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Guide To Cosmetic Surgery - Hair Transplant

Hair Transplant

Going bald is a major issue for a great many men. There are several treatments available for this and one of these is hair transplantation.

A strip of hair is designated as a ‘donor strip’ of hair. This strip is taken from the back of the patient’s head and then painstakingly dissected into numerous hair follicles. These individual hair follicles are then grafted onto the desired area (bald or receding patch).

These hairs will fall out after a few days but the implanted follicles will remain. This means that new hair will grow and grow naturally.

Suitability for surgery

There are no pre-determined criteria for this procedure although the usual factors such as age and state of health will apply. Younger men may benefit more than older men as their baldness might not be so pronounced.

If you have noticeable baldness and it is impacting upon your lifestyle then this is a good option. But, it is not something to be entered into lightly! This is an intensive procedure which can cause a great deal of trauma to the head.

As with any procedure you need to be realistic about what it can achieve. Male pattern baldness is a condition which can stay with you for the rest of your life. This procedure will treat one area of baldness but other patches may appear over time.

Plus, it will be quite a few months before you see the full outcome of this procedure.

If you are prone to poor wound healing or ‘keloids’ (formation of angry, red scars) or the ‘donor site’ is not suitable then hair transplantation may not be recommended.

Preparing for surgery

The surgeon or practitioner will give you a set of pre-surgery (and post-surgery) instructions. These will include what to expect on the day of the procedure and the recovery process.

You will need to arrange some time off work. Even though the procedure is carried out under a local anaesthetic there is likely to be swelling and maybe some bleeding as well. If you require extensive grafting then there may be severe swelling causing puffiness around the eyes.

It is a good idea to arrange for a few days away from work to give yourself time to recover. You will have to wear a hat for the first few days until the swelling has eased so mention this to your employer.

Ask your partner, friend or member of your family to drive you to the clinic and pick you up afterwards. Even though this procedure involves a local anaesthetic only it can take up to 6 hours and you will be tired, sore and swollen afterwards.

This can affect your concentration so rather than attempt to drive ask someone to do this for you.

We would advise any patient undergoing cosmetic surgery to get plenty of rest, keep their fluid intake going and allow their body time to heal. This means taking things easy during your recovery and arranging for someone to help you at home during this time.

The hair transplant procedure

This procedure is performed under a local anaesthetic and is comprised of 3 stages:

Stage 1

An area at the back of your head will be designated the ‘donor
strip’. It needs to be an area where the hairs grow thickly and
densely.

A saline solution is injected into the donor area which will help to
mildly inflate this area.

A small, crescent shaped area of skin is removed via a scalpel
and the wound is closed with staples or stitches.

Stage 2

A team of specially trained nurses or technicians will dissect this strip into individual hair follicles. Depending on the extent of the area to be treated this grafting can range from a ‘micro graft’ (a couple of hairs in needle sized holes) right through to ‘square or standard grafting’ (9 to 18 hairs in a 4.5mm sized graft).

Think of one individual graft with 8 to 10 hairs and the surgeon transplanting 200 to 800 of these individual grafts. The more grafts to be transplanted the longer the procedure.

Stage 3

As soon as the individual grafts are ready the surgeon will anaesthetise the patient’s scalp and then insert these grafts via tiny incisions in the skin.

The transplanted hair grafts will fall out but the follicles will remain and new hair will grow from these.  

You may be given a ‘turban’ like bandage to wear for the first 24 hours following this procedure to secure these grafts.

You may require further sessions although this depends on the extent of the baldness.

There is no pain during this procedure.

Bear in mind that the most successful transplants can take from 1 to 2 years to complete.

Recovery

The recovery period is likely to be short as this is not major surgery. There will be a fair degree of swelling plus the area treated will be red and sore as well. There might be some bleeding although this tends to be rare.

You might experience some mild discomfort but painkillers can control this.

If you have undergone extensive transplantation then the swelling might be quite severe with puffiness seen around the eyes.

Crusting or small scabs will form over each of the grafts though these will fall off after a couple of weeks.
If there is any scarring then this will be very light. You may be given some ointment to reduce the risk of infection. 

Your surgeon or practitioner will give you advice on what to do after the procedure. This will include instructions on washing and shampooing your hair. For example, gently wash your hair a couple of days following this procedure.

There will be a series of aftercare appointments for you to attend. Your stitches or staples will be removed at the first check up and your progress will be monitored carefully. If you are experiencing any problems then this is the time to mention these.

If you have any severe pain or similar symptoms then contact the clinic immediately.

The benefits of hair transplantation

This has been proven to work. The hair will start to grow naturally although not always straight away. But, it will be completely natural and will enhance your appearance.

Your new hair growth may not be quite as thick as the pre-hair loss but it will conceal the bald patch and can be styled in any way you so wish.

The risks of hair transplantation

There are very few complications with this procedure. They are likely to be swelling, redness and in a few rare cases, bleeding from the grafted sites.

Infection is always a risk but this equally applies to all forms of cosmetic procedure. Antibiotics or ointment can be prescribed to deal with this.

There may be cases where the transplanted grafts fail to grow although this tends to be rare.