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Skull reshaping surgery in Korea?


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Hey guys, I wanted to know more about skull reshaping as I have a mild case of plagiocephaly. I'm an American, so naturally, I looked at options here in the USA. it looks like only 3 doctors here in America can address this issue of fixing uneven heads.

1) Eppley: I don't trust him due to the sheer amount of negative reviews. Quotes at $13,000 for a sillicone implant
2) Tahiri: Says i'll have a scar from ear to ear over my head (yikes!) for implant. Quotes me at $15,000.
3) Deschamps-Braly: Any head surgery from him starts at $13,000 to $25,000

So I am not too happy with these options. Also, there's a lack of before and after pics, and general reviews about this surgery. I'm turning to Korea.
1) What are my options in Korea? The only thing I've seen is ITEM clinic's osteobond treatment with Dr Chung Woo Jin which is reasonably priced. How good are his results?
2) Are people generally happy with osteobond results-wise? Doctors in America (Eppley and Tahiri) claim it is imprecise and may not be symmetrical. That is what I'm really concerned of. Is it possible to get a reasonable result?
3) Any Korean clinics that are better than ITEM with a proven record?
4) Is this a common procedure in Korea?

Thanks in advance!
 
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Thank you!

I'll look at Banobagi. I found out that JJ Hong does it too. Are they any good? It just feels weird that there aren't any solid before and afters.

Like I don't know a single person that had it done. Or people don't even talk about it anywhere. The 2 American doctors that do it are pushing for implants.
A lot of Korean clinics don't even have it listed in their websites.

Also, ITEM's skull shaping Youtube video got some sizable dislikes and one of the comments was from a girl that claimed to have had it done at ITEM. She wasn't too happy with the results saying it barely did anything to fix the issue.

I've contacted ITEM and they say its a fairly popular surgery in Korea. They do 10-15 back of head bone cement additions a month. Does this sound accurate?

I'm so stressed :/
 
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Why is it hard to find info/reviews online about this surgery? :sad: I literally can't find a single legit positive or negative reviews on this.

If anyone knows even a Korean forum that has reviews, I'll even use Google translate to understand it. It would be so helpful anyone has a link to such reviews...
 
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How do I search on it? I'm having difficulty with searching since I don't speak Korean. Apparently Google translate isn't as easy as I thought to use in this situation :P
 
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Sorry, can't help you there as I also don't speak Korean :sad: I remember in my research that a forummer marir did post B&A of clinics she found on Naver in this forum. So you can try researching this way. Good luck!
 
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  • 1 month later...
Hi everyone,

I'm new here! I'm also considering head augmentation in Korea using osteobond. I would definitely NOT go for a silicone implant or fat grafting. I met a girl at the clinic where I received my rhinoplasty 3 years ago, she had a fat graft to her forehead and invited me to touch it. To be honest it was very strange, our forehead is bone and should not feel soft and spongy. Even though fat grafting is the cheaper option, it definitely feels tactically very unnatural in real life, something you cannot discern from photos.

Also, I have personal experience going under the knife with Dr. Eppley and can attest that it was the best experience I've had with any of my procedures. I've received a rib graft rhinoplasty and chin implant from a different surgeon which threw with my face off balance (I'm Asian), I consulted with several facial implant specialists in the US to add volume to my submalar/undereye area and Dr. Eppley was by far the best. The other surgeons chose implants that were far too big and unnatural. One even said that he would place and remove different implants into my cheek during the surgery until he found the right one LOL. I had a face to face w/Dr. Eppley and straight away he knew exactly what I needed and customized the implant to my needs. Three years later and it is still the most natural surgery outcome I could have asked for, no one can tell I had this procedure but it gives me a slight lift and volume to my cheeks that far outweigh temporary fillers.

