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Hair Transplant Surgery

Are You a Good Candidate for Hair Transplant Surgery?

More and more men and women are turning to surgical hair transplant procedures to fight hair loss.

However, these procedures are not for everyone, especially for those with continuing hair loss. It makes little sense to surgically restore hair to a certain part of your scalp, if surrounding areas will continue to bald.

First you must be realistic about your chances of success and you then you have to find a skilled surgeon who knows what he can achieve in your case.

The major procedures performed today are Scalp Expansion, Scalp Reduction, Scalp Flap and Hair Transplant.

Since the first three options can result in major side effects, be sure you understand why you need the procedure and what will happen before agreeing to it.

Scalp expansion and reduction are basically the same procedure. With scalp expansion the skin of the scalp must be loosened to the point where there is enough skin to remove. A device is inserted under the scalp and left there for a month or so. The skin expands and loosens.

When the device is removed, the scalp reduction surgery occurs. The loose scalp is cut out and the areas with hair stretched to cover the bald areas.

For this type of surgery to work, you need a good supply of hair on the sides and back that can be stretched to cover the area of baldness. However even then, you might need some transplants to fill bare spots.

Some experts avoid these procedures because of the potential to cause more hair loss, plus the possibility of scarring and infection.

The scalp flap procedure is usually reserved for men with receding hairlines, but with adequate hair growth otherwise. A flap of scalp is cut and rotated to cover the bald area. It produces instant results.

This procedure is not done by many doctors. There are problems with scarring and infection, plus the hair might have the appearance of growing in the wrong direction.

The most popular procedure is the hair transplant.

Doctors no longer use the plug method that gave the scalp a “doll” head appearance.

They now take micrografts or minigrafts, sometimes transplanting only one to four hairs at a time. Again you need adequate hair growth at the sides and back of your head for the procedure to be possible.

A good surgeon will use variable sized hair grafts to create a natural hair appearance that is appropriate for each individual patient. Single hair grafts have the finest and softest appearance without much density. They are used to create a soft natural hairline.

Micrografts containing two or three hairs are placed behind the hairline to give the appearance of naturally denser hair. Finally grafts of four or more hairs are placed further back on the scalp to blend into a natural looking head of hair.

It is best not to try to have your whole head done at once. Many doctors recommended breaking it up into several sessions, with about 800 grafts being done at one time.

It is not unusual to lose transplanted hair almost immediately. Sometimes it is due to damage to the transferred follicle. Other times it is the follicle’s need to rest before regenerating new growth.

Dr. Loren Pickart, one of the major researchers of the use of copper peptides in treating hair loss, is of the opinion that copper peptide use after hair transplant surgery will aide in healing and speed up the growth of hair that is healthier and thicker.

(For more on copper peptide use in hair care, please read Copper Peptide Hair Treatments.)

However, not everyone is happy with hair transplant results. For example, click here to read one man’s tale of woe. If you read that article, you will see there are no guarantees made by the doctors that the procedure will work.

And even if you get a good result, you might have to repeat the procedure as you hair thins or falls out as you get older.

The bottom line is that you first have to make sure that you are a suitable candidate for hair transplant surgery and second, that you find an excellent surgeon.

This article is for information only. It does not purport to offer medical advice.  

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