Dr. Melamed 3500 grafts for $12,500 offer

[Melange]

I had a consultation with Dr. Melamed at West LA hair restoration. He offered to do 3500 grafts for $12,500. Extraction would be by the artas, implantation by him manually. I'm fairly happy by this offer. Is this too good to be true?

[JDEE0]

Never heard of him, maybe some other members have and can offer input, but I can't find any patient results on the forum either. Take from that what you will..

Also, use of ARTAS would (in general) strongly, strongly push me away from a prospective surgeon, not entice me, as it has seemed to do for yourself.

Any reason why you consider this to be a factor of being 'too good to be true' as you say? And what is the reason you have decided to consult with and consider this Dr?

For the price you've mentioned, you could go to some of the best surgeons in Europe (and in the world overall in my opinion) and get the same number of grafts, if not more. So, I would say no it's not too good to be true, it actually seems like it's not a very good option in the first place to me.  

[Future Hair Doc]

I have personally never heard of this doctor. I would steer clear of the ARTAS machine and would only recommend manual extraction. Here is a list of recommended surgeons:

https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/Consult-a-Physician/hair-transplant-surgeons.asp?sr=HRN

Also, please check your private messages. Feel free to reach out anytime.

[Melange]

5 minutes ago, JDEE0 said:

Never heard of him, maybe some other members have and can offer input, but I can't find any patient results on the forum either. Take from that what you will..

Also, use of ARTAS would (in general) strongly, strongly push me away from a prospective surgeon, not entice me, as it has seemed to do for yourself.

Any reason why you consider this to be a factor of being 'too good to be true' as you say? And what is the reason you have decided to consult with and consider this Dr?

For the price you've mentioned, you could go to some of the best surgeons in Europe (and in the world overall in my opinion) and get the same number of grafts, if not more. So, I would say no it's not too good to be true, it actually seems like it's not a very good option in the first place to me.  

I'm not happy because of the artas, I'm enticed as this is a surgeon in America. I think I saw him mentioned in a thread somewhere but it was a while back

[MachoVato]

You can fly business class to Europe and get a *much* better clinic for less than that. And get a mini Euro vacation out of it!

And yes, stay away from ARTAS.

[Melvin- Admin]

Artas is usually a sign of a novice surgeon, not always but usually. There are a handful of good doctors that use the artas. But they are few and far in between.  

[Melange]

1 minute ago, Melvin- Moderator said:

Artas is usually a sign of a novice surgeon, not always but usually. There are a handful of good doctors that use the artas. But they are few and far in between.  

Ah, ok I may have fallen into the try guys trap as that guy had a machine extraction

[Melange]

6 minutes ago, MachoVato said:

You can fly business class to Europe and get a *much* better clinic for less than that. And get a mini Euro vacation out of it!

And yes, stay away from ARTAS.

I've mostly been looking with hlc, and pekiner recently replied to my consultation request. Lol I wish I could do business class flight

[JDEE0]

6 minutes ago, Melange said:

I'm not happy because of the artas, I'm enticed as this is a surgeon in America. I think I saw him mentioned in a thread somewhere but it was a while back

Ah ok, well, the ARTAS alone would have me running for the hills, combined with the fact this Dr. is seemingly unknown and has no real results to see, I would strongly advise against.

I understand it's convenient as you don't have to travel, but there are a number of great surgeons in the U.S. - it's just going to cost more. It's a cliche around here, but you should never base your decision off of location in any case. Only on the patient posted results that impress you the most along with a good reputation, solid code of ethics and aftercare etc. 

As MachoVato says, you could make a trip out of it, go and see Portugal, Spain or Belgium for a few days and have your HT done by a world-class surgeon for the same price. Something to consider.

[MachoVato]

10 minutes ago, Melange said:

I've mostly been looking with hlc, and pekiner recently replied to my consultation request. Lol I wish I could do business class flight

Roughly speaking... 3000 grafts at HLC or Pekiner @ 2.5 Euro/graft = $8800 USD.
Business class Texas to Ankara is about $3,750. (Madrid and Portugal is cheaper)
So maybe $12,500 USD total?

That's big boy money, but that's how I did it when I went to HLC last year... and when I went to Brussels 2 weeks ago. Nothing better than sleeping in the laydown seats! 

Edited August 25, 2021 by MachoVato

[Melange]

2 minutes ago, MachoVato said:

Roughly speaking... 3000 grafts at HLC or Pekiner @ 2.5 Euro/graft = $8800 USD.
Business class Texas to Ankara is about $3,750.
So maybe $12,500 USD total?

That's big boy money, but that's how I did it when I went to HLC last year... and when I went to Brussels 2 weeks ago. Nothing better than sleeping in the laydown seats! 

😅 Your starting to tempt me on the business ticket. I bet it's really helpful on the trip home

[Melange]

7 minutes ago, JDEE0 said:

Ah ok, well, the ARTAS alone would have me running for the hills, combined with the fact this Dr. is seemingly unknown and has no real results to see, I would strongly advise against.