I had originally also wanted to have my forehead augmentation procedure with Dr. Eppley but delayed it because of the costs. I'm still considering this procedure with Dr. Eppley, it's really between him, Jogak and Item Clinic. Dr. Eppley is still the most expensive option, but I was also surprised by what I was quoted by the Korean clinics. Back in 2014 Jogak quoted me ≃3.9mil KRW/$3,500 USD for forehead augmentation. Yesterday I was given a quote of $6,000- $7,000 for the same procedure. Can prices jump that much in three years?!!
 
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Hi Ashly,

I've had several PS procedures and the best advise I can give is be diligent with your research and consider how things may look over time. The outcome of some procedures may look amazing in the first few months or even years but over time may change in an undesirable way. I would stay away from fat grafting to add volume to your head as it feels very unnatural in real life and can change over time, and silicone implants also feel unnatural IMHO. I think osteobond is the best option and because it's molded, it is completely customized to suit your individual features, not a cookie cutter one size fits all thing.

You mentioned Item Clinic but have you looked at Jogak? They specialize in only head augmentation, and for that reason, I am considering them as my number one. I've been wanting to add volume to my forehead as well as back of head and have been doing research for a couple of years now.
 
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@papermoon12 Hey, I've also picked Jogak as my choice as well. I'm impressed with their before and after and another purseblog member recommended me to see Jogak (his friend had a positive experience apparently).
I also received the same quote that you got as well. Not sure why its become ridiculously expensive if it used to be $3500 USD. Demand perhaps? I don't see any US doctors offering the PMMA procedure. They all want to put in silicone implants.

I'm a bit concerned about your experience with Dr. Eppley...I've heard bad things about him. There's a lot of complaints on him online if you just search. Apparently he's caused a woman to commit suicide after performing a horrifying facelift on her (Luicille? But she's had other issues going on with her as well...). Someone also said that the reason why he's made so many websites is because of some law related issue(?). And he's also received a letter of warning from the FDA
http://www.circare.org/fdawls3/eppley_20060822.pdf

How did you find the courage to let him operate on you?
 
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Hi Ashly,

Yeah, I don't really trust silicone implants for this particular type of procedure, I did a deep dive in medical papers and PMMA is by far the safest option. Silicone implants for head augmentation have a far higher risk of infection/rejection in the long run.

I will probably get the procedure done in Korea with Jogak, I do believe there is some room for negotiation for the rate as we are getting the foreigner's rate lol, it never hurts to ask.

As for Dr. Eppley, I consulted with several other board certified surgeons in the US for cheek implants to raise the flatness of my undereye area. I don't like the results of fat grafting as it tends to fall over time resulting in that "pillow face" look that many aging Hollywood celebrities have. Three years since I got the implants, I still think this was the best decision and the best PS procedure I've had. I was not undergoing some radical procedure- cheek implants are fairly common esp. in the west so I was not worried as Dr. Eppley receives great feedback on Realself. I think doing face to face consultations is to assess the compatibility of the doctor with your needs, whether they have a good bedside manner, wether they posses not only the skill but also the understanding towards what you are trying to achieve. After consulting with several surgeons, I knew straight away that Dr. Eppley would be the best choice. He has a great eye for bone structure, it takes an artist not just a skilled surgeon to understand the subtleties that separate natural, youthful results from artificial ones that result in the generic "plastic surgery" face. I chose Dr. Eppley because he is a specialist in facial structure, as a rule of thumb I always go for a specialist who has hundreds of hours of experience in what I want to have done. I would not go to a rhinoplasty specialist for an eyelid procedure.

When are you thinking of going for surgery? I'm planning for either January 2018 or April.
 
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Jogak also said I would get the 10% VAT refund at the airport, but I'm not sure if that would still be valid in 2018?
 
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  • 1 month later...
I got quoted from 6000 - 7000 usd at JOGAK. This seems pretty expensive to me as well. How much did they quote you?
 
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Yep, that sounds about the same I was quoted at too. I may go with Item. I enjoyed the consult with Item's Dr Chung. He's also quoting in the same range.
 
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