Which doctor? Pukpinya (Patty), Turan, Gur, Panchaprateep or someone else?

[Zhifa]

I've been contemplating a hair transplant on and off for a few years and I've read a lot of reviews on this forum and on Reddit and I've decided I finally want to get it done. The big question is which doctor?

I'm currently based in Beijing so Thailand, Turkey and India seem like the most convenient options out of the usual HT countries but I'm happy to consider anywhere else if anyone has any suggestions.

By way of background, I'm currently 31 and I first noticed my hair loss when I was about 20. My current/previous hair loss treatments are:

• minoxidil since I was 20 (initially just 2-4mL per day of 5% topical; 6 months ago I started 1mg oral + continued to use 2-4mL of topical; for the past 3 months I have just used 2.5mg oral)
  • I've previously tried the strongest formulations from Minoxidil Max but didn't notice much difference
  • I think my hair might be slightly thicker since starting oral and my scalp seems less irritated
• finasteride since I was 21 and I switched to dutasteride for the past 18 months (both with mild side effects)
• 320mg saw palmetto extract daily for the past 4 years
• 272-diode LLLT cap for 30 mins every 1-2 days for the past 2 years
• I've tried derma-rolling with and without minoxidil and didn't notice any particular benefit

My hair loss seems to be reasonably stable but I might have some gradual loss, which I understand would mean I may need further transplants in the future.

I like to keep my hair short. I don't style my hair and I don't want to have to use any products to make my hair look thicker. I mainly just want a stronger hairline. I don't feel the need to bring my hairline too far forward.

My biggest concerns are:

• minimising scars
• not wasting my donor (e.g. if a clinic has a poor survival rate)
• having a particularly unnatural-looking hairline

I've previously had two in-person evaluations in Melbourne, Australia. Those clinics' proposals were:

• Gro Clinic (June 2022):
  • graded my hair loss as a Norwood III progressing to a IVa
  • proposed a transplant of 4000 "hairs" (not grafts) in the frontal and hairline (I.e. no crown) for $17,700 AUD 
• Dr Hair (Dr Baj - February 2023):
  • graded my hair loss as a Norwood III
  • proposed a transplant of up to 3500 "hairs" (not grafts) for $14,750 AUD

Since I'm not currently in Australia and there seem to be better and more cost-effective doctors elsewhere, I'm not really considering those options at the moment

I have recently sought proposals from FUE Capilar (Turkey), Hairtran Clinic and Absolute Hair Clinic (both in Thailand) using the following photos. I've briefly set out their proposals below.

 

Dr Gur (FUE Capilar):

• graded my hair loss as a Norwood V
• proposed a transplant of 3000-3500 FUs:
  • 2500-2700 FUs for the hairline reconstruction and density increase in the frontal and the fronto-temporal area
  • 500-800 FUs for the mid-scalp area
• No crown (not sure why - they proposed to do it in a previous proposal)
• Temples will be assessed during the consultation
• Cost:
  • Surgery (2 options):
    • 'VIP package' (Dr Gur performs graft extraction): 5400-6300 EUR
    • 'Standard package (presumably technicians perform the extractions): 3500 EUR
  • 3 nights' accommodation + ground transfers: 300 EUR

Dr Turan (FUE Capilar)

• graded my hair loss as a Norwood 5
• 3500 - 4000 FUs:
  • 2500-2750 FUs for the hairline reconstruction and density increase in the frontal and the fronto-temporal area
  • 1000-1250 FUs for the mid-scalp area
• No crown
• Temples will be assessed during the consultation
• Cost: 5300 Euros:
  • 2-day operation: 5000 EUR
  • 3 nights' accommodation + ground transfers: 300 EUR

Dr Ratchathorn Panchaprateep (Absolute Hair Clinic):

• 3000 grafts for the front (depending on the desired hairline and density)
• 500 grafts to the crown
• Division of labour
  • doctor:
    • makes all excisions
    • pulls some grafts
    • makes all incisions
    • places 10-40% of the grafts
  • assistants:
    • pull some grafts
    • place 60-90% of the grafts
• Treatment includes PRP
• surgery cost:
  • shaven: 80 THB per graft (i.e. about 280,000 THB)
  • non-shaven 90 THB per graft (i.e. about 315,000 THB)
• Note: I only considered this clinic because of reviews regarding Dr Laorwong. I haven't looked into Ratchathorn Panchaprateep - this was just the doctor who responded to my messages.

