Search Tools: Web | News | Images | Forums
| MedPro
| Shop
|
Conditions & Diseases: Hair Loss & Hair Loss Treatment (Surgical & Non-Surgical)Hair Transplant FAQ - 25 Q&AThe following hair transplant FAQ's and answers are only meant to be informative and should not replace questions you might ask your hair transplant doctor during your consultation session. Just because you might receive an answer to a question here, you should still make the inquiry with your doctor to satisfy any questions or concerns you may have about your procedure. Warning: No part of this FAQ may be copied for use. All content theft on this website is monitored by CopyScape 1.What is hair transplantation? 1. What is hair transplantation? Hair transplantation involves transferring hair grafts (skin and hair units of 1 to 2 to 3 hairs extracted from a single donor strip) from the back and sides of your head (the donor area) to balding or thinng areas where you would like new hair to grow. Hair transplants do not invole using artificial hair or hair from another person. Doctors will be using your own hair. 2. Do hair transplants really work? Yes,hair transplants really work. It is not rocket science nor is it an unproven "miracle cure for hair loss." Modern hair transplant surgery is the result of 50 years of advancement and refinement by the established medical community and is one of the most common cosmetic surgery procedures requested by men in the USA. Yes, the hair transplant results are permanent because the transplant team will be removing hair loss resistant hair from your donor area to the hair loss affected regions of your head. These newly implanted hair grafts RETAIN their resistance to normal hair loss and will last a life time. If you have ever noticed a man with extreme hair loss, you'll notice that despite being bald from the front, over the top and to the crown -click for image - they still have hair on the back and sides of the head. This is where your donor hair will come from because it is resistant to dihydrotesterone, the hormone which is the culprit behind normal male pattern hair loss. 4. Can anyone have hair transplant surgery? Not everyone is a candidate for hair transplant surgery. Men with normal male pattern hair loss (the cause of hair loss in 95 percent of men) make good candidates if they have realistic goals and expectations. Men with extreme hair loss and unrealistic goals might be better off with a hair system or toupee. Some, but not all women can be candidates for hair transplants as they have special circumstances and considerations to take into account. Women should consult with their dermatologist or hair transplant doctor to determine the true cause of their hair loss and if they are a viable candidate for hair restoration. Women, and some men, who suffer from temporary hair loss (telogen effluvium) generally do not make good candidates for surgery. Treatment of the condition that is causing the temporary hair loss is preferred. 5. Am I a candidate for hair transplant surgery? Again, this will depend on the type of hair loss you have, the amount of donor hair available and your expectations of the results. However, only your doctor can really answer this question and in the end, you must decide for yourself if hair transplant surgery is for you. 6. How many hair grafts or procedures will I need? This answer will depend on you and your doctor. It's important to keep in mind that each hair transplant patient is different, including you, and so is the exact plan to help you achieve the look you desire after your procedure. See Realistic Goals for more information. Hair plugs have been a dirty word with hair transplant clinics for more then 10 years. Hair plugs were in common use before the 1990s when advancement in micro surgery techniques were perfected and quickly put into wide spread practice. Hair plugs were hair graft units of 10 to 50 hairs implanted together into a single aperture or whole in the hair loss affected region. This punch graft method resulted in a hair line that looked like a "Barbie doll" or corn rows growing in a field. Hair plugs did put hair where there was none before, but it did not look natural because hair does not grow in units of 10 to 50 hairs. Modern hair transplant surgery techniques have advanced greatly over the last 20 years. Today, most doctors will only transplant follicular unit hair grafts. Normal hair growth on a man's head occurs in groups of 1 to 4 hairs. These naturally occuring units of hair are known as follicular units. Instead of transplanting hair grafts of more then 5 hairs, which will produce an unnatural appearance, nearly all hair transplant doctors today transplant follicular unit hair grafts (sometimes called micro grafts). While follicular units are natural looking, the density of these grafts is sometimes less then desired. Some hair transplant doctors like to employ follicular units for the frontal hair line and slightly larger grafts for the top and crown area. Doctors that employ this multi graft technique take great care in making sure they will remain natural looking and undetectable. 9. Will anyone notice that I've had hair transplant surgery? Because of the advancement in micro surgery hair transplant techniques and the widespread use of follicular units, hair transplants today are undetectable and completely natural looking. No one will know you've had hair transplant surgery unless you tell them. However, if you are a man with a large bald area, and suddenly start to grow hair where there was none before, your family and friends may take notice. It's up to you whether you want to tell them the truth or not. 10. Where will the procedure take place? Hair transplant surgery is an out-patient procedure performed with local anesthia in the doctor's clinic. This means you will not be unconsious during the surgery. Because hair transplant surgery is relatively safe and simple (when compared to other surgeries), a full service operating room is often not necessary. 