URGENT: Advice needed on Vera Clinic, Istanbul

[Mjain]

Dear All,

I'm new to the forum and have been considering having a hair transplant in Turkey. I've spoken to 3-4 clinics and am now considering having a hair transplant with Vera Clinic. The procedure will be performed by Dr. Kazim Sipahi. Just wondering if anybody has experience with this clinic or the doctor? I haven't read much about them on the forum. I have been told I will need 3000-3500 grafts and the main steps of the procedure will be performed by the doctor.

I very much look forward to hearing your experiences.

Thanks

MJ

[ITA]

If you want advice, be wary of clinics or surgeons who do not have testimonials from real patients who publish their experiences on ethical forums like these, do not trust if they only have videos on yuotube or on their sites because they will always be successful there.  Do not be in a hurry, look carefully on this forum, one of the few who does not compromise with the clinics and does not take money to cancel the reports of disgruntled patients.

[Mjain]

13 minutes ago, Egy said:

If you want advice, be wary of clinics or surgeons who do not have testimonials from real patients who publish their experiences on ethical forums like these, do not trust if they only have videos on yuotube or on their sites because they will always be successful there.  Do not be in a hurry, look carefully on this forum, one of the few who does not compromise with the clinics and does not take money to cancel the reports of disgruntled patients.

Thanks so much Egy for your response and the great advice. I guess I'll research better before going ahead. Though I'm still eager to hear about this clinic/doctor

[Portugal25]

@Mjain there is no mention of Dr Kazim on any forum. Vera Clinic has only 1 patient posting results from his surgery in October 2019 on the Turkish forum (too soon to tell).

Turkey is the world capital of botched Hair transplant surgeries so I would not advise you to go ahead with this unknown clinic because it seems to still be deprived of any reputation. 

If want to have a cheap surgery in Turkey don’t take risks and go to Dr. Demirsoy (1.25€/graft). 

Edited January 28, 2020 by Portugal25

[Melvin- Admin]

You've been given great replies.

[Mjain]

On 1/28/2020 at 8:28 PM, Portugal25 said:

@Mjain there is no mention of Dr Kazim on any forum. Vera Clinic has only 1 patient posting results from his surgery in October 2019 on the Turkish forum (too soon to tell).

Turkey is the world capital of botched Hair transplant surgeries so I would not advise you to go ahead with this unknown clinic because it seems to still be deprived of any reputation. 

If want to have a cheap surgery in Turkey don’t take risks and go to Dr. Demirsoy (1.25€/graft). 

Hi @Portugal25, thanks so much for the advice. Much appreciated!

[Mjain]

On 1/29/2020 at 1:21 AM, Melvin-Moderator said:

You've been given great replies.

Thanks @Melvin-Moderator!

[Mjain]

@Portugal25 Quick question pls if you don't mind - what's the best way to reach out to Dr. Demirsoy? I tried calling both the numbers mentioned on the website, one won't connect and nobody picked up on the other. Thanks in advance!

[Portugal25]

@Mjain I`m not a patient of Dr. Demirsoy so I don`t know how to reach him but you could ask one of the recent patients that posted in this forum like @Sijac09 for the contact of Dr. Demirsoy assistant - Muzzaffer.

https://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/topic/55958-2042-grafts-with-dr-demirsoy-armamed-with-pics/?tab=comments#comment-529690

 

[Sijac09]

Yes Muzzaffer email is info@armamed.com.tr

[Sijac09]

42 minutes ago, Portugal25 said:

@Mjain I`m not a patient of Dr. Demirsoy so I don`t know how to reach him but you could ask one of the recent patients that posted in this forum like @Sijac09 for the contact of Dr. Demirsoy assistant - Muzzaffer.

https://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/topic/55958-2042-grafts-with-dr-demirsoy-armamed-with-pics/?tab=comments#comment-529690

 

info@armamed.com.tr 
 

muzaffer email 

[Mjain]

Thanks so much @Sijac09, @Portugal25!