 

Dr Pukinya Jangjetriew (Dr Patty) (Haitran clinic):

• Proposes about 3000 grafts (rough estimate - to be determined on the day) to fill the frontal area, not bringing the hairline down (she did not provide a hairline photo but proposes to have a video consultation, which I'll try to have in the next few weeks)
• Price:
  • Surgery: 116,500 THB for 3000 grafts + 35 THB per additional graft i.e. 134,000 THB for 3500 grafts
  • PRP: 12,000 THB

Other thoughts/concerns

I'm careful about money but I am willing to pay more if a particular doctor is likely to have a better survival rate or if a cheap doctor is likely to produce a bad result. It seems like the doctors/clinics I'm considering all have a reasonable reputation but please let me know of any bad reviews. Dr Patty is obviously the cheapest but has the least reviews on this forum.

I get the sense that once a doctor gets hyped online, his/her prices tend to shoot up so price might not be a great indicator of quality. I had a proposal from Dr Gur in September 2022 and his prices have gone up about 38% for the standard package and about 52% for the VIP package in less than 18 months. I think this might be because his name has been getting mentioned more on forums lately and a guy did a series of review videos on Youtube about his Dr Gur transplant.

I would be grateful for:

• any comments on the above doctors
• any recommendations of other doctors and reasons for the recommendations
• any comments about the above proposals

 

[Zhifa]

I had a consultation with Dr Patty today.

She confirmed that she designs the hairline, does all incisions, performs extractions (together with her colleague, another physician), but her assistants place all the grafts. She only performs surgery on 1-2 patients per day. She said that on a day that she sees a patient like me requiring 3000-3500 grafts (around 6000-7000 hairs), she might also do a smaller hair transplant of around 1000 grafts. This seems like a very reasonable division of the tasks and number of patients.

Dr Patty and her assistant, Kevalee, both speak very good English and were easy to communicate with. 

Dr Patty's credentials seem fine, her results seem good and I haven't seen any bad reviews of her so, given the price and relative convenience of Thailand, I can't see any reason to not go with her. I'll probably make the booking next week for sometime mid-year.

The booking requires a 20% deposit by credit card and the balance can also be paid by credit card without any credit card fees or sales tax. It's not a massive factor but this does seem easier than needing to pay cash in Turkey.

Before I book, I would be grateful for any comments on Dr Patty, including any reasons to go with another doctor.

If I do book her, I'll make sure to provide updates on the surgery and results.

[Melvin- Admin]

Absolute hair clinic with Dr. Panchaprateep and Dr. Laorwong have an insane number of homeruns. Check out @Jamos1982

[Jamos1982]

I have only good things to say about Dr laorwong his clinic and staff. Happy to answer any questions you might have if you pm me. It’s been a life changing surgery forever grateful 🙏

[Gatsby]

I like the results that I'm seeing by patients of Dr Laorwong.

[gillenator]

1 hour ago, Gatsby said:

I like the results that I'm seeing by patients of Dr Laorwong.

I agree and IMHO, there are so many more FUE surgeons worldwide doing top notch work to consider that it’s getting more difficult to choose from!

[Zhifa]

Thank you all for your input. It does seem like Dr Laorwong is doing good work but it seems hard to justify the difference in price between Dr Laorwong's clinic and Dr Patty (Dr. Pukpinya Jangjetriew), since Dr Laorwong's price is about double, so I've decided to book with Dr Patty.

I was particularly swayed by the Youtube reviews for Dr Patty:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SknHSKbRRy0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te0-_ooibbM&t=0s

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkIEt6TbxAadnLZbhxRjRzw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45ctyzI5dbg

Dr Patty also  seems to have good credentials, although it's hard to know what credentials to look for. According to her assistant's email, Dr Patty is a "Diplomate of the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS) securing first place in her ABHRS exams in 2023, a member of the Asian Association of Hair Restoration Surgeon (AAHRS) and International Society of Hair Restoration Surgeon (ISHRS). Dr. Pukpinya also has professional experience for more than 10 years and worked with one of elite hair transplant centers in Bangkok owned by ABHRS-certified surgeon for 3 years."

The description of the way she works (set out above) and the number of patients the clinic sees (1-2 per day) seems very reasonable.

I've booked my surgery for 29 May 2024 and will provide an update then with pre-op and post-op photos, probably in a new thread.