11. How long will the procedure last? The time needed to perform a hair transplant procedure depends on the skill and experience of the medical team and the number of hair grafts being transplanted. Generally speaking though, it could last 2 to 4 hours. Under local anesthia, the procedure itself will not hurt. However, hair transplant clinics like to downplay how much it hurts when the local anesthia is administered to the donor and recipient areas. Many of them will tell you that the anesthia will "sting" at first. This is a bit of an understatement and it can actually hurt quite a bit. Women endure the anesthesia application better then men since they have a higher capacity for pain. 13. Will I need time off from work? When it comes to how much time you'll need to recuperate following your surgery, follow the advice of your clinic. Generally speaking, patients can return to work 1 to 2 days after surgery. HOWEVER, here is something all hair transplant clinics will never tell you. Following your surgery, your newly implanted hair grafts will start to scab as they heal. It can take up to 7 to 10 days for all these scabs to heal and fall out. If your job doesn't allow you to wear a loose fitting hat to hide your scabs, then everyone there will notice your hair graft scabs! How are you going to explain that one when the whole idea was to get natural looking hair grafts so no one will notice you've had hair transplant surgery? If you are a lawyer, are you going to walk into court with a baseball cap on? Therefore, you may want to schedule your surgery to coincide with your vacation time. 14. What happens after the surgery? Every clinic has it's own procedures and recommendations for your post operative care. All clinics will prescribe antibiotic medication (to fight infection) as well as a steroid to decrease swelling and a mild pain medication. Your doctor will instruct you on when and how you can wash and shampoo your hair as well positions for sleeping (so you don't disturb the grafts while you sleep). Many clinics give you a loose fitting surgery cap to wear while you sleep as the scabs heal and then fall out. See Post Op Surgery Care for more information. 15. Will there be a scar after the surgery? Your hair grafts will be taken from a single donor strip, several cm wide and more then 8 cm long. Doctors remove this donor strip from the back of your head and then dissect it into follicular units with the aid of microscopic like goggles. Great care goes into the suturing of your donor area back together to minimize the scar that will remain. In most cases, this scar line is only 1 to 2 mm wide. In African American's, keloid scarring can result when this donor strip is removed. If you are susceptable to keloid scarring, then you will probably have a keloid scar from the removal of the donor strip. Consult your doctor for more advice on this. If you are apprehensive about hair transplant surgery because of this scar, you may want to consider Follicular Unit Extraction which leaves no scar. 16. Why do the newly implanted hair grafts have to fall out? Approximately 5 to 10 days after your surgery, your newly implanted hair grafts will scab as they heal and then fall out. Don't worry, this is normal. The hair grafts go into a sort of shock or trauma after they are implanted and fall out. However, the dermal papilla of the hair root is left behind and will grow again. 17. How long will take for my new hair grafts to grow? After your hair grafts fall out and scabs heal, your new hair will start to grow in 3 to 8 months and can take as long as 12 months. It can seem like an eternity to wait for your new hair to grow but don't worry, it will start to come in eventually. 18. How long do I have to wait until I have another procedure? Because your hair grafts can take as much as 6 to 12 months to come in, you should wait that long before having another procedure. Your doctor needs to see the new hair coming in before he can map the distribution pattern for your second hair transplant to give you a proper density equilibrium across your balding area. 19. How much does a hair transplant cost? Twenty years ago, a hair transplant could cost you as much as $20 per graft. Thanks to competition and an increasing popularity of the procedure due to refined techniques, hair grafts have come down in price to as low as $3 per hair graft up to $8. Nationwide, the average cost for a hair transplant is $5 to $6. Some doctors charge you by the hair graft while others charge you by the session. Many clinics offer a reduced price if you buy more hair grafts. 20. Is financing available for hair transplant surgery? Firms that specialize in financing for cosmetic procedures exist to help make procedures more affordable for everyone and have helped in the overall growth of cosmetic surgery. Most likely, your hair transplant clinic has pre-arranged partnerships with these financing firms and can help assist you with applying for and receiving special financing. 21. Will my insurance company pay for my procedure? No. Cosmetic surgery procedures that are not the result of an accident or mishap are not covered by your insurance company. Hair transplants are also not tax deductable. 22. Can I use Propecia (finasteride) or Rogaine (minoxidil) after my surgery? Propecia is a wonderful drug that halts hair loss in 85 percent of men and provides new hair growth in the crown region in 66 percent of men. Most hair transplant doctors will support you using this prescription based drug which also lowers the risk of prostate cancer. If a hair transplant doctor does not want you to use this medication, question his motives. Rogaine is another FDA approved hair loss treatment medication that can be used following your procedure. If you have any medical condition, you should inform your doctor. In some cases, they may prevent you from having a hair transplant procedure. During your consultation, it is your responsibility to inform your doctor of any medication or medical condition you may have. Some medications, such as Zyban, are contraindicated for the anesthia. Do not fail to inform you doctor of your medical history and all medications you are taking prior to surgery 24. What are the risks involved with hair transplant surgery? Although the risks are minor, you should not neglect to ask your doctor this question. 25. What is the best technique to use for hair transplants? Hair transplant doctors will find some things to agree on and will also disagree as each thinks they are using the best technique. Sales hyperbole aside, you should look for a doctor that implants follicular unit hair grafts that are dissected under a microscope and implanted into an aperture (hole) created by a "needle" designed for hair grafts. Apertures created by laser are quickly falling out favor with hair transplant doctors.
Article by Staff |
Related Links Female Hair Loss Hair
Transplant Procedures Finasteride (Propecia) Hair Cloning |
Overview
| Conditions
& Diseases | Sitemap
| Medical
Images Copyright © OmniMedicalSearch.com OmniMedicalSearch does not provide medical advice and the Medical Conditions & Diseases section is for informational purposes only. Please see our Medical Disclaimer and always consult with your physician. |
Page Last Modified:
05/04/2009
