Hair transplantation involves moving healthy follicles from an area with plenty of hair onto an area with limited or none at all, which often requires multiple surgical sessions to get desired results.
Your healthcare provider will sterilize and numb the area before cutting grafts with hair follicles on them – these tiny sections of skin contain multiple hair follicles are called “grafts.”
Donor Area
Donor area refers to the part of your scalp where hair transplant surgeons extract individual follicles (FUE hair transplant) or strips (FUT hair transplant) from for transplantation.
Once transplanted, these follicles can then be relocated onto areas that are balding or thinning for a natural-looking head of hair restoration. Donor follicles tend to resist balding so will continue growing normally once transplanted onto these balding or thinning areas of the scalp.
An effective donor area is essential to the success of any hair transplant surgery. Before proceeding with any procedure, your hair transplant surgeon should assess the health of your follicles to make sure there is sufficient healthy hair in the donor area before proceeding with any procedure. Some patients also opt to strengthen their bank through mesotherapy or vitamins in the lead up to surgery. You can learn more by clicking the link.
Ideal donor areas for hair transplants are the back of the scalp and nape of the neck, where dense amounts of follicles exist. Other areas may also serve as suitable donor areas; but only in rare instances would such places be recommended as donor locations.
Surgeons will extract an appropriate amount of hair from the donor area during surgery, according to each patient’s needs. Too much harvesting results in low quality follicles which cannot grow when transplanted; this practice is known as overharvesting.
Once the donor area heals, it will be covered by small “dot-like” scars that become almost unnoticeable as your hair grows back in. For best results, keep your locks at 1-2 inches for best results – longer hair may help further conceal these scars!
Procedure
Hair transplant procedures involve extracting healthy, hair-bearing scalp from donor areas on the back and sides of your head using either a scalpel or punch graft device. This is typically done in a hair transplantation clinic or another professional environment. Once extracted, your surgeon replaces those follicular units that had become thinned out with new ones in areas of balding on your scalp; new follicles will grow to replace lost ones to create full and natural-looking results.
Transplanted follicles can be used to create a new hairline, fill thinning areas and thicken an otherwise sparse crown. A single session of hair restoration surgery usually involves transplanting 50 to 700 follicular units depending on your follicle size and coverage needs; your surgeon may suggest additional sessions if your follicles don’t have sufficient viability for a successful outcome.
At this procedure, your doctor will use anesthesia to numb your scalp and ease any associated discomfort. Some individuals also opt to take a mild sedative for added relaxation during this process which typically lasts four to eight hours; then your physician will place a bandage over your head with detailed instructions for post-care at home.
After your surgery, it is crucial that you follow all aftercare instructions carefully for at least one month post-surgery. Grafts need time to settle in properly; avoid touching or prodding them despite any itchy spots they might cause. Furthermore, you might see some hair fallout during this period which is perfectly normal and should improve as new follicles develop and mature.
As part of your postoperative care, it’s vital that you follow your physician’s post-op instructions to prevent infection and promote faster healing. Smoking increases your risk for complications; thus ensuring you stay away from smoking altogether. You can visit https://smokefree.gov/ for tips on how to give up smoking to improve your surgical outcome.
Your dermatologist may prescribe medicine to prevent further hair loss and thinning. This is essential, as hair loss can still happen even after having undergone a hair transplant procedure; using medication will ensure that results last over time while looking natural.
Recovery
Hair transplant surgery involves extracting hair follicles from one part of the scalp and implanting them into areas that have lost their own natural follicles, in order to restore hair lost due to age, medical conditions or injuries; or add volume while also restoring receding or balding hairlines.
At the start of a hair transplant surgery, patients are administered local anesthesia in order to minimize discomfort. A surgeon then uses either a scalpel or needle to create holes in the scalp that follicles will later begin growing from.
Itching can be an uncomfortable side effect of hair transplants and usually indicates that the grafts are healing properly. A mild antihistamine medication should help soothe any itching. Furthermore, it’s vitally important that aftercare instructions be strictly adhered to so as to protect the hair follicles as they recover.
Final Results
Once your transplanted hair follicles have been treated and healed, it will take some time for them to establish and fill in any balding areas – this can take anywhere from six months to one year. As time progresses, your new grafts should produce hair that matches both texture and appearance with existing natural hair on your scalp.
At first, you may experience scabs or crusting around where your surgeon performed the procedure; these should gradually dissolve as your skin heals. Additionally, swelling in the area could occur; should this happen, contact your physician as soon as possible to arrange for a follow-up visit so they can assess this further.
Once the transplanted hair has grown in, it will likely be thicker and fuller than your original locks. As it continues to develop at its own pace, you can cut, style, or treat as desired; sometimes even for life! In some cases, transplanted locks continue to thrive beyond treatment or transplanting itself!
Importantly, your doctor will advise if you are not suitable for a hair transplant. Certain medications and conditions can cause hair loss as a side effect; you will therefore need to rule out these possible sources before getting one done.