I understand it's convenient as you don't have to travel, but there are a number of great surgeons in the U.S. - it's just going to cost more. It's a cliche around here, but you should never base your decision off of location in any case. Only on the patient posted results that impress you the most along with a good reputation, solid code of ethics and aftercare etc. 

As MachoVato says, you could make a trip out of it, go and see Portugal, Spain or Belgium for a few days and have your HT done by a world-class surgeon for the same price. Something to consider.

Yeah MachoVato is right. I have a few more consultations with doctors in the US, I'll send requests for doctors in Spain and Belgium next.

[MachoVato]

Just now, Melange said:

😅 Your starting to tempt me on the business ticket. I bet it's really helpful on the trip home

Haha! Houston to Istanbul is about 12 hours. Better service. Better meals. Unlimited adult beverages. Nice TV screens. Full lay down sleeping? Especially after surgery, you'll  want the privacy and comfort. 

A top tier doc in the US is at least $5-6/graft for FUE. You can spend about $3/graft @ HLC/Pekiner... $3.5 @ Ferreira/Pinto. If you are doing a large procedure, like 3000+, you'll save money by going to Europe. Fly business class... and if you're clever, arrive a week early into Istanbul and do some sight seeing. Istanbul is a wonderful city. You can stay at 5* hotels and eat like a king. Then fly to Ankara just for the surgery and then go home. Or fly into Lisbon for a short vacation and then fly to Porto for the surgery. 

Either way, you'd end up saving money, or at least breaking even, by going to Europe. Make it a damn adventure!

[Rbs]

32 minutes ago, Melange said:

😅 Your starting to tempt me on the business ticket. I bet it's really helpful on the trip home

FWIW, This is exactly what I did and it was worth it.

As most of the folks on this thread and forum say;

Always look for the best surgeon. PERIOD.

Then the location and cost.

It's better to wait for the situation to improve (Travel, cash in hand) than go with the easiest option.

[Melange]

2 minutes ago, rishibostonian said:

FWIW, This is exactly what I did and it was worth it.

As most of the folks on this thread and forum say;

Always look for the best surgeon. PERIOD.

Then the location and cost.

It's better to wait for the situation to improve (Travel, cash in hand) than go with the easiest option.

How does payment work for the operation? As in is everyone bringing cash with, or has anyone used credit? I have a Visa with 0 international fee, but a credit limit below total cost

[pkipling]

As the others have said, I suggest you keep doing more research, and the list of recommended surgeons here is a good place to start. And while location shouldn't be a sole deciding factor when making a decision, if you do want to stay local in LA, feel free to reach out to me about Dr. Mohebi. 

Regarding Artas, it's really not everything that some doctors make it out to be, and I don't believe it's ever fully lived up to its promise. In fact, many inexperienced surgeons often rely on Artas to do the work they don't have the skill for themselves. And even if a surgeon does use Artas as part of the procedure, the fact that he says the extraction will be done completely by the machine is a red flag. The machine itself is limited, and even in the best case scenario, the surgeon needs to know when the machine isn't performing like it should and be skilled enough to change course mid-procedure to manual extraction.

I'm glad you found this forum before jumping into a decision, because I definitely think you have better options for you out there.

[1978matt]

I normally book Premium Economy seats transatlantic.  For the return (overnight) flight (USA to UK) I would ask at checkin for the "upgrade price" and often take it.  It has varied from about $700 to $1100.  Much cheaper than booking it in the first place.

[Melvin- Admin]

1 hour ago, Melange said:

Ah, ok I may have fallen into the try guys trap as that guy had a machine extraction

I mean everyone is suggesting you go to Europe, while there’s great surgeons in Europe. You can find quality doctors in the US, for example Dr. Gabel Portland, Dr. Mohebi Los Angeles, Dr. Cooley North Carolina, Dr. Konior Chicago. If you don’t want to travel outside of the US, there’s no need too. The US has plenty of options. 
 

Use our list as a guide and start from there

https://www.hairtransplantnetwork.com/Consult-a-Physician/hair-transplant-surgeons.asp?sr=HRN-MOB

[Rbs]

4 hours ago, Melange said:

How does payment work for the operation? As in is everyone bringing cash with, or has anyone used credit? I have a Visa with 0 international fee, but a credit limit below total cost

I had their accounts added to Remitly and Xoom and did online transfer.

Had credit card as backup.

I did not take cash with me but you can take upto US$ 5,000 in hand

[deeznuts]

5 hours ago, Melange said:

How does payment work for the operation? As in is everyone bringing cash with, or has anyone used credit? I have a Visa with 0 international fee, but a credit limit below total cost

I did a bank transfer. Cost me i think like 10 bucks to do a transfer factoring in fx?

[A Fue Good Men]

I stopped reading at artas….run from any doctor offering you an artas procedure. Although the machine has improved from before, I would never choose to have a machine work on me rather than a skilled doctors hand.

 

secondly, you have a lot of native hair and IMO can be at risk for shock loss so you need to choose carefully. There are some top doctors recommended here in North America and Europe. Ask a lot of questions and don’t just jump into surgery based off price