Terrible experience with Dr Rana Irfan Vagus Cosmetics Islamabad

[yzuk]

Hi All. I posted this over at Bald Truth but it looks like they don't allow negative reviews as my post was not approved...

I'll cut a long story short. A year on from my nightmare FUE transplant with Dr Rana Irfan at Vagus Cosmetics in Islamabad, I thought I'd share my story. I've been meaning to do this for a long time but haven't been able to muster up the energy as it's revisiting a negative time.

I planned to visit Dr Koray Erdogan for my FUE and was making arrangements to send his office my pictures and information etc. A friend of mine said he had come across a surgeon in Islamabad who had a good reputation, whom he was going to visit. This friend (?) was very studious when it came to researching doctors (or so I thought) so I trusted his diligence - my mistake. Apparently this doctor in Islamabad was just as good as Dr Koray and delivered the same results. As someone who had intended to visit doctor Koray for years, I can only blame myself for not going with my own plan.

I was due to travel to Islamabad early last year with this friend for an FUE procedure. To cut a long story short - my friend went first (last April/May) and came back saying he was happy with the procedure. When I saw his results about a month after his procedure he was already shedding but I saw implants in the temples that looked odd and bumpy. He said this was apparently normal and the redness and bumps would settle. There was nothing untoward other than that.

I traveled to Islamabad with this friend in June last year for my FUE. Prior to heading off I spoke to a Doctor Hussain in Islamabad who warned me against going to Dr Rana as people were known to come back with serious infections. We thought this was a case of rivalry perhaps so didn't really think anything of it. Another mistake.

I arrived in late June and was told the doctor could do 5000 grafts. I did think this was rather optimistic but would have been happy with 4000.

The day of the procedure, I was taken to theatre and after speaking with the surgeon and defining my hairline, the technicians applied anesthetic after shaving my head. A while later the doctor arrived and started remove grafts from the donor area. After a brief period he stopped and started to create slits in the recipient area.

The technicians started to process the grafts and the doctor disappeared. I thought there's no way that could have been near even 3000 grafts. After a long delay I asked where the doctor was and someone went to summon him. He returned saying he had to pop in and see another patient but not to worry, he was undergoing an FUT procedure so it wouldn't be long process. I started to worry at this point. My friend had the sole attention of the surgeon during his procedure and I was told the doctor didn't carry out multiple procedures on the same day.

When the doctor arrived I realised that the technicians in the corner of the room were processing grafts for the other patient - in the same room as where my procedure was being carried out. This is not going to end well I thought, but by now I was not in a position to just walk out. Prior to the surgery I had blood taken for PRP - my grafts were to be soaked in the PRP while waiting to be placed. A technician came in with my blood and put the vessel on the table for the other patient and was immediately scolded by another technician. Can this get any worse I thought. Yes it could.

The doctor checked on how the grafts were being processed and disappeared again. This time for a long time. I was told to take a break and eat something. After eating the doctor had still not returned. He came back a long time after and I was not very happy and let him know. I'm condensing the timeline here, but when he returned and started to carry out a second round of extractions the anesthetic was starting to wear off and I could feel stinging pain.

During the extraction there was a pause. A technician came in and told the doctor someone was here to see him. It was late by now. I was lying face down waiting for the extraction to continue. After a pause and period of inactivity I wondered what was going on - I looked up and there was another guy lying down in the chair to mine! The doctor was injecting PRP for him. I was stunned. Obviously I objected (I wasn't in a position to do much being in a robe and half my head full of holes) and the guy left after the injections. The doctor said it's okay I've changed my gloves and I didn't want to go to another room to do the PRP and leave you waiting. I thought well firstly you did leave me waiting, and second, you brought someone into a live theatre when you should have not entertained any visitors let alone carried out a PRP session mid-procedure!

By now I knew I'd gotten myself into a bad situation. After the second extraction it was very late and the doctor told the technicians to hurry up and start inserting the grafts. I said actually no, don't hurry up, can you please do it properly. The doctor disappeared and the the technicians had to pump me full of more anesthetic as the implants were painful. They commented that the slits were closing up and they were struggling to get the grafts in deep enough. One was planting grafts on the right side and one was doing the left. I don't believe the grafts were trimmed properly either.

