FFS Cost - Am I under estimating the cost?

[ssneha23]

Hey Girls..

I am right in the thick of researching FFS surgeons and have consultations with various doctors coming up in the next few weeks. Please could you help me get my expectation around cost correct. I don't want to be put off by a perfectly reasonable estimate thinking its too much..

I have my expectations set at $20K to $25K. The procedures, according to me, that I WILL need are:

1) Type 2 or 3 Forehead Reconstruction
2) Eyebrow ridge shaving
3) Hairline advancement - 0.75"-1.5"
4) Cheek Implants (maybe unsure about this)
5) Rhinoplasty
6) Jaw Shaving
7) Chin Reconstruction

I will not need any facelifts, tracheal shave etc.

The Doctors I am researching are:

1) The Facial Team
2) Dr. Bart
3) Dr. O
4) Dr. Cardenas
5) Dr. DiMaggio

I am inclined toward choosing The Facial Team because of their amazing track record so far. But, I will need to balance the cost with some results.

Sisters, please could you help me understand what I expect as a reasonable price estimate.

Thanks much ...

xoxo Sneha..

[Pandora]

Hard to give an exact answer as everyone's shopping basket is different and the exact mix will determine the overall cost.
My comments are somewhat speculative based on my own quotes from 4 years ago with different procedures and some guesses thrown in...

1) Facial Team - No idea as I haven't researched them yet.

2) Dr Bart - I had a quote of €16k ($17k using todays exchange rates) for: Forehead re-contouring with orbital shave, Forehead lift, Hairline correction, Browlift, Rhinoplasty, Liplift, Cheekbone augmentation, Lower jaw + chin re-contouring, Trachea shave. Similar to your list but it is still an old quote. However, unless his prices have really gone up massively I would certainly expect less than $25k for you.

3) Dr O - No direct experience myself but I have usually seen quotes for a lot more than $30 near the end of his career when he was working solo. Not sure if his costs have come down now he works with Dr Dechamps-Braly though I'm guessing not. I ruled him out at the time based on cost but this is a decision I now regret.

4) Dr Cardenas - No direct experience but I wouldn't be surprised if he quotes less than $25 based on my experience with DiMaggio who is also from South America  (see below).

5) Dr DiMaggio - I had a quote of $20.5 for: Type III Forehead reconstruction, orbital rims shaving, Brow lift, Rhinoplasty, Upper lip lift, Chin reduction, Jaw feminization, Tracheal shave, Medpor cheek implants so again am guessing he would be less than $25 unless his prices have gone up a lot.

So to summarise I would expect Dr Bart, Dr Cardenas and Dr DiMaggio to come in less than $25k, Dr O to exceed this and I really can't say about the Facial Team. I would again stress this is based on prices from 4 years ago and things may have changed.

However, I would definitely recommend that you do not base your choice of FFS surgeon based on price. For me the only important consideration is the skill of the surgeon and what he can do for you based on his particular approach. After all it's your face and you will have to live with the results for the rest of your life. I understand that the cost may rule some out but the idea of trading off results for cost is not worth it in the long run. I would always pick the surgeon that I think can do the best work then worry afterwards about the cost.

Hugs, Pandora

[Robyn37]

I have a consult with Dr Dechamps-Braly on April 3rd, and over the phone I was quoted $25k for tracheal shave and neck liposuction. Dr "O" no longer does the surgeries but still works with Dr Dechamps-Braly on consults. He also requires a $150 deposit for a consult. If price is not an option, I do not think you can get better piece of mind than to go with him.

I also have a consult with Dr Joel Beck on April 2nd, and I was quoted over the phone $10k. I have heard good things about him, and that price seems much more reasonable. He requires a $100 deposit for consult.

On Wednesday, March 18th I have a consult with Dr Tuan Nguyen for the same thing, didn't get a price quote over the phone. Also heard good things about him, but his website is not very good and it has been hard to find many pictures of his work but he is pretty well regarded in the Portland area. He requires a $60 deposit for consult.

These quotes are all over the phone, so I do not have an actual price estimate for you right now. Feel free to PM me in a couple of days and I will let you know Dr Nguyens price after consult. I will also post my experience and prices after I finish each of the consults. I think it is great that you are shopping around!