[LeftHook]

I would question the ethics of Vera Clinic... because a few months ago, either the clinic itself or somebody tasked with promoting the clinic had posted a series of what everybody called out as fake reviews on this forum.

It was a series of new members joining, and on their first day posting pretty much the same kind of "testimonial" about how great and professional clinic was and how delighted they are with their results... yet not a single photo or pre-op, post-op, or end result photos. The "member" would not then reply to any questions or requests for photos or proof of HT.

After 3 or 4 posts, a new "member" then posted the usual testimonial, but then alleged that he chose Vera Clinic after another HTN recommended doctor had given him a "bad reply". Again, this claim was completely unsubstantiated and requests for evidence were ignored.

Based on such unethical marketing practices, I'd steer very well clear of Vera Clinic.

[barrygray222]

I have been a member of the forum for some years but admit I have not been an active member. I have had two Fue transplants. One in India with Dr Bhatti about 9 years ago and one in Turkey last week. I had a very positive experience in Turkey but I am not responding to promote the specific hospital I used for many reasons including the fact that I'm not sure what the rules are in this forum about recommendations and I am sure there will be many other clinics in Turkey worthy of consideration. What I do know is when I was waiting to get on the plane back to Edinburgh there was about 12 other male passengers who had also had transplant surgery done in Turkey. In fact, I was amazed at how many men were walking about Istanbul after having had transplants. Anyway, I got chatting at the airport to a couple of the other men and unfortunately their stories were full of pain and regret. I cannot remember the names of the clinics involved but one of them told me that there was another patient in his clinic at the same time who got 7000 fue grafts done in one day. That immediately got my alarm bells ringing. I might be wrong, and perhaps transplant techniques have changed, but based on what I have previously known, I believe 7000 Fue grafts in one sitting in way beyond the norm? Some of the clinics in Turkey (and I am sure in other parts of the world) do that "carrot on a stick" thing. The point I am making is if any clinic seems unscrupulous or has manipulative sales promotions (who wants to take a chance on a discounted hair transplant or a clinic who will haggle down the price) then I would avoid them. The first thing I was looking for was a clinic that responded to my inquiry in a professional and dignified manner. I also wanted all my questions answered thoroughly, while at the same time I was wary of the slightest hint of manipulative sales techniques coming my way. I decided in advance that the onus was on the clinic or hospital to make me feel a degree of confidence in all aspects of the procedure they were offering before I was willing to book. Then I took it from there, while fully adopting the "if in doubt leave it out" philosophy. I used my instincts and I took my time, but I fully understand how difficult it is to place trust in clinic that is, in geographical terms, thousands of miles away. I hope you find the clinic in Turkey that is right for you. 

[Mjain]

Thanks @LeftHook and @barrygray222 for the sound advice!

All of you guys have been very kind!

[Mjain]

Hi Guys,

Just a quick follow up - I reached out to Dr. Demirsoy's assistant Muzzafer as per your advice. However, I had a little strange experience. Upon asking all the details and pics, and much follow up from my side, he came back to me saying my donor area density is low and the result may not be great. I got back to him saying that I'm not expecting a miracle and am just looking for a reasonable result. However, he stopped responding to my emails. So I'm just assuming Dr. Demirsoy won't be willing to take up my case.

My belief now is that I will probably need other donor hair like beard to have a decent result, and this makes me think of @Portugal25's experience with Dr. Kaan Pekiner. I tried reaching out to doctor using the website directly as well the phone number and email id listed on the website. The call never went throught and it's been a week no response to email. @Portugal25 would you kind enough to share with me what's your current status like and how best to reach out to the doctor? Would you be comfortable in recommending Dr. Pekiner? Thanks in advance and I look forward to hearing from you.