After it was all done, it was was around midnight. We had started at 11 AM. When I looked at my results I thought this looks different. I've seen many results and there is a dense packing of grafts with the obvious clots of blood. My grafts had clumps of skin at the ends. I was also worried that a long time had elapsed since the first extraction and the placement i.e. whether the grafts would survive.

After the procedure some of the technicians washed my head daily (I had the procedure on a Monday and I left on Thursday). When I was leaving for the U.K. I was told by the office manager I did not need to wear a hat or a dressing due to dust/dirt as it had been over 72 hours and the grafts had set. I was told it's best to air my head out as much as possible.

I asked for a discharge report detailing the number of grafts, etc. It listed 4200. This was nonsense as I later discovered.

Now - here's when things really go south. When I returned to the U.K. just over two-weeks later I developed pustules in the donor area. I was initially treated by a doctor for folliculitis, but the antibiotics had not effect. I then paid to see a private scalp dermatologist who took a swab which proved positive for MRSA. I was treated with the appropriate antibiotics and it cleared up.

At this point hair started to shed. The implanted hair around the temples was the last to go. There was also hair that did not shed and did not grow either which was odd. Eventually that hair fell out after over a month.

When hair started to grow around three to four months later, I saw the hair in the temple area and even the top of the head looked linear (not random) and there were bumps at the base of the hair. I was told not to panic by Dr Rana and to keep using coconut oil. Apparently it cures everything. I eventually became more and more upset and the conversations took a bizarre turn where Dr Rana insisted that I would never find a doctor as sincere as him (I have all his messages) and the other specialists advising me in the U.K. were jealous. I reminded him a sincere doctor would not lie about carrying out multiple surgeries and if someone had traveled a long distance to see him, the least he could have done was to focus on that patient and not try to juggle more than one surgery.

Things came to a head when, after seeing doctors in the U.K., it emerged the placement was rushed and botched (grafts not deep enough and were not trimmed properly - this was due to the delays juggling two procedures and a rushed attempt to complete the graft placement close to midnight). There are small bumps of elevated skin over the recipient area and temples and pitted areas as well. The donor area has been "butchered" I was told. Hair was even taken from "no-go" areas.

I told Dr. Rana that unless he refunded my money I'd have legal action brought against him. According to Dr. Rana there's there's a quota of negligent procedures you're allowed if you carry out a certain number of procedures that went okay - he didn't say this but I'm paraphrasing... he agreed to refund my money but after a few weeks of stalling I had a Letter of Intent sent to him and he refunded half of the money.

It wasn't even about the money for me - it was more of a gesture that he's not getting away scot-free. I still wish to pursue further action against him but I'm looking at the options.

Fast-forward since then - I've seen doctors at two private clinics. I've had my case and results referred to Dr. Greg Williams at the Farjo institute for comment by the London Skin and Hair Clinic (I wasn't able to see Dr Williams in person), I've seen Dr Jensen (the chap from Embarrassing Bodies), Dr Chopra at the London Dermatology Centre (I've had a few PRP sessions with him) and I've seen Dr Shahmalak (Crown Clinic). I had a recent review with Dr. Shahmalak to look at a repair session for the disaster Dr Rana calls a procedure. It looks like there's not much he can do due to the donor area being exhausted. Dr Shahmalak said the amount that had been removed did not reflect was was implanted and that he actually contacted Dr. Rana about me and another patient and the response was dismissive - along the lines of well there will always be a couple of people with problems. Yes problems do occur but my experience wasn't an unexpected problem it was pure negligence and even fraud. Here's a list of current issues a year later:

• Cobblestoning
• Pitting
• Ridging - scalp area raised
• Repeated infections - unexplained still being looked at. Never had this before. Dr Shahmalak thinks it could be a buried graft but I've yet to get this under control
• Recurring pain in donor area and parts of recipient area
• Excessive trauma in the donor area - still becomes red and inflamed even a year later
• It appears not even 2000 grafts were carried out let alone the 4200 I was told
• Non-random hair placement
• Hair planted in the wrong direction in right temple area

I have a ton of pictures I've taken over the course of a year. Although it's hard to catch some of the things you can see in a mirror with a camera, I've tried to capture the negative results as best as I can and the London Skin and Hair Clinic took pictures whenever I went to see them.

