Jump to content
BeautyHacker

My Journey with Back of Head Augmentation in Korea


Recommended Posts

So this was a journey that I definitely need to detail because I see no surgery reviews for head augmentation. But it’s a very powerful surgery that changes your head shape and can even affect hairstyles.


A bit about me: I live in California, USA. I’m 25 and male. I’m Indian, and quarter Middle Eastern…so I’m the other kind of Asian. Unfortunately I was born with a stupid skull shape officially called occipital plagiocephaly.


September 2017 – I wanted this surgery done. So I did research online and found 3 local options.


1) Barry Eppley – He offered a free video consult, so I took it. He seemed too positive, which is not a good sign. Also, he’s got a lot of complaints online which scared me. Just look it up on Google and you’ll see entire threads with a bunch of people complaining about botched results. Also a girl called Lucille Lacovelli filled a lawsuit against him, lost, and then committed suicide. So I didn’t want anything to do with him.

2) Youssef Tahari – He offered a free video consult too. His method didn’t seem too good for me. He suggested a bicoronal approach and inserting a silicone implant. This was bad because I didn’t want a scar over my head like that and I didn’t want a massive silicone implant in the back of my head.

3) Deschamps Braly – I called to set up an appointment, but their consultants appeared very snotty. They were quoting prices at $15,000 minimum and averaging at about $22,000. WTF. Also they refused to show any before and after pics due to BS reasons like “to protect the emotional state of their patients from the public”. They said I’d have to come into the consultation, which would cost me $600.


Basically all these options were too expensive and did not have convincing before and after results or testimonials.


October 2017 – I found out about purse forum. But they also didn’t have solid reviews detailing about this procedure. But I did find out some people mentioning ITEM clinic. They claimed that they could make a 2 inch incision and use bone cement (which is a lot safer than silicone) to reshape the head like a sculpture. I did a bit more research and I had my Korean Airbnb host Tony to help me out. I’ll write a separate post on Tony and how AMAZING he was in helping me. I booked the Korea Trip from Dec 21 2017 – Jan 1st 2018

I was able to find 4 clinics that offered to do the back of the head augmentation with bone cement.


1) Dec 22 2017 – Banobagi – Not very impressed. The doctor just said he could do it and didn’t go into further details. I also remember waiting for SO long but I felt let down in the actual meeting. Also, he did not show me any before and after pics. I crossed it off my list.


2) Dec 23 2017 – ITEM – I didn’t like the clinic itself, but Dr Jung was great. I enjoyed meeting him and he speaks very good English. I was close to choosing him but ITEM quoted at 8 mil KRW when over email they said it would be 6 mil KRW. They said they can reduce it to 7 mil KRW if we paid in hard cash. I wasted a lot of time trying to get this to work because, my bank had auto protect--I couldn’t withdraw such a large amount outside of America. This pissed both me and my Airbnb host Tony who acted as my translator off. So we crossed ITEM off. Also, I noticed a Youtube comment by a girl (Aja Ly) on Item’s YT video that didn’t like her results from Dr Jung. This was a bit upsetting.


3) Dec 26 2017 - BONEPS (Doctorbone) – Here’s a link to their site. http://doctorbone.co.kr/index.php?idx=hb/7

They are a local clinic that is not exposed to the outside. I found this out via Tony. The doctors were nice, but I didn’t like the before and after results.


4) Dec 27 2017 – JOGAK – This was it! I met Dr. Song. I liked this guy, his style, and his before and after. I immediately went for surgery. I paid around 6 million KRW. This clinic is a small clinic that SPECIALIZED in head augmentation. I love specialized clinics, so I knew this was the right place.



Surgery was easy. It was under local anesthesia. It’s literally like sculpting with clay. I wore a head cast and I was able to walk about. I went for Korean barbecue right after because I was so hungry.


I hope this helps! I know quite a few people who are following me through this journey. While I don’t have super perfect results, its still greatly improved. I look and feel normal now. I feel no difference texture wise. I’m so happy.

