How Long Does a Hair Transplant Last?
Hair transplant surgery offers a practical and permanent solution for anyone suffering from hair loss. A procedure usually lasts no more than several hours before giving patients transformative new locks that last a lifetime. Best way to find an Eyebrow transplant.
Your surgeon will first extract a strip of scalp that contains healthy hairs before creating holes or slits on the scalp to accommodate transplanted hairs.
The Recipient Area
Before beginning surgery, an area in your scalp that needs transplanting will be chosen and marked for transplanting using multiple anatomical markers and Trichoscopy assessments. This step helps determine density and angle as well as the number of available follicles that can be transplanted into that recipient area.
Your doctor can perform the transplant process through either strip surgery or micro follicular unit extraction (FUE), the latter of which leaves no scarring but requires more time than its counterpart. After prepping your scalp, your physician will use a fine-tipped tool to take follicular units from areas with healthy hair growth and use these in those that lack it or thin out over time.
Once your follicular units have been transplanted, stitches or sutures will be applied to hold them securely in place. You can leave these in until after 24 hours have passed or remove them immediately if preferred.
As soon as a hair transplant takes place, it is best to avoid touching or rubbing the recipient area. Scabs may form on transplanted areas if you fail to wash them regularly – failing to do so could result in infection as well as an unsightly appearance. It would be best if you began flying this area after one week had passed until all scabs fell off by themselves.
The Donor Area
As previously discussed, hair transplantation involves extracting healthy hair follicles from the back and sides of your scalp (known as the donor region) for transplant into areas of hair loss or thinning. A surgeon will use punch or strip grafts to extract these hair follicles; round punch grafts contain between two and ten hairs, while strip grafts inserted into slits in your scalp can have 30-40 follicular units each time they are used for removal.
Surgeons will then prepare the areas of the scalp where there are balding or thinning patches to receive the transplanted grafts by creating small incisions into which follicular units can be transplanted or by cutting a strip from the scalp and stitching it closed. Once donor site scabs have had time to fall off, the transplanted hair will begin growing back gradually – eventually giving an appearance of natural, healthy growth over time.
Patients must comply with their surgeon’s instructions in order to speed up healing time and avoid complications such as infection. Scabs on donor areas can sometimes irritate; it is best not to scratch at them with your fingers or nails, as this could damage or remove hair follicles entirely.
The Post-Operative Period
Hair transplant procedures can be pretty invasive. Once the surgeon completes their initial work on your scalp, they will need to stitch it closed up again – which may cause some minor discomfort; however, most patients can return home that same day.
Over the next seven days, your scalp will heal from its surgery, causing some pain and itching as blood and skin crusts clump together to form crusts of skin and blood clumps. While this is normal and should not be touched, using shampoo daily and massaging grafted areas can help soften any crusts until they all go away after eight days.
Once the scabs have subsided, you can return to washing your hair as usual. Furthermore, use a unique moisturizer designed for scalp care regularly in order to maintain optimal conditions on your scalp and keep this area washed so as to avoid crusting again.
After your procedure, most of the transplanted hair will fall out within the first month or two. This is natural, and it will eventually grow back – leaving you with a full head of hair once again!
The Final Results
Hair transplantation can reverse the effects of baldness by replacing lost follicles. As old hair falls out and new ones take hold, thicker, fuller locks will begin growing that will continue to increase over time.
While the results of your transplant start to take shape, patience will be vital in seeing their full effect. As is typical for natural hair growth cycles, much of your transplanted hair will shed. Over time, however, new growth will appear and become visible.
Once your new hair starts growing, it is crucial to follow your surgeon’s post-operation instructions in order to ensure both donor and transplanted areas heal correctly and produce natural-looking results.
After surgery, you must also abide by your surgeon’s post-op instructions regarding washing your hair and brushing both donor and transplanted areas of your scalp to reduce scab formation on transplanted areas of the scalp. This will help ensure optimal healing.
Understand the risks involved with hair transplantation are real, and it may not be taken. This is entirely normal and usually caused by disruptions to the growth cycle caused by medication, illness, genetics, or other external influences, but don’t panic: touch-up procedures may restore any missing follicles!