MJ

[makemefamous19]

22 minutes ago, Mjain said:

Hi Guys,

Just a quick follow up - I reached out to Dr. Demirsoy's assistant Muzzafer as per your advice. However, I had a little strange experience. Upon asking all the details and pics, and much follow up from my side, he came back to me saying my donor area density is low and the result may not be great. I got back to him saying that I'm not expecting a miracle and am just looking for a reasonable result. However, he stopped responding to my emails. So I'm just assuming Dr. Demirsoy won't be willing to take up my case.

My belief now is that I will probably need other donor hair like beard to have a decent result, and this makes me think of @Portugal25's experience with Dr. Kaan Pekiner. I tried reaching out to doctor using the website directly as well the phone number and email id listed on the website. The call never went throught and it's been a week no response to email. @Portugal25 would you kind enough to share with me what's your current status like and how best to reach out to the doctor? Would you be comfortable in recommending Dr. Pekiner? Thanks in advance and I look forward to hearing from you.

MJ

Got any pics of the donor? 
 

Bear in mind Demirsoy is one of the most ethical doctors in Turkey, so if he’s telling you the result will not be great then that is alarming. He has nothing to lose by telling you that. If you have a hair transplant with him and it doesn’t go well then it will be one of those cases as usually most of Demirsoys results are solid. 

 

Obviously best to ask from four or five doctors. Try not to ask any of these run of the mill Turkish hair factories because they will give you the same generic quote. Ask some of the high end doctors. 

[Portugal25]

@Mjain from reading my results thread you can see that my HT experience was great and my YouTube video shows that the clinic is pretty luxurious but I’m only at 7 weeks so you will need to go check the 52 patient results at the Italian forum to reach your own conclusions (be warned that they censor bad results from most Doctor on that forum so HRN is really the best source). So far I’m very happy and the patient rep keeps checking in to see if all is going well. 

I wanted the Doctor doing the whole surgery with either stick&place or DHI and when I did my research I found that for mega sessions of beard grafts (+1500) the clinics getting the best results were Pekiner (2.15/graft) and HLC 2.7€/graft).
I chose Pekiner for two reasons: 1. He was cheaper than HLC. 2. I didn’t knew who the doctor doing my surgery would be at HLC. 

If you decide on Pekiner you should be aware that he rejects patients with miniaturized hair because he feels we won’t be able to achieve the results that the patient expects. I made a complaint to his rep after this happened to my close friend and he informed me that they now ask patients to do a thricogram if they suspect the patient has miniaturized hair (so they can reject patients before they start extracting their grafts).

Pekiner does have a representative that lacks customer relationships management skills when criticized and they do give a discount to use your blurred pictures however they want which some people considered a lack of ethics but he is indeed getting very good results using a highly skilled technique at a very affordable price. 

Mjain I would also recommend that you talk with Dr. Arika (1.8€/graft with tax) at Eugenix because they also have good results using beard grafts.
They have a different approach, Dr. Arika opens all the holes at once and then she and the techs/nurses do DHT which basically means they extract the graft and immediately implant after extraction.

I am not a fan of pre-made holes/slits because they start closing immediately after opening and get blood and fat accumulated that’s why I preferred stick&place in which the doctor first extracts all the grafts and after he implants them one by one opening one hole/slit at a time. The grafts stay out of the body for a longer period of time but the hole/slit is done one at a time and not all at once. 

Both seem like good approaches and it’s up to each person to look at the results these Doctors are achieving and make their decision based on those results.

Another amazing Doctor I would advise you to contact is @Dr. Bruno Ferreira because he works in Madrid as the medical assistant of one the best FUE Doctors in the world - Jose Lorenzo but also does surgery in his own clinic in Porto/Portugal (2.5€/graft). 
He uses a technique called DHI (the newest that is also used by Couto, Lorenzo and De Freitas), it’s somewhat similar to stick&place because grafts are also all extracted first but then they are implanted using a Lion Implantor pen that is charged with the graft and then makes the two actions at the same time; open the hole/slit and implant the graft in one go, this reduces the trauma to the graft due to less handling of the graft to implant and to place it at a proper angle. 
He gave me a very detailed diagnosis and he also is experienced with beard grafts (from what I gathered he doesn’t do a lot of beard mega sessions +1500 grafts like HLC and Pekiner). 