(Note, I usually don't wear my hair so short. I keep it long. I shave it sometimes but this time I kept it shaven just so I could help the surgeon out with the best possible outcome.)

Before: (Sorry for inverting these 2 pics, but it gives you a good sense of the asymmetry)

Photo on 2-1-14 at 10.18 PM.jpg Photo on 3-20-15 at 9.50 PM.jpg

Here are my results:

IMG_1483.jpg IMG_1484.jpg
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 467
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Congrats! The improvement looks amazing! I'm so glad that it went well.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow! Those results look great. I'm glad it went wonderfully for you. I saw your other thread and added it onto my watch list, this certainly helps a lot because I also am thinking about skull reshaping.
I looked at their website not too long ago and liked their results a lot.
I'm kind of curious as to whether they do cheek augmentation? I'll have to ask them, but I'm pretty sure it's just the upper parts of the head that they only do.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for all the supportive replies guys!

Remember a couple of things:
- Don't get too fooled by before and after pics you see online. Specifically request for before and after pics from the personal files that the doctors keep. Look for cases similar to yours
- JOGAK was my clinic of choice. But check out BonePS if you think you like their before and afters. You want a doctor with a good record of making noses (headshape in this case) that are aligned with your beauty standards. I'm a 100% sure there are other clinics that do this operation that I just don't know of.
- If you want a 100% perfect result, this surgery isn't for you. You may want a silicon based approach, which comes with its own pros and cons.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Ashly117 What was the incision like and how was it closed? If it was local anaesthesia, I'm assuming it was endoscopic or similar to the 2 inch incision recommended by Item. Also, do you know the exact material was used (there are diff types of bone cement AFAIK)? I heard some are quick drying and have to be shaped quickly to ensure a smooth result.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@heylo, Sorry for the late reply. I was on a plane coming back home. The incision is 2 inches! Its closed using staples. I still have it on me and I need to get it removed by a local doctor.

The exact material is Versabond. It's supposed to be the newer version of Osteobond.

The experience of the doctor is a HUGE factor. This surgery needs to be done by someone you trust. To do a revision, there would be a longer scar to remove the bone cement.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great, thanks for the extra info.

If it was revised, I would imagine it'd have to be burred or ground too. I don't think the stuff is typically removable any more than bone, although I could be wrong? Guess that's the one disadvantage over an implant but like you say, if you choose an experienced doctor you get a more natural result with much less trauma to the soft tissue (short incision).

Found the following info about setting times for bone cement: "storage temperature, O.R. temperature, humidity, mixing conditions, mixing speed and handling of the cement influence setting time. Operating room environments can vary widely affecting these conditions. This can all add up to a very unpredictable set time and working time in an otherwise very controlled surgical technique."
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure, but I think its not too hard to remove it. No need for doing crazy things like burring.

BTW, here's a helpful video posted by Jogak. This is the doctor that operated on me.


Here's another Jogak video if you understand Korean.


Funny enough, sometimes they call themselves Jawgak lol.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow! I was reaearching this a long time ago and i gave up because i'm afraid of it. I have extreme plagiocephaly, and im sure it's not fixable at this point. i dont think you're ever born with it it's just how you slept as a baby when your skull is still shaping itself so if you slept on your back a lot then thats what happens. My head is sooo god dam flat i swear. It's SO flat that it freaks me out. Luckily i have long hair but the downside is that i have to back brush it all the time.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm glad that the review helps :smile:. It's why I wrote it. Dr Song from Jogak said my case was a severe case, but he was able to bring a massive improvement. I give my headshape an A- in terms of symmetry now when it used to be about a C.
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

He said yours was severe? Hahaha he'd die from shock if he saw mine then lol
Are you able to sleep on your back as usual? Does it not feel any different?
 
Link to comment
Share on other sites


×
×
  • Create New...