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Dr. Thomas Mantse - 1500 FUE – Budapest, Hungary

W

William

member
Dr. Thomas Mantse (Tamást Mantse)
ProHair Clinic, Budapest Hungary

TL;DR:
  • Paid £1600 for 1500 implants but got about half that amount.
  • Was told that hotel cost and PRP was included, but had to pay for the hotel myself and was never offered any PRP treatment.
  • Very little in the way of follow-up advice / information from Dr. Thomas Mantse.
  • Was asked to draw my new hairline myself with a pen and a small mirror. This happened half-way through the surgery, after I’ve been given a valium (diazepam) and was half-asleep.
  • Poor result with low density and bald patches. I also have on-going pain in the implant area over a year later.
Before:
Before.png


After:
After.png


4 months after:
After (4 months).png


15 months after:
After (15 months).png


Transplanted hairs (my hair is usually completely straight):
Folicles.jpg


Full review:

I have always had a high hair line and, by the time I got to my 30s, I figured it was time to do something about it. The reviews for this clinic on WhatClinic seemed excellent and so was the price – €1900 (£1600) for the 1500 FUE + PRP option; a 2-day procedure with 750 hairs being transplanted per day. However, based on my experience I cannot recommend this clinic.

The problems began before I even got to Hungary. I had paid a €200 deposit but the date of the appointment was fast approaching and I still hadn’t heard anything back. I even sent a message asking about this, but was told that I would receive pre-op information soon. 72 hours before my flight, I received a long WhatsApp message telling what food and drinks to avoid ‘1 week before the hair transplant.’ He also suddenly asked me to bring the remaining €1700 in cash! Banks are closed at the weekend in the UK, and I couldn’t even use ATMs in Budapest, as Hungary uses the Forint. I explained this and he reluctantly agreed to accept a bank transfer, but the two-night hotel cost was now no longer included, and I would have to pay for it myself (€50 per night).

The day of the surgery, I got there bright and early. Dr. Thomas Mantse speaks a native level of English, having spent his formative years in Canada. He told me that the surgery would now take only one day (originally, I was told it would take 2 days), so I didn’t need to come back again tomorrow. I changed into a hospital gown and lay face down on the operating table. He trimmed some areas of the back of my head with scissors and injected local anesthetic. Then his wife and someone else began extracting hairs. This is the most painful part of the surgery – lying on your front for a prolonged period is extremely uncomfortable, especially with people leaning on you, and the mouth hole in the cloth didn’t line up with the table very well, so it was difficult to breathe.

This first part finished at around lunch time. At this point we had a break. Thomas gave me a very nice meal that his wife had cooked. I noticed that a lot of my hair was in the bin. During the break, Thomas asked me if I had brought my blood test results, something which had never been mentioned before. He told me that he needed a blood test, even if it was done after the operation, so I would have to go into central Budapest and get one the next day. At this point, he asked me gave me a pen and a small mirror and asked me to draw my new hairline. Note. this was the first time we had discussed what my hairline should look like.

The second part of the operation allowed me to lie on my back, which was incredibly comfortable by contrast with earlier. Thomas proceeded to insert the implants. I think I fell asleep at this point, because when I next opened my eyes it was dark outside. We watched CBS Reality during the surgery, which is one of my favorite channels. Before long it was complete. Thomas gave me a hairnet to wear back to the hotel and we parted ways. He had originally said that a PRP treatment would be included, but I never received any.

The next day, I went to the shopping center Thomas had mentioned and got a blood test. I recommend enabling roaming on your mobile before traveling, as Wi-Fi access was limited, and the very rude receptionist at Centrum Lab didn’t exactly help things. For security reasons, some providers (e.g. Vodafone) don’t let you enable roaming once you’re already abroad.

It is strongly advisable that you sleep sitting up for several weeks after the surgery, so you don’t put any weight on the implant site. My head was a bloody mess for a while afterwards, so I recommend booking some time off work for recovery. I can’t understand these reviewers who claim there was no pain or swelling, or that no one could tell they had it done. My head was covered in blood and scabs, which you couldn't wash off in case I damaged the transplants, and the back of my head will weeped plasma for several days. I didn’t look normal again for several weeks. Apparently, the implants will bleed if you damage them, but I never had this, so I think I retained all of mine.

I was disappointed with the follow up I received from Dr. Thomas Mantse. I asked about how long I should wait before washing etc. but only got terse replies (‘Not yet’, ‘Keep waiting’). I ended up Googling information from the websites of American hair clinics.

15 months have now passed, and I can see what the full result will look like. Unfortunately, I have a gap at the front between my old and new hairlines, especially at the sides. It’s also clear that fewer than 1500 hairs were transplanted – I would guess 750 at most. Perhaps he was annoyed with me for doing a bank transfer, so he didn’t want to waste two days on me. The hairs have also come through very fuzzy (my normal hair is completely straight). So now I have just a small amount of fuzzy, uneven hair at the front. Also, the hair density of the new area is very low, so it doesn’t look that great. In addition, the hairs at the front of my head still hurt when I touch them – I guess that’s permanent.