Edited February 17, 2020 by Portugal25

[Mjain]

Hi @makemefamous19 and @Portugal25, thanks for your replies. I heard back from Dr. Pekiner and he says I'm not a good candidate for FUE procedure at the moment as my hair loss situation is not stable. According to him, all my main androgenetic areas (front, mid and crown) are thinning out, and also expanded crown is starting to get miniaturized.

Furthermore I may be at risk of DUPA (diffuse unpatterned alopecia) and Alopecia Retrograde according to him. He has suggested an anti-DHT therapy for at least 6 months  will hopefully strengthen my crown, mid and donor area and avoid further worsening towards the head donor area. I'm attaching a couple of pics for your review.

And yes, @Portugal25, additional thanks for providing the details of the procedures adopted by the other doctors - super helpful info. I will probably get in touch with them too to see what they have to say.

But for now, I'm getting Finasteride and Minoxidil and will use it for 6 months. Hopefully post that I can have a transplant. Please let me know if you have any other suggestions. Thanks again!

Edited February 19, 2020 by Mjain

[Mjain]

Dear @Portugal25, @Melvin-Moderator, @makemefamous19 and all,

Hope you had a lovely new year break and are keeping safe. I guess this is not the best thread for this post but since I posted here last year let me continue. 2020 has been a crazy year for pretty much everybody and thus I couldn't make much progress on hair transplant front. I recently got in touch with Dr. Arika Bansal at Eugenix clinic India and got a diagnosis for 4500 grafts (3000 scalp, 1500 beard). Frontal & Mid Scalp Area will require 3500 grafts for reconstruction of hairline, corners and rest of the frontal scalp with a high hairline and density filling and coverage in bald areas. The technique they proposed is DHT (Direct Hair Transplantation) which I believe is the same as what @Portugal25 explained in his earlier response in this thread.

I just wanted to get thoughts from you all based on your extensive experience, does this sound good and I should go ahead? Are there any specific things that I should keep in mind or any specific questions I should ask them before finalizing? Thanks so much and I look forward to your responses.

Happy new year! 

[SLA]

2 hours ago, Mjain said:

Dear @Portugal25, @Melvin-Moderator, @makemefamous19 and all,

Hope you had a lovely new year break and are keeping safe. I guess this is not the best thread for this post but since I posted here last year let me continue. 2020 has been a crazy year for pretty much everybody and thus I couldn't make much progress on hair transplant front. I recently got in touch with Dr. Arika Bansal at Eugenix clinic India and got a diagnosis for 4500 grafts (3000 scalp, 1500 beard). Frontal & Mid Scalp Area will require 3500 grafts for reconstruction of hairline, corners and rest of the frontal scalp with a high hairline and density filling and coverage in bald areas. The technique they proposed is DHT (Direct Hair Transplantation) which I believe is the same as what @Portugal25 explained in his earlier response in this thread.

I just wanted to get thoughts from you all based on your extensive experience, does this sound good and I should go ahead? Are there any specific things that I should keep in mind or any specific questions I should ask them before finalizing? Thanks so much and I look forward to your responses.

Happy new year! 

Happy new year!- Dr. Bansal and Eugenix have been consistently producing good results. They are certainly a trustworthy clinic.

I too had a consult with Dr. Bansal and she recommended something similar for me. I did ask about beard hair and she was open by saying 60% have excellent results combining beard, 20% moderate and 20% not so good- I think it has something maybe to do with the growth rate of the beard. When I asked her to assess my beard (over a zoom video) which I had grown out, she said she can only tell when it is short. She asked me when I shave, how my beard looks the next day. When I told her you can see that I have outlines of small stubble, she hypothesized, I might have 3-4k viable lifetime beard grafts. 

