All you need to know about Hair Transplant

When we talk about hair transplant, there are several things that are attached

with the same, including why there is hair loss in the first place, what a hair

transplant procedure entails, who would be the most suited candidate for the

procedure and which procedure would suit whom and so on. In this article, we

will look at all the aspects associated with a hair transplant, starting with:

Reasons for Hair Loss:

Hair loss can be caused due to several reasons and these could include:

• Family history

• Certain types of skin conditions and infections

• Certain medications

• Accidents or trauma

• Medical procedures such as chemotherapy

• Pregnancy or birth control pills

What is important to note and remember that hair loss is not gender specific and can affect even

children. The diagnosis is the best way of charting out a plan of treatment.

What exactly is a hair transplant?

In order to understand how and why a hair transplant works, it is important to understand the

fundamentals of this process. In the simplest of terms, a hair transplant is a process in which hair is

taken from one part of the head (and in certain cases, from other parts of the body) and then implanted

into that area of the head, where there is major hair loss.

The history of hair transplant lies in the 1950s, when Norman Orentreich started experimenting with