@ShadesI know this is a partial rant, I feel your pain. Because they have office staff, insurance / malpractice, rental space and equipment, med school, marketing, web and IT services. Why do people pay so much to their plumbers.
In the states to walk into any doctor the average is $175 for only 15 minutes of their time, they book the rest of the time with other patients. Dr. Chu is very reasonable in the UK, ... they discussed his prices in other posts, do a search. I am envious, he does a whole face for nothing compared with here. Sounds like they are charging you the bare minimum for their time. I have two other doctors in the FAQ - top of acne scars who are in Europe.
The expense of Subcision is relative to the risks. Looks easy, but technically difficult. Cataract surgery or a colonoscopy, cystoscopy is technically much much easier than subcision. Consider the risks, what is under the skin? Nerves, blood vessels. If a Specialist decides to perform straight forward subcision with NOKOR, he or she should know his anatomy, but in 5-10% of cases a blood vessel is hit in the process as veins are not visualised once the needle is under the skin. This results in a collection of blood known as a haematoma, or seroma. No big deal. Its a lot of handholding - massage, USS, and dilute steroid injections over months to dissipate the collection of blood. The first rule is to do no harm, but if an adverse reaction occurs, its the specialists duty to fix it up.... usually at no cost if they are ethical and practice to high standards. This take up a lot of the physicians time. More complex the scars, more tethered, more aggressive the procedure. Haematoma rates are higher. Cost increase depending on complexity and location of scars.
Now consider this scenario, tethered and atrophic scars on the forehead or temples. Anatomy - supratrochlear and supraorbital vessels. They run deep from the foramen, then superficial upon exit. Very superficial. Scar depth in the forehead area is at the most 1.0- 1.5 mm, if subscision with spacer filler done in this area, its one of the riskiest procedures to perform. Why? Subcision alone, no big deal if artery is hit, but if one is doing a spacer to stop the bonds from re forming with say a HA filler, it is super high risk. Room for error, about 0,5 mm at most. If filler enters the artery- blindness ensures. To date, as of last week 366 reported cases. (Yes I realise majority from fat transfer) but a good portion from filler in this area. Hence if a good Specialist is performing subscision to high risk areas, the insurance is the main factor. Breaking up scars in high risk areas accounts for the costs.
I am sure for acne scar specialist who perform these procedures 7-8 times a day, in high risk areas they are always sweating! Subcision is skill related,- how a scar feels, how it releases, the amount of tethering, the anatomy of the area, how to push to get results, but not side effects. Lasers in comparison are easy- know your physics and location of scars, and its done. My two cents worth on why subcision is costly- good doctors make it look easy, but I personally think its a hard procedure. Just my observation on the procedure....
Its because the time it takes to treat that 1 scar is not much more than to treat half your face. My full face cost 1200 each time. You are taking up a room for at least 30 minutes to an hour. They prep the room for you, inject you with something to numb you, give you time to become numb and then do the procedure. Also if they have an assistant their time is being paid and given to you. How much do you think it should cost? Then think about how much time was invested and divide that money by the time and people involved. If it were cheaper than 200.00 they wouldnt be able to keep the doors open. What if it cost 50 bucks. How much profit would that doctor make off that from giving you 30 to an hour of time. They would probably lose money.
Until a vein or artery is severed with a 18 G NOKOR. Or a haematoma or seroma results, ... or when infection occurs... or when fibrosis is paradoxical. No, watching videos on how its done it doesn't look that difficult, much like a lens replacement for cataracts, until one accidentally punctures the eye. Everything in medicine is easy, its treating the complications and unexpected rare event that are more difficult.
On 11/09/2017 at 6:09 PM, beautifulambition said:@Shades I know this is a partial rant, I feel your pain. Because they have office staff, insurance / malpractice, rental space and equipment, med school, marketing, web and IT services. Why do people pay so much to their plumbers.In the states to walk into any doctor the average is $175 for only 15 minutes of their time, they book the rest of the time with other patients. Dr. Chu is very reasonable in the UK, ... they discussed his prices in other posts, do a search. I am envious, he does a whole face for nothing compared with here. Sounds like they are charging you the bare minimum for their time. I have two other doctors in the FAQ - top of acne scars who are in Europe.
Do you by any chance have a direct link to the post RE: Dr Chu subcision prices?
If he's really good and the prices are ok then I will try to see him. The problem is getting there and back from the other end of the country. The doctor who quoted £200 for a single scar subcision is a 5 minute walk down to the end of my road 
. He also doesn't charge me consultation fees which are usually £150 per appointment.
Just goto the guy nearby if he offers no consult, and have checked that he has experience. Travel and your time is worth something. One subcision with a local Dr. won't kill you (if he has experience and is board certified).
Dr. Chu charges I believe 150 for consult, I don't know if he wavies this if you treat. But with the tube and your time this is the same cost.
Contact the posters here...
[Edited link out]
I miss read.. 200 Quid for one scar? That is daylight robbery. I though that was for the procedure of treating 20-30 scars, thats cheap, but 200 quid, I can not justify my reasoning for that price. Most patients will have at least 20-40 scars 'snap' with Nokor technique, depending on severity. Some countrieshave this under their Medicare scheme, so if performed by plastic or dermatologist, its like 200 quid for the whole procedure including the consultation. 200 quid for a 10- 20 second procedure is pure greed.