Regular Member rr1992 Posted February 11, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted February 11, 2022 (edited) Hello Everyone! I have just returned home to the US after having a 2700 graft FUE procedure with Dr. Kongkiat Laorwong in Bangkok, Thailand. I want to share my experience for both feedback and to help others who are searching for a surgeon. Background - I am a 29 year old Caucasian male with a receding hairline. I have always had a high hairline but noticed over the past several years it seems to have creeped up higher than I was comfortable. I begin looking into a HT 3 years ago, but kept putting it off as I was dreading the post op time needed to see the full results (shaved head, ugly duckling stage etc). and to be frank I didn't have glaring hair loss so I was able to go without it. Dr selection - I was open to traveling anywhere in the world to have procedure done as long as I felt it was a reputable clinic/surgeon and the price was within my range. I was really looking to pay no more than 10k total. Hasson and Wong in Canada really caught my eye but the price was just too high when I saw there were other clinics with similar results and far less expense. Ultimately, it came down to Dr. Laorwong in Thailand and Eugenix in India. I scoured through years of reviews and felt that Dr. Laorwong was the right choice as I had a very hard time finding any complaints, pricing was very competitive, and he is thoroughly involved in all steps of the procedure. Procedure - Traveling to Bangkok during active COVID restrictions was NOT easy. There are many hoops to jump through and it was stressful to plan my trip. In fact, I had to change my procedure date several times as COVID rules and regulations evolved. Dr. Laorwong was very understanding and was able to push my surgery date back one day on short notice as I was frantically trying to meet all of the necessary travel requirements. After arriving to Bangkok I quarantined for 1 day and then headed straight to the clinic at 830 for an initial consultation and surgery to follow. The Dr took some measurements and drew an initial hairline and asked for my feedback. I agreed to the hairline as it was in line with my expectation based on our email conversations. The only additional request I made was to fill in the temple points and he agreed and added that to the projected number of grafts needed which totaled 2700 : 2400 for the lowering and dense packing of my hairline and 300 for temple points (150 on each side). At this point we went straight into preparation for the procedure. I was administered a COVID and HIV test, then Dr. Laorwong himself shaved my donor area and I was taken to the operating room. The procedure itself took longer than I expected (which I didn't see as a bad thing as it only reassured me of the thoroughness). The donor extraction took roughly 2.5 hours followed by a 20 minute lunch, then 6 hours of incision and implantation. The 6 hour stretch was the worst part for me as laying on my back for so long without moving my head was causing me a lot of neck discomfort. I was given 30 minutes of LLT then sent back to my hotel for the night and scheduled to return the following afternoon for a cleaning and checkup. I wasn't in any pain and was able to sleep mostly normal. Returned to the clinic the next day and everything appeared to be in order and I was given another round of LLT, and a bag that included cleaning instructions, medications (antibiotics, Tylenol) and some shampoo. I will note that Dr. Laorwong prefers patients to stay at least 3 days for follow up appointments, but I was unable to due COVID restrictions and the need to get back to the US for work. I had the 1 follow up appointment the day after the procedure and flew home that night. Overall Experience - The experience was excellent and I can only hope the results are as well. Dr. Laorwong is a man of few words and straight to the point, but is very thorough and seems to take a great deal of pride in his work. At this point I feel very comfortable having chosen him as my surgeon. Below are some before and Day 2 photos. I will add to this thread as my hair grows and I make progress. Any questions, comments, and feedback are welcomed! Before photos - Day 2 - Edited February 11, 2022 by rr1992 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Melvin- Admin Posted February 11, 2022 Administrators Share Posted February 11, 2022 Everything looks excellent, very eager to see your progress. You and @_lshy join the ranks of going to Thailand. 2 I’m a paid admin for Hair Transplant Network. I do not receive any compensation from any clinic. My comments are not medical advice. Check out my final hair transplant and topical dutasteride journey: View my thread Topical dutasteride journey Melvin- Managing Publisher and Forum Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q&A Blog. Follow our Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and YouTube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Britanium Posted February 11, 2022 Senior Member Share Posted February 11, 2022 Looks like excellent work 👍🏽 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member bw77 Posted February 12, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted February 12, 2022 Looks great! Please post regular updates. I'm very interested in Dr Laorwong's work. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valued Contributor Gatsby Posted February 12, 2022 Valued Contributor Share Posted February 12, 2022 Incredible results. 👌 2 GATSBY 'UNPLUGGED!' 15,671 (3 surgeries) Grafts FUE+BHT Dr. Sethi Eugenix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member rr1992 Posted February 16, 2022 Author Regular Member Share Posted February 16, 2022 Hello All, Day 9 here and everything seems to be healing up quite well. I am preparing to remove scabs via the method that @Melvin- Moderator describes in his video, and I did notice one thing. It appears a sort of cracking or canal like lines appeared in certain areas and they don’t appear to have implanted hair anymore. I assume this is normal/expected? