the kind of practise you want performing your surgery?!). This type of surgery was SO wrong for me (if you want to why, just ask). During this period I came across Spex, contacted him, read the book, read numerous threads on this forum and other communities (bald truth), learnt about relevant governing bodies like the IAHRS etc and got educated. Luckily, before I made any drastic mistakes.

 

I then decided I would give Propecia (I already used Minoxidil) a shot after avoiding it for years given that it was my only hope of keeping my hair long term. I just became so depressed that my life was not worth living, so what were risking a few side effects compared to that. Luckily I reacted well with no side effects whatsoever. Attached are results after 6 months. They look better than they actually were (‘the art of illusion’) because the forelock had not assimilated with the rest of hair to the extent that it looks as though it had there, but nevertheless pretty dam good. I had since learnt of Dr. Feller’s stellar reputation through all the educational resources mentioned above. I headed for a consultation in London, May 2012 and went from there, planning a hair transplant for August (21 years of age [22 in 3 months]).

 

In the planning stage of surgery we reached a good liberal/conservative compromise by keeping a conservative hairline but allowing for temples angles to be brought out (triangles on the side of my head). This planned for future loss and provided the appearance of a youthful hairline. I had paid for 2450 grafts but because of my excellent donor area about 2600 were harvested and transplanted in the end. I don’t actually have any post-op pictures because my camera has broken recently so I will let Dr. Feller or Spex upload pictures if they so wish. I will be happy to upload pictures of growth if anyone requests that I do so.

 

 

Review

 

I am not qualified to pass judgement on a hair transplants surgeon’s skill with great insight. All I can say is that if you do your research via reliable hair transplant veterans, governing bodies, communities and books you will see that it does not get better than Dr. Feller! He really is the best of the best (he even owns patents on many of the surgical instruments used in transplant surgery). You will find numerous, high quality, consistent and proven results as well as praise from other industry professionals whom also have stellar reputations. All I know is that I was comfortable throughout (physically with painkillers and mentally with light-hearted conversation about popular culture and with music playing throughout); my donor area has been beautifully closed and is healing nicely (only at 7 days post-surgery); I have planned for future loss; I was carefully listened to and have the hairline I wanted (in addition to layering in grafts at 1 graft per follicle at the front of the hairline a nice kind of mini zigzag effect has been created for an extra natural looking hairline) and I was taken care of pre/post surgery with clear instructions for both. As a person you will notice that Dr. Feller is tremendously respectful. His character has all the qualities of a good friend: approachable, genuine, down to earth, charismatic, intelligent, good listener, honest and thoughtful. As a hair loss sufferer himself he could emphasise well with me and would give me knowing look when I said I hated that ‘mohawk look’ and he would understand what I meant when I would reference the ‘island look’ (hairloss around the forelock). His business ethics are also a testament to his character. He could push patients to do FUE when they should in fact be using the strip method. The former would be more profitable. However, the newest method is not always the right method.

 

The practise, which exclusively performs hair transplants, was well kept and the technicians were professional, attentive, warm and charming. I was provided with water, a free lunch and even a blanket when I was a little cold in the air conditioned surgical suite. The practise is situated within a decent neighbourhood (Great Neck, NY) and there are many hotels a short taxi ride away. I stayed at ‘The Andrew’ which I would highly recommend. I was even given a surgical rate when I mentioned Dr. Feller.

 

If you are deliberating over doctor options for surgery the service of Spex may be something to consider. If your time at Feller Medical is the product, then Spex (who liaisons with the practise as a consultant), is, in a way, the service. Spex is a well respected independent hairloss mentor who gives advice, of any kind, to hair loss sufferers all over the world. Although Spex will assist you free of charge with whichever route you choose to take the advantage here is that he has personally had surgery with Dr. Feller and can therefore vouch for and advise you on anything you can think of. If you are an international patient, particularly if you are from the UK, he is especially useful in providing advice on travel logistics as well as the general logistics of the whole hair transplant journey. Overall he is an exceptional, long term support system who makes the process FAR less daunting and infact rather enjoyable, I found anyway. As most of you may already know, Spex is a super cool helpful guy.