Overall, it’s slight a improvement on how I previously looked but I am disappointed with both the procedure and the results. Maybe I just got unlucky but I was still hoping for more, especially as all the other reviewers seemed to have such a great experience. In hindsight, I wish I had spent a bit more and had the procedure done in the UK.

I obviously need to go to another surgeon but this experience has made me very cautious. Hopefully I can find somewhere good on this website.

Note. This review was rejected by WhatClinic.
 
W

William

member
No, that's not true. I've got screenshots of the messages Thomas Mantse send me. Quote:

What does the price include:
1- The hair transplant done by manual FUE performed by our Canadian doctor with over 25 years experience in HT
2- Two nights accommodation in the 4 star Hotel Belvedere Hotel (closest to the clinic), buffet breakfast, Spa and Wifi included
3- Airport transfers (flight not included) [these cab transfers weren't included either - I had to pay myself]
4- PRP treatment (treatment by Plasma)
5- All necessary medication (Pain killers – Antibiotics -- After care spray)
 
Raphael84

Raphael84

Valued member
@William
I am honestly very sorry to hear of your experience.
Unfortunately, such experiences are far more common than most realise and really highlights the necessity to proceed with a respected and ethical doctor.
Your post operative photos speak more than words.

Please make sure that you conduct thorough research in terms of which is the right doctor to perform your repair surgery, and I would insist that you meet them in person before committing to surgery to allow them to assess and evaluate your donor and the impact from previous surgery, and also your skin quality in your recipient area, as clearly the level of quality and technique in your previous surgery was lacking and all factors need to be thoroughly understood.

Grafts will likely need to be removed in your temple area as the hairline design was very straight and inappropriate.
Depending on potential impact on your donor and how many extractions were actually made, your donor area should be able to provide sufficient grafts to repair your situation. I do not believe that you mentioned medication in your write up, but as a repair patient and with more limitations in your donor area, medications could well be an important factor moving forward to be able to retain as much native hair as possible and allow most efficient use of your donor as you age.

Are you able to provide photos of your current donor area?

Here are some examples of repair patients who required removal of previously placed grafts.

https://www.hairlossexperiences.com/threads/dr-bisanga-bhr-clinic-plugs-removal.7439/

https://www.hairlossexperiences.com/threads/1508-fue-95-plug-removal-repair-0-13-months-hairline.79/

https://www.hairlossexperiences.com...air-plug-removal-0-8-months-progression.4240/

I wish you the best in your onward research.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hello William.
Sorry to hear about your hair transplant experience not turnI get out as you`d hoped for and your overall experience being poor.
To be fair, we are only hearing your side of the story, the doctor's side may differ but that does not take away the poor yield you`ve had. I think you will require some grafts to be removed towards the temple corners and have the hairline redesigned a bit. Some of your grafts could have been exposed to some sort of trauma during surgery which may be the reason they are still wiry.
Looking at your donor you had it partially shaved. It is very too difficult to say how many extractions were made. The transplanted area along your hairline could very well be 1500 grafts but it's hard to say because your picture is a few days post op with the area scabbed up and possibly some shedding has already taken place.

What is obvious is that your growth has not been optimal, thus resulting in poor density that will require another surgery to correct.
Please take your time researching clinics before deciding on your next move. As for review sites, take them with a pinch of salt.

Good luck.
 
W

William

member
@William
I am honestly very sorry to hear of your experience.
Unfortunately, such experiences are far more common than most realise and really highlights the necessity to proceed with a respected and ethical doctor.
Your post operative photos speak more than words.

Please make sure that you conduct thorough research in terms of which is the right doctor to perform your repair surgery, and I would insist that you meet them in person before committing to surgery to allow them to assess and evaluate your donor and the impact from previous surgery, and also your skin quality in your recipient area, as clearly the level of quality and technique in your previous surgery was lacking and all factors need to be thoroughly understood.

Grafts will likely need to be removed in your temple area as the hairline design was very straight and inappropriate.
Depending on potential impact on your donor and how many extractions were actually made, your donor area should be able to provide sufficient grafts to repair your situation. I do not believe that you mentioned medication in your write up, but as a repair patient and with more limitations in your donor area, medications could well be an important factor moving forward to be able to retain as much native hair as possible and allow most efficient use of your donor as you age.

Are you able to provide photos of your current donor area?

Here are some examples of repair patients who required removal of previously placed grafts.

https://www.hairlossexperiences.com/threads/dr-bisanga-bhr-clinic-plugs-removal.7439/

https://www.hairlossexperiences.com/threads/1508-fue-95-plug-removal-repair-0-13-months-hairline.79/

https://www.hairlossexperiences.com...air-plug-removal-0-8-months-progression.4240/

I wish you the best in your onward research.
Thank you for your reply. Your clinic looks very good but unfortunately it's abroad and travel is so difficult now. Plus it's impossible to do PRP follow-ups.

Here are some recent photos after I cut my hair. It looks like pubic hair is growing out of my forehead. It's been over 18 months no, so I guess I won't see any improvement. The hairs are still curly and come out at the wrong angle. The front area still feels painful when I use a hair brush.

