All You Need To Know About Hair Transplant - Patient Guide
Most of us take our looks for granted like good health and youth— that is until they're gone. A hair transplant will help many people bring back what looks like a total— of at least a fuller— hair face.
If you are really worried about thinning up or going bald, the treatment may be one way to feel more comfortable about your appearance. But first, address what you can expect during and after the surgery with your doctor.
What Is a Hair Transplant?
It's a form of hair surgery that you have to fill an area with thin hair or no hair. Physicians in the U.S. have been doing these transplants since the 1950s, but in recent years, procedures have changed a lot.
Typically you have the operation in the office of the surgeon. First, your scalp is washed by the surgeon and medication is administered to numb your face. Your doctor will choose one of two transplant methods: follicular strip operation (FUSS) or follicular unit extraction (FUE).
For FUSS, the surgeon extracts from the back of your head a 6-to 10-inch strip of hair. He sets it aside and closed the scalp. The hair around it instantly covers this region.
Next, the surgeon's team divides the cut scalp strip into 500 to 2,000 tiny grafts, each with a single hair or a few hairs. The number and type of transplant you receive depends on the type of body, quality, color, and size of the region you receive the transplant.
If you get the FUE treatment, your scalp will be shaved by the surgeon's team. The doctor will then cut one by one hair follicles from there. The skin is healing with small dots that will cover the existing body.
All procedures are the same after that point. The surgeon cleans and numbs the region where the hair is going to go after he prepares the grafts, makes holes or slits with a scalpel or needle, and positions each graft delicately in one of the holes. He is likely to get help from other members of the team to also plant the grafts.
The process will take between 4 to 8 hours depending on the size of the transplant you are receiving. Whether you continue to lose hair or decide you need thicker hair, you may need another treatment later.
Expectations and Recovery
The scalp may be very tender after the procedure. For several days, you may need to take pain medication. The doctor will have at least a day or two wearing bandages over the head. The antibiotic or an anti-inflammatory drug may also be recommended for you to take for several days. After the procedure, many people will return to work for 2 to 5 days.
The transplanted hair will fall out within 2 to 3 weeks of surgery, but you should start noticing new growth within a few months. After 6 to 9 months, most people will see 60% of new hair growth. Many surgeons prescribe the hair-growing drug minoxidil (Rogaine) after transplantation to enhance hair growth, but it is not clear how well it works.
Risks and Costs of Treatment
A hair transplant's cost will largely depend on how much hair you carry, but it normally ranges from $4,000 to $15,000. It is not covered by most insurance plans.
Transplants have certain complications, including bleeding and infection, as with any type of surgery. There is also an opportunity for new hair growth to be scarred and unnatural-looking.
Many people have inflammation or a hair follicle infection called folliculitis around the time new locks begin to grow. The condition can be solved by antibiotics and compresses. You can also suddenly lose some of the original hair in the place you've got the new hairs, called shock loss. But it's not irreversible most of the time.
Speak to your doctor about these complications and how much benefit the surgery is likely to bring. He will help you decide whether this is a good option for you.