 

All these elements factored in are why I rate my Feller Medical experience as outstanding. They are a testament to Dr. Feller not just as a surgeon but also as a doctor. He ensured my welfare by taking care of all these different dimensions of my hair transplant experience, short term and long term. I would have no hesitation recommending Feller Medical and Spex to anyone considering hair restoration. I have no regrets whatsoever and will defiantly be returning again should I need another hair transplant in the future.

 

I do realise that reviews, by definition, are critical and therefore on the whole consist of pros and cons but there really was nothing else I could ask for (short of the absurd). I did not even have to pay for the extra 150 grafts even though I offered to.

 

Many thanks to all those involved, I am over the moon - so far!!!

Edited August 16, 2012 by nimrod
New pictures

[TommyLucchese]

Nice write up and also reflects my incredibly positive consultation in London in May and surgery 16 days ago.

 

Propecia worked well for you!

[TakingThePlunge]

Everyone who has the pleasure of meeting Dr. Feller describes him as a warm, charismatic and caring physician. I look forward to meeting him one day myself.

 

Congratulations on your excellent experience!

[BadBeat]

Thanks for a great write up!

[salami]

josh606, I am glad you had a positive experience, but I would like to respond to David's (TakingThePlunge) comment.

 

Everyone who has the pleasure of meeting Dr. Feller describes him as a warm, charismatic and caring physician.

 

Sorry David, but I have to strongly disagree with this statement. I found the exact opposite to be the case, as have many others on this board (this is well documented in several threads).

 

As much disdain as I have for Dr. Feller, I try to stay away from commenting on any of his threads, but I had to respond to your "Everyone" statement.

 

I wrote about my experience here, so I won't go into it again.

 

Personally, I found him to be very unprofessional, rude and defensive, and having met with him twice, "warm, charismatic and caring" are not words I would use to describe him.

[TommyLucchese]

I had read some of these sort of negative comments before I met him so I had no idea what to expect, but he was great both times I met him. He was very informative and helpful in both the consultation and the surgery. I can't speak for my results yet but I'm very happy with everything.

[salami]

TommyLucchese,

I'm honestly glad to hear that you had a positive experience.

 

Dr. Feller seems to be a very polarizing guy, with people having strong feelings about him one way or the other.

[TommyLucchese]

I have found that to be the case too. Each to their own I guess!

[chrisdav]

Hi Josh.

 

Looks like finasteride is working really well for you as your hair appears a lot thicker now.

 

Sounds a good all round positive experience and very detailed write up.

 

Have you any pre op and immediate post op pics?

[davethehairbot]

I'm glad you found your meeting with Dr. Feller to be a positive one. I can see how his personality can instigate some polarizing. I found him to be very confident during our consultation, even a bit too confident which may come off as tad cocksure. I decided to jump ahead into the surgery despite this. I'm glad I did, because overall, the experience was great with him, and so far I'm pleased with the surgery. But I'm still in the early stages so I will just let the results speak for themselves.

[nimrod]

Lots of new pictures now up. Pre/post op! You will notice in Pre-op 4 what I meant when I said the rest of the hair had not assimilated with the forelock. But as I said it was has only been 6 months, not even, I started Propecia end on Feb! For me his personality was merely a bonus. His skill as a surgeon was 90% of my criteria! as 'davethehairbot' said, let the results speak for themselves!

 

Also, if any moderators are reading this could you please amend the title of this post that appears on the main forum i.e. 'Feller Medical PC, NY' to match the title of the post that appears here i.e. 'Feller Medical, New York'. I can't seem to do it! Call me OCD but it is really pi*$*ng me off, Thanks!

 

I also wanted to ask about staple removal, I am due to take them out this Friday! Does anyone have any tips or advice? not just for the removal itself but also after to ensure the scar heals nicely. Any special ointments or treatments etc? Thanks, guys!