These are just quotes over the phone at this point,

[Pandora]

I have a consult with Dr Dechamps-Braly on April 3rd, and over the phone I was quoted $25k for tracheal shave and neck liposuction.

Are you sure? $25k for tracheal shave and neck liposuction sounds very expensive. I can't image what he would charge for full FFS if that's the case.
Do you mean FFS + tracheal shave + liposuction for $25?

Dr "O" no longer does the surgeries but still works with Dr Dechamps-Braly on consults.

Dr O's site seems to indicate that he also helps out during the surgery - "I will also be assisting in the operating room on all our patients". It would be really great to find out what this really means - does he just watch and guide or does he get his hands dirty too? How much influence does he have over the end result?

I think it is great that you are shopping around!

Definitely agree with that. Consult with as many of the top FFS surgeons as you can and research all their work to decide which is best for you.

[Robyn37]

Yeah $25k was just for tracheal shave and lipo. Cha-Ching! Seems a little outrageous to me, I will have to see what they quote at the actual consult.

I do not believe Dr O does any of the work, he just consults with Dr Dechamps-Braly. Probably to keep business flowing since he is so well known. I will ask about it at my consult and let everyone know what I find out. Dr Dechamps-Braly does excellent work from what I know, so that should not dissuade you.

[mmmmm]

For the procedures you mentioned... (this is estimate, for exact numbers contact their teams...)

1) The Facial Team ........ I think that would be around $25,000 (between 23-24,000 eur)   .... (edit: I corrected my mistake here, as I remembered no trachea shave)
         
2) Dr. Bart ........ probably little under or around $20,000 (18-19,000 eur)

3) Dr. O .......... You need to save something like additional $20,000 to have that wishlist done with asistant Dr. O and Dr. Dechamps-Braly.

4) Dr. Cardenas .......... maybe $16-17,000 ... but you never know what you're gonna get... maybe "type3", maybe "type1", as far as I know he doesn't return money/difference for procedures he choose to not do

5) Dr. DiMaggio .......... I'm pretty shure that would be around $22,000, (maybe $21,000 with silicone cheek implants -> better idea than medpor)




Research the surgeons as much as you can, be very smart about it. When you will have a general idea about their approach, skills, and possible result that you can have with them, then you will know who is the right surgeon to choose. And you will only need to consult 1. Unless something would go wrong between you and him during consultation, you don't have to consult anyone else.

[ssneha23]

For the procedures you mentioned... (this is estimate, for exact numbers contact their teams...)

1) The Facial Team ........ I think that would be around $27,000 (between 25-26,000 eur)

2) Dr. Bart ........ probably little under or around $20,000 (18-19,000 eur)

3) Dr. O .......... You need to save something like additional $20,000 to have that wishlist done with asistant Dr. O and Dr. Dechamps-Braly.

4) Dr. Cardenas .......... maybe $16-17,000 ... but you never know what you're gonna get... maybe "type3", maybe "type1", as far as I know he doesn't return money/difference for procedures he choose to not do

5) Dr. DiMaggio .......... I'm pretty shure that would be around $22,000, (maybe $21,000 with silicone cheek implants -> better idea than medpor)




Research the surgeons as much as you can, be very smart about it. When you will have a general idea about their approach, skills, and possible result that you can have with them, then you will know who is the right surgeon to choose. And you will only need to consult 1. Unless something would go wrong between you and him during consultation, you don't have to consult anyone else.

Thanks all for your replies .. mmmmm, would you know the cost of cheek implants specifically, like I said - that according to me is optional - I am not sure if that is even needed. I addition, I am really scared of impants as there are chances that it would lead to sensation loss in that area.

Thanks..

[mmmmm]

It varies from one surgeon to another, and also material used for implants silicone or medpor makes a difference, and I would guess also size of an implant (only frontal compared to frontal-lateral implant).
If I remember correctly Facial Team charges 3600 eur, I could also confuse a numbers a little, don't take it for granted. Di Maggio charges $2000 for silicone implants, and $3000 for medpor, but I had also seen a quote for $3000 silicone and $4000 medpor from him, so it could be because of size (basically I don't know why). I think Dr. Bart's prices for cheek implants must be more than not similar to Di Maggio and Facial team. And don't even ask how much Ousterhout and Deschamp-Braly charge for it, because it probably contains gold