STARTING WITH REALISTIC GOALS

Hair Transplant Candidates & Realistic Goals

Hair Transplant CandidateTo achieve the best outcome from your hair transplant procedure, it is important to establish whether or not you are a suitable candidate for a hair transplant. To do so, we need to ensure that your expectations match what is achievable by our surgeon, and your budget.

Prior to any hair transplant surgery, we strongly recommend you discuss your expectations with your surgeon. Your surgeon will explain the different hair restoration techniques and what you can realistically expect from each one, and why. Patients who have realistic expectations are generally satisfied with their decision to proceed, and pleased with their hair transplant results.

After your consultation and examination, your surgeon will decide on the placement of your hair grafts in order to achieve the best result.

All techniques for surgical hair transplants do the same thing: they take hair from where it is currently growing and transplant it to an area on your scalp where you have lost hair. All hair replacement techniques will use your own growing, healthy hair. Grafts are not made using someone else’s hair. This means that if you are to have this procedure, you MUST have healthy hair on your scalp, that is available to be transplanted. The areas from which healthy hair will be harvested are referred to as “donor areas.” Your hair color, texture, and the degree of curl of your donor hairs all affect the outcome and appearance.

Hair transplant surgery has a high success rate, is generally painless, and within a couple weeks of your procedure there will be no visible signs of surgery.

Your surgeon’s skill ensures that your result will look natural; no one will know you had a hair transplant. Your new hair will gradually grow in and your hair loss problem will be solved. No more taking medication that doesn’t work or covering your thinning hair with headgear.

Hair transplants do work, yes. In fact, hair replacement surgery may be the best decision you can make for your self-confidence.

THE BEST HAIR TRANSPLANT

Realistic hair transplant goals are a result of candid conversations between patient and surgeon. Only by discussing expectations and the experiences of other clients, and agreeing upon, an individualized treatment plan, can the best hair transplant outcomes be achieved.

LIMITATIONS IN HAIR RESTORATION

You should be aware that every hair follicle lost due to genetic balding (androgenic alopecia) is lost forever. A surgeon’s experience, skill, and artistry cannot overcome limitations in the quality or quantity of your donor hair. Generally, the more hair you have already lost, the less full the appearance of the restored hair. All hair restoration procedures, including FUT hair transplants and FUE hair transplants, move hair from one place on the head to another. New hair is not created, but redistributed from the back and sides of the head, where there is an abundant supply, to areas where there is little or no hair. No surgical procedure creates new hair. Scalp reductions do not preserve hair for use in transplants, as some physicians claim. Traditional large (4 mm) hair transplant grafts simply transfer plugs of hair to bald areas, creating patches of hairy skin that result in creating the “doll’s head” look that has been commonly associated with hair transplants.

Modern Hair Transplantation

For the best results, your surgeon transplants very small, naturally-growing groups of hair follicles. These follicular grafts are less noticeable than larger grafts and are indistinguishable from the natural groups of hair growing in adjacent areas of the scalp. The grafts are placed into minute incisions that usually leave no discernible scar.

You should remember that the density of the transplanted hair cannot equal the density of the hair that was originally grown in that location. In thinning areas, transplanted hair can significantly increase the apparent density by adding hair follicles or groups of hairs and mixing these with existing hair. The key is to add density inconspicuously so the hair in the new location appears as full and natural as possible.

Unless a very bald man has a high hair density and a loose scalp, there will not be enough donor hair to cover his entire head. A very thin head of hair; a very conservative, high hairline; and/or deliberately leaving the crown area un-grafted or very thin may be the only viable options for hair restoration. It is important for the patient to understand this reality before making a decision to schedule surgery.

Extensive Hair Loss

In patients with extensive hair loss and low-density donor hair, there is no way that transplantation can achieve a full head of hair. Artistic techniques, however, can maximize the use of what donor hair is available to create the best hair transplant outcome. A high hairline that does not have a distinct edge produces a natural but well-framed thin look. Keep in mind that high contrast hair-to-skin color combinations make more advanced hair loss harder to restore.

While a doctor is responsible for sharing historical experiences and preparing the client for the surgical procedure, clients too, have a responsibility to educate themselves and do their own research. Clients should review material presented during the surgical consultation and ask questions for clarification. An educated client is a satisfied client because a full understanding of the procedure eliminates the possibility of surprise or a patient feeling the surgeon didn’t explain all aspects of the surgery.

Educated clients can more easily distinguish between gimmick and truth in advertising, and separate wishful thinking from realistic expectations. When a client is pro-active about seeking information, the client can be satisfied with results, and the surgeon can be satisfied that the procedure has delivered a welcome outcome.