I've condensed a years-worth of events as much as I could but it's still turned out to be a long post. The next steps for me are to stop the recurring infections (priority) and dermabrasion to smooth out the scalp. I then have to have the hair in the temples lasered off and then hopefully a repair job with Dr. Shahmalak (looking doubtful now). I'm going to either use SMP or go back to a shaved head with scar camouflage.

If anyone comes across Dr Rana Irfan when looking for an FUE procedure run a mile. He still maintains all the specialists I've seen in the U.K. are wrong and in-fact "envious" of him. He claims to be an IAHRS certified surgeon (yes I should have looked into this myself and not trust my "friend") when I don't believe that's the case. His website seems to suggest he's certified by everyone but the Queen of England.

I'll post an update after I've seen Dr. Shahmalak following dermabrasion sessions. And by the way, this "friend" disappeared at the first sign of trouble for me. Live an learn eh.

The above post is a completely factual account of what took place with my procedure. I have all communications and messages going back a year with Dr Rana Irfan. None of the claims in the legal Letter of Intent were disputed by the clinic. If Dr Rana said well I messed up, that would be one thing, but to state your an "FUE guru" on your website yet act in such a cavalier and dangerous manner with patients while disregarding essential hygiene is insane.

My advice to ANYONE looking to get a hair transplant done - if in doubt, walk run away. I've spent a small fortune on specialists and treatments to heal my scalp and I'm still not even done yet.

Cheers.

[Abdul haseeb]

i am really sorry about what happened to you .i am from pakistan and my story resembles to yours and currently after 5 month mark i am seeing tiny and shiny bumps on my recipient area and my donor area was also overharvested i just had a transplant of 900 grafts and for timesaving the surgeon took from a specific area and it is visible when i wear short hair.Now i am struggling to find if have cobblestonning .I got transplant from dr zahid iqbal he is a board certified surgeon but he ruined my lofe and now he doesnt respond to me no answer to any query .Can i have your pics to see how your cobblestone bumps look like to compare with mine 

[Fozzie]

Sounds a horrendous experience and sorry you had to go through it. Hope you are able to resolve the issues, especially relating to the infection(s) you've had to deal with.

Always sad to hear when people suffer at the hands of these type of clinics and think it underlines just how important your own research is before you jump into a procedure. There are a lot of hair transplant clinics/surgeons all over the world but honestly, I think there's only a small percentage that are worth going to in my opinion. I know price can attract potential patients but it really is russian roulette with some of these places. 

[yzuk]

Hi Abdul Haseeb, thanks for replying.

When "time saving" enters the equation it's worrying. In my case the doctor had to refund half the cost and I'm not done yet. Fraud and money aside, you can't mess with people's health. Some clinics need to be shut down.

In your case the doctor should not have harvested from one region especially if it's only 900 grafts - the donor area should have minimal impact.

When the grafts are planted in a rush, they're either too shallow or the technicians don't trim excess tissue from the grafts. This is one of the things that happened to me. I also suffered obvious pitting (very noticeable in the light) as well as ridging and cobblestoning.

If your only problem is cobblestoning you're quite fortunate. I have had recurring infections that are not normal and was told one of them was quite rare and was spread through poor hygiene. I have NEVER had any kind of infection in my whole life.

If your issue is just cobblestoning have a look at dermabrasion and some tropical treatment through a recommend dermatologist. You can also camouflage the donor area scars with SMP depending on how short the hair is. Again, make sure you consult someone reputable.

One more thing - when you say the doctor was board certified, what board is that?

I'll put some pictures up later when I'm home.

Edited June 30, 2019 by yzuk
addressed OP

[yzuk]

Hi Fozzie - what I regret the most is changing my mind from visiting Dr Koray. I knew this would be a major decision so wanted someone reputable. My choice was not based on cost, rather, trusting someone else's advice - who didn't know as much as he thought he did about hair transplants. My bad and I'm paying the price.