Edited August 15, 2012 by josh606

[davethehairbot]

Hey Josh,

 

It looks like from your pictures you and I, more or less, are working with the same amount of hair. Although, you seemed to get many more grafts then me. I do have unruly, thick, curly hair though, so I'll just attribute less grafts to that. About two weeks after my staples were removed, I started applying silicon based scar cream and it seems to be fading the redness a bit. Also, I'm taking a vitamin C supplement (very high dose), which assists the skin with the formation of collagen.

 

Good luck!

[nimrod]

Here are pics from month 4 (these were taken back at the end of November). Here the back and sides have been shaven down to a 3 and a little cut off the top (I did it myself to save the hassle of going to a hairdressers only 4 month post op - this explains why it looks so choppy). You may not be able to tell from the pics the left side is coming on better than the right which seems thinner, both in hair texture and amount of follicles growing, it is rather patchy on close examination, but I am told this is normal. I will hit the 6 month mark in a couple of weeks so I will update again then. I have not been on here since I wrote this review and seeing that picture of me last Feb before any treatment is just so shocking, I have come so far in 1 year and am so much happier, I use a bit of Nanogen and get by fine at the moment.

[chrisdav]

What date did you have your surgery nimrod?

[nimrod]

August 3rd

[chrisdav]

Still a long way to go yet.

 

Keep us posted.

 

Most do not get a knock out result by month 5.

[nimrod]

So here is my 10 month update. Overall, I think it has come out very well so far. In an ideal world I would wish it thicker because under heavy bright light or in water it looks a lot thinner than else when (for the most part, this is largely down to my fine hair). I guess that is why they call it ‘the art of illusion’. It is only when I look at my before pictures that I realise how far I have come, quite remarkable really. I am very happy with result.

 

I going back for some tweaking towards to end of the year, to refine (a little bit of the 'hair greed' bug I think) here and there and start work on the vertex where I had some native shock loss where the original hair was weak. Just want to acknowledge Dr Feller and Spex especially for the after care they have given me. Spex has been there to help me a great deal - following up and checking in with me. A great comfort to know you are not just abandoned afterwards. I could not imagine going through HT without all the help both have provided me.

 

See my pictures at 10 months and see the before picture too. Also, the scar is completely unnoticeable and impossible to find. I shaved my head down to a number 3 just 3 months after the operation and it was not visible at all. Thinking of shaving my head to a number 4 during summer because I like the clean cut look - so if I do, I will upload a picture in sunlight to show you guys.

Edited June 6, 2013 by nimrod

[tacolinowest]

on a scale from 1 to 10, how happy are you with your results?

[nimrod]

Tacwest, I would say 10 - simply because I am content that I have done all I can. I have taken the rights meds; I have sought advice from the most experienced of people (Spex and other HT veterans on this forum). I have gone to the best of the best of surgeons (Dr Feller) based on this advice. What more can I do? I may not have the most perfect/full head of hair in the world but I have made the best of what I have. Dr Feller has pitched it just right. I have plenty to cover future loss; I have a desirable hairline and I know that my precious donor area is being utilised wisely. I feel confident that I am in very good hands; I have absolutely no regrets and I have never felt better!!

[Gascoigne]

For how long do you plan to take Fin?

[nimrod]

I do not plan to ever stop using it - I get no side effects at all. So basically, I will use it until I die or until modern civilization collapses to the point that it is no longer available.

[Gascoigne]

So you are going to take pills for next 30 years?

What when you are 55-60 years old? Still taking it?

[nimrod]

Yes I will

[Shampoo]

So you are going to take pills for next 30 years?

What when you are 55-60 years old? Still taking it?

 

rephrased:

 

So you are going to "not be bald" for the next 30 years?

What when you are 55-60 years old you still want hair?

[nimrod]

Already said:

 

I do not plan to ever stop using it - I get no side effects at all. So basically, I will use it until I die or until modern civilization collapses to the point that it is no longer available.