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Britanium Posted February 16, 2022 Senior Member Share Posted February 16, 2022 Yes it’s totally normal. Nothing to worry about 😌 Happens quite often. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Britanium Posted February 16, 2022 Senior Member Share Posted February 16, 2022 You can see at the start of the vid the scabbing can appear like this: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member rr1992 Posted February 16, 2022 Author Regular Member Share Posted February 16, 2022 4 hours ago, JC71 said: You can see at the start of the vid the scabbing can appear like this: Awesome thanks for the response! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayKHair Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 Very nice results. I’m thinking about the same doctor. Cost per graft? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member rr1992 Posted February 17, 2022 Author Regular Member Share Posted February 17, 2022 @JayKHairsent you a message Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member rr1992 Posted February 18, 2022 Author Regular Member Share Posted February 18, 2022 (edited) Day 10 just removed scabs. Everything looks good to me. I’m pretty happy with hairline design. Feel like my forehead still looks big but I’m optimistic that once hair is all grown in it’ll look proportionate and frame my face well. Edited February 18, 2022 by rr1992 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Hristo13 Posted April 17, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted April 17, 2022 Hi @rr1992 … any updates? It would be great to see how it’s coming along. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member rr1992 Posted May 9, 2022 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 9, 2022 (edited) Hello, sorry for the delay @Hristo13 Here is my progress as of today (3 months) I think it is coming in nicely and I am optimistic my final result will definitely be within my expectations. Edited May 9, 2022 by rr1992 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Melvin- Admin Posted May 9, 2022 Administrators Share Posted May 9, 2022 Wow growing already 👏🏼👏🏼 I’m a paid admin for Hair Transplant Network. I do not receive any compensation from any clinic. My comments are not medical advice. Check out my final hair transplant and topical dutasteride journey: View my thread Topical dutasteride journey Melvin- Managing Publisher and Forum Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q&A Blog. Follow our Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and YouTube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Britanium Posted May 9, 2022 Senior Member Share Posted May 9, 2022 And we have kick off 👍🏽 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Hristo13 Posted May 9, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted May 9, 2022 It's looking great @rr1992, you can see some good growth coming in ... is there still some redness? My redness started to fade after three months and by month four it was completely gone. I'm just over four months and extremely happy with the progress. I noticed the biggest improvement between month 3 and 4 so I'm sure you will continue to see improvement. Dr Laorwong seems to be doing great work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member rr1992 Posted May 10, 2022 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 10, 2022 @Hristo13Great to hear! Yes still a little pink but not really noticeable anymore. I’m looking forward to being able to cut the top a little shorter because I’ve kept it long to cover my hairline, so hopefully good growth for month 4 for me too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Gi29 Posted May 24, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted May 24, 2022 Hi @rr1992, I am also considering to do hair transplant with Dr Laorwong. I tried to reach him via email, whatsapp, and LINE, but have not received any replies. Do you mind sharing how you contacted him? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Britanium Posted May 24, 2022 Senior Member Share Posted May 24, 2022 2 minutes ago, Gi29 said: Hi @rr1992, I am also considering to do hair transplant with Dr Laorwong. I tried to reach him via email, whatsapp, and LINE, but have not received any replies. Do you mind sharing how you contacted him? Thanks! You could try this forums online consultation: https://hairtransplantnetwork.com/dr-kongiat-laorwong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Gi29 Posted May 24, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted May 24, 2022 7 minutes ago, J-C said: You could try this forums online consultation: https://hairtransplantnetwork.com/dr-kongiat-laorwong Thanks! Do you know how long ahead we need to book for the surgery? I know some surgeons need to be booked few months ahead. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Britanium Posted May 24, 2022 Senior Member Share Posted May 24, 2022 3 minutes ago, Gi29 said: Thanks! Do you know how long ahead we need to book for the surgery? I know some surgeons need to be booked few months ahead. Sometimes this is true, other times it could be weeks ! Only the clinic themselves would know 👍🏽 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Ramons Posted May 28, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2022 On 5/24/2022 at 10:13 PM, Gi29 said: Thanks! Do you know how long ahead we need to book for the surgery? I know some surgeons need to be booked few months ahead. I recently booked with Dr Laorwong, he asked for atleast 2 weeks notice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Thomo Posted May 30, 2022 Regular Member Share Posted May 30, 2022 Superb progress! I’m looking into Dr L’s work too. I’ve sent you a PM! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJM Posted September 8, 2022 Share Posted September 8, 2022 Hi @rr1992 - any updates on your progress? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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