[Abdul haseeb]

 he is certified from American board of hair restoration surgery .Before him i was evaluating dr rana  but thank god i didnt trust him .I was good till 5th month marks after that i noticed very tiny bumps they shine in light .what i have come to know is cobblestonning is apperant but these are not visible until you see them at different angle in light i dont know what it is.i am getting it checked my derm says there are no bumps you are just worrying a lot .but i know there is something which was not before 5th month mark .thats why i asked you for pics so i can determine whether it is cobblestonning or something else which needs to be treated .

yes about donor area he gaves me wrong hope at the start i asked him it looks like visible patches what did you do he said there is slow growth in the donor are it will be fine soon but it improved just little still patches are visible for that i am thinking about smp but one doctor suggested me you have enough donor it is possible to shift some of grafts from other ares to patches .

[Abdul haseeb]

I woudn't mind if those tiny bumps were on my scalp actually i had a beard transplant and it's on my face i want to get rid of those as soon as i can

[yzuk]

I'll try and put some pics up tonight I have hundreds. I'm out of London at the moment but back this evening.

So you had grafts removed from donor area and implanted in the beard area?

[Abdul haseeb]

yes

[Abdul haseeb]

It's ok do it whenever you are free bro .Did you go for dermabrassion? what further steps are you taking? i am really sorry about you bro you must be reslly worried .i wish and pray every problem gets settled at it's earliest

[yzuk]

Thank you brother. My main concern at the moment is to stop the recurring infections. After that I'll book a micro-dermabrasion session to try and smooth out the small bumps. When everything is stable I will either pursue some SMP or maybe just scar camouflage for the donor area.

Since you're only at five months give it another couple of months and see if the bumps have settled. If there is no improvement then see a dermatologist preferably one with hair transplant experience.

[yzuk]

On 7/1/2019 at 12:28 PM, Abdul haseeb said:

It's ok do it whenever you are free bro .Did you go for dermabrassion? what further steps are you taking? i am really sorry about you bro you must be reslly worried .i wish and pray every problem gets settled at it's earliest

Hi how did it go - any improvement?

[jameslondon]

I was so freaked out reading your account of what you’ve been through, sounds like a nightmare in that everything they could do wrong they did

both the betrayal by your friend and the “dr” who has behaved totally unprofessionally and egotistically

I might be seeing dr Williams - do you have any feedback or have you heard of any research on him?  I can’t find anything online apart from his speciality was burns although being connected to farjo should be a good sign 

best wishes to you

james

 

[karatekid]

What da hell even baldtruthtalk censor bad reviews???  This forum is ran by Spencer and Tillman no? I thought they were honest people...

 

[jameslondon]

I just had an appointment with dr Greg Williams from Farjo. Had to walk out of it after a few minutes, after saying I’d sent info and my records were on file he said he asked me a simple question about my hair history and why don’t I answer.  Got bad vibes and I was on time for the appointment but was kept waiting in an empty room for 25 minutes 

this is all after trying to manage mick the patient coordinator and his emails, he’s like the worst receptionist at the gp so negative and unhelpful and he actually emailed me before the appointment to say they send all unsuitable hair candidates to dr Williams which set off alarm bells

[paddyirishman]

Sorry to hear of  such sad stories. So many doctors and clinics do not put the patients welfare and safety first. Then they don't want to know you when you contact them with an issue. Seen this so many times during my research. So my advice would be to carry out lots of research,  you only have 1 chance.

[LonelyGraft]

12 hours ago, jameslondon said:

I just had an appointment with dr Greg Williams from Farjo. Had to walk out of it after a few minutes, after saying I’d sent info and my records were on file he said he asked me a simple question about my hair history and why don’t I answer.  Got bad vibes and I was on time for the appointment but was kept waiting in an empty room for 25 minutes 

this is all after trying to manage mick the patient coordinator and his emails, he’s like the worst receptionist at the gp so negative and unhelpful and he actually emailed me before the appointment to say they send all unsuitable hair candidates to dr Williams which set off alarm bells

Good on you for walking out. Don’t stand for bs like that

[yzuk]

Just seen these replies they were going to spam.

I saw Dr Shamalak who is looking at a 3000 graft FUE using what's left in the donor area and the beard area. I'm trying to sort finances for this.

The worst thing is I suited a shaved head. Now I can't really shave my head or grow out my hair. Angry is an understatement and I'm still pursuing legal action as Rana Irfan is known (after my research talking to other surgeons) to be reckless and unhygienic.