I mentioned that I have fine hair and wanted to know how the beard hairs might integrate, she told me to check out @Zoomsterposts on this forum for a good example. @paddyirishmanis another good example of Caucasian-fine hair with great success using beard grafts. 

While I wasn't able to get an answer as to whether or not my beard hairs would grow well on the scalp, I did find out through a follow up question to @Abhinay Singhthat if they don't grow well, they could always add more scalp grafts at a later date. 

Since such a large proportion of beard grafts will be used, one idea is to send her photos of your beard clean shaven and another one 24 hours later to see if she could better assess. If that is not a good test, I am sure she can further advise. I may do the same myself.

Probably the main reason I am still balking on Eugenix is debating whether to go FUT 1st, which some say will yield more lifetime donor grafts (although Dr. Bansal disagreed with this and cited some very valid reasons, which I have heard before). FYI...if you search this forum for 'Eugenix, you will see a detailed write up of my consult with Dr. Bansal.

I hope this helps and keep us posted!

 

 

[Britanium]

Eugenix is a excellent choice ! You won’t be disappointed. So many recent patient and clinic results to check out. 

[Melvin- Admin]

I third that, Eugenix is an excellent choice all around.

[Aswediplio]

"I am glad that you finally managed to find a clinic that suited you according to all criteria! I am currently looking for a doctor for a hair transplant, so I looked through the topics on the forum and read all the discussions that could prompt me to choose.  There is a hearing test near me in the region where I live and good specialists in audiology. But the search for medical centres dealing with hair is negligible.  Most likely, I will have to go abroad searching for decent doctors. What was the most important thing for you when choosing a clinic? I don't know yet what details I should pay attention to."

 

Edited January 31, 2022 by Aswediplio

[Dmaan]

On 1/31/2020 at 5:17 AM, barrygray222 said:

I have been a member of the forum for some years but admit I have not been an active member. I have had two Fue transplants. One in India with Dr Bhatti about 9 years ago and one in Turkey last week. I had a very positive experience in Turkey but I am not responding to promote the specific hospital I used for many reasons including the fact that I'm not sure what the rules are in this forum about recommendations and I am sure there will be many other clinics in Turkey worthy of consideration. What I do know is when I was waiting to get on the plane back to Edinburgh there was about 12 other male passengers who had also had transplant surgery done in Turkey. In fact, I was amazed at how many men were walking about Istanbul after having had transplants. Anyway, I got chatting at the airport to a couple of the other men and unfortunately their stories were full of pain and regret. I cannot remember the names of the clinics involved but one of them told me that there was another patient in his clinic at the same time who got 7000 fue grafts done in one day. That immediately got my alarm bells ringing. I might be wrong, and perhaps transplant techniques have changed, but based on what I have previously known, I believe 7000 Fue grafts in one sitting in way beyond the norm? Some of the clinics in Turkey (and I am sure in other parts of the world) do that "carrot on a stick" thing. The point I am making is if any clinic seems unscrupulous or has manipulative sales promotions (who wants to take a chance on a discounted hair transplant or a clinic who will haggle down the price) then I would avoid them. The first thing I was looking for was a clinic that responded to my inquiry in a professional and dignified manner. I also wanted all my questions answered thoroughly, while at the same time I was wary of the slightest hint of manipulative sales techniques coming my way. I decided in advance that the onus was on the clinic or hospital to make me feel a degree of confidence in all aspects of the procedure they were offering before I was willing to book. Then I took it from there, while fully adopting the "if in doubt leave it out" philosophy. I used my instincts and I took my time, but I fully understand how difficult it is to place trust in clinic that is, in geographical terms, thousands of miles away. I hope you find the clinic in Turkey that is right for you. 

Hello @barrygray,

thank you for your really honest and helpful advice. hopefully you get notified of this thread.would you please share with me where you got your transplant and how has it turned out for you? I am looking around for a trustworthy source but this has not been easy. I would appreciate it.