My donor area seems okay, so perhaps I will try again with a different clinic.
 

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Parasol

Parasol

member
The density was never enough for a desirable result, and the extraction pattern at least in the photos looks far too close. It makes me so mad that clinics like this are allowed to do this to people!!!

There are plenty of ethical clinics that can fix this for you. Please try not to let it get you down; your situation looks fixable.

I see Bisanga rep @Raphael84 replied above - Dr. Bisanga is an amazing surgeon with plenty of repair experience! Dr. Maras at HDC is another good option. @Doron HDC coordinator himself was butchered in Turkey, and got such a great repair from Dr. Maras, he now works for them!

Sorry to see what you’re going through.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hi William. If you’re not able to travel you could check out Dr Sikos to see if he has similar repair case patients to yourself.
This end result is poor but not too difficult for a competent clinic to fix. Your donor looks intact. If they only removed 750 like you think, then that is one thing going in your favour.
What have they said when you’ve sent these pictures to them?
 
W

William

member
The density was never enough for a desirable result, and the extraction pattern at least in the photos looks far too close. It makes me so mad that clinics like this are allowed to do this to people!!!

There are plenty of ethical clinics that can fix this for you. Please try not to let it get you down; your situation looks fixable.

I see Bisanga rep @Raphael84 replied above - Dr. Bisanga is an amazing surgeon with plenty of repair experience! Dr. Maras at HDC is another good option. @Doron HDC coordinator himself was butchered in Turkey, and got such a great repair from Dr. Maras, he now works for them!

Sorry to see what you’re going through.
It's good to know that it's fixable. Those clinics look good but I feel like it's really risky to go abroad, as you have no way of complaining if it goes badly. Also, with PRP don't you have to go back for several follow ups?
 
W

William

member
Hi William. If you’re not able to travel you could check out Dr Sikos to see if he has similar repair case patients to yourself.
This end result is poor but not too difficult for a competent clinic to fix. Your donor looks intact. If they only removed 750 like you think, then that is one thing going in your favour.
What have they said when you’ve sent these pictures to them?
ProHair Clinic asked for some pictures a few months ago. He said that the density would improve but it hasn't. I saw someone say that 18 months is the point at which you see the final result, so I doubt it will get any better.

I'm actually located in London, UK. I don't suppose you know of any good surgeons here? I would really appreciate it.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
This result has failed for whatever reasons. Have you been back in touch to let him know there is no improvement?
There are quite a few UK clinics posting on here. Check them out and consult with any you like the look of.
 
Doron HDC coordinator

Doron HDC coordinator

For Consultation with HDC WhatsApp +972526542654
Hi William, so sorry to hear about your experience, I myself was botched terribly by Arenamed clinic in Turkey, however I am very happy with my repair result by Dr.Maras at HDC clinic.
Your donor is still good for another procedure, the issues here are: incorrect hair angles, double grafts at the hairline, hairline was made symmetric unnaturally, for natural hairline you must create it with zigzags and single grafts at the first 3cm of the hairline and not double grafts nor triple grafts.


HDC Instegram:


Here is one of our repair cases:
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hi William. Have you managed to consult with any other clinics?
 
W

William

member
@Bigmac I've been feeling quite depressed about my appearance so I haven't consulted any new clinics yet.

@Doron HDC coordinator Yes, I think your assessment is correct. My grafts are angled down, so the hair won't comb backwards. I'm glad to see they were able to repair the donor area for that patient, as mine has also been over-harvested in a small area.
 

Philw

member
I had worse results than yourself so i understand how u feel
My issue are angles and 2 bad strip scars
Its runied my life
I cant afford no more transplants so im asking is there any clinics or surgeons seeing this that can help ie free pro bono in exchange for my pics and me documenting my repair
I know i shouldn't be asking this but i am crying out for help
Sorry to sound so dramatic but its runing my life and people around me
Thank u for reading
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
@Bigmac I've been feeling quite depressed about my appearance so I haven't consulted any new clinics yet.

@Doron HDC coordinator Yes, I think your assessment is correct. My grafts are angled down, so the hair won't comb backwards. I'm glad to see they were able to repair the donor area for that patient, as mine has also been over-harvested in a small area.

Are you meaning the hairs have been angled to lay flat?
This post will show you the correct angles.

 
W

William

member
@Philw Did you also go to ProHair Clinic Budapest (Thomas Mantse)? If not, you should create your own thread and describe your experience. I see your surgeon took a similar approach with harvesting, where they aggressively gathered follicles from two narrow strips.

@Bigmac Yes, the angle is completely wrong, so I can't style it with the rest of my hair. After nearly two years, the hair is finally growing a bit more straight but the angle is still way off. Perhaps this could be rectified by a more competent surgeon.

Here is my 23 month picture:

IMG_20211114_230702 (2) - Copy.jpg
 
S

subterfuge

member
out of interest, for a repair job, can they use the newly transplanted hair as donor hair? (so take out the grafts that were placed and use them again in a different position)
 
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