I don't know what possessed me to go against my original plan and listen to this "friend".

@jameslondon

Arrange a visit with Dr Shamalak at Crown Clinic he's in Harley Street once a month and his surgery is in Manchester. I saw Dr Jessen (embarrassing bodies TV show) who had his hair transplant with Dr Shamalak. Again, see how you feel before anything.

The best advice I have is if in doubt walk out.

 

 

[yzuk]

On 2/13/2020 at 12:57 PM, jameslondon said:

I just had an appointment with dr Greg Williams from Farjo. Had to walk out of it after a few minutes, after saying I’d sent info and my records were on file he said he asked me a simple question about my hair history and why don’t I answer.  Got bad vibes and I was on time for the appointment but was kept waiting in an empty room for 25 minutes 

this is all after trying to manage mick the patient coordinator and his emails, he’s like the worst receptionist at the gp so negative and unhelpful and he actually emailed me before the appointment to say they send all unsuitable hair candidates to dr Williams which set off alarm bells

Wow. I was told to see Greg Williams at Farjo by Dr Wade at the London Skin and Hair Clinic. I called two or three times the receptionist said he'd passed on my message but I got no response and he was also rude. I then went to Dr Shamalak instead. Glad I did.

Edited February 18, 2020 by yzuk

[yzuk]

On 2/13/2020 at 10:51 AM, karatekid said:

What da hell even baldtruthtalk censor bad reviews???  This forum is ran by Spencer and Tillman no? I thought they were honest people...

 

No idea. My post wasn't cleared and I used their contact form at least twice to report Rana Irfan was fraudulently claiming to be a registered surgeon. I didn't even get an acknowledgement let alone a proper response.

[Fozzie]

10 minutes ago, yzuk said:

Just seen these replies they were going to spam.

I saw Dr Shamalak who is looking at a 3000 graft FUE using what's left in the donor area and the beard area. I'm trying to sort finances for this.

The worst thing is I suited a shaved head. Now I can't really shave my head or grow out my hair. Angry is an understatement and I'm still pursuing legal action as Rana Irfan is known (after my research talking to other surgeons) to be reckless and unhygienic.

I don't know what possessed me to go against my original plan and listen to this "friend".

@jameslondon

Arrange a visit with Dr Shamalak at Crown Clinic he's in Harley Street once a month and his surgery is in Manchester. I saw Dr Jessen (embarrassing bodies TV show) who had his hair transplant with Dr Shamalak. Again, see how you feel before anything.

The best advice I have is if in doubt walk out.

 

 

Have you looked at options abroad for repair work? Got to be honest, If I was looking for repair work, apart from say maybe say 2 surgeons in the UK, I'd personally look abroad.

[yzuk]

I'd consider Dr Koray but to be honest very cautious about going abroad unless I found a trusted surgeon. Do you have any suggestions?

Thanks for replying.

[makemefamous19]

Honestly I would stay in the UK.

 

Dr Arshad is supposed to be good.  Maitland clinic is another. Dr Koray in the past year has been hit and miss. I would not risk it. You need a doctor who is going to give you their whole attention with your limited donor. Koray will just palm you off to technician. If this was your first transplant then yeah maybe I would go for him. 

[yzuk]

Thanks for that. My preference is to stay in the UK. For the repair I'll really need to do some research and yes I don't want to be palmed off to a technician like what happened with Rana Irfan.

[Fozzie]

Well if budget isn't something that is going to hold you back, I'd probably be looking at Dr Konior and H&W in North America. Closer to home, you have the Belgian surgeons (Dr BIsanga, Dr Lupanzula, Dr Feriduni). Turkey could possibly be an option to but would stick to a limited amount of clinics....probably worth at least consulting with HLC in Ankara and ASMED. If your donor area has been severely compromised, HLC may be better suited as they also work with beard/body hair if I remember correctly.

You want to see a good amount evidence of repair work from any potential clinic/surgeon you decide to go to. Take your time and do plenty of research before hand. The UK isn't particularly great when it comes to HT clinics and there's only 2 there I'd personally ever consider (Dr Reddy and Dr Ball).