Each year thousands of patients travel to popular destinations like Turkey and India to receive hair transplant procedures. The reason why so many people flock to developing nations to have surgery is because of the low-cost. The allure of cheap hair restoration is enticing, but a lot of these unsuspecting hair loss sufferers receive a rude awakening when they return home. In this article, we will be discussing the untold truth about black market FUE clinics.
Unlicensed Technicians and No Doctor Supervision
Turkey is the number one hot-spot for medical tourism and hair restoration, while there are a few high-quality clinics in Turkey, the vast majority are black market FUE clinics. These clinics are run and operated by unlicensed technicians who perform the entire procedure without any physician oversight.
Some of these clinics operate like a factory pumping out their patient's through an FUE conveyor belt. There have been serious issues that have arisen from unsuspecting hair loss sufferers going to these clinics, including permanent nerve damage and even death. Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is a minimally invasive surgical harvesting technique that has skyrocketed in popularity in recent years.
Even though FUE is not as invasive as Follicular Unit Strip Surgery (FUSS) or strip, it still requires doctor supervision. Patients receive anesthetics and other drugs to calm their nerves, which can have an adverse reaction by some individuals. If a medical complication occurs, there needs to be a licensed medical doctor there to oversee any medical complications.
Donor Overharvesting and Depletion
Recently, there has been an increase of patients returning home from countries like Turkey and India, with severely depleted and overharvested donor sites (back and sides of the scalp). In addition to the unsightly donor areas, many of these patients experience little to no growth in their recipient area. Unfortunately, these patients are left with no options or recourse, as these black market FUE clinics do not value their patients, and they aim to maximize their profits.
In many cases, the patients no longer have a suitable donor supply to repair the shoddy work performed by these clinics. Even if some of these patients can fix the botch-job, their bank account will resemble their donor supply, depleted. Sometimes the repair comes out to more than the original job. Keep this in mind.
Education and Research Is VITAL
Avoid falling victim to one of these black market FUE clinics by learning from patients first. The best thing about the internet is the ability to communicate instantly with anyone in the world. Since the early 2000's the best place to research surgeons, treatments, and speak with other hair transplant patients is through registering and participating in hair loss discussion forums.
One of the most popular forums is called the hair restoration network. Real hair transplant patients created the hair restoration network. The discussion forum was established over twenty years ago and verified hair restoration patients manage the forum to this day.
Conclusion
Not every low-priced surgery is the right surgery, and saving a penny today, can mean spending a few thousand tomorrow. Research the results first before researching the cost. Hair transplant surgery is a permanent procedure that will change your physical appearance forever, and it is not like shopping for a car. Find out what surgeons are performing excellent work from real patients first before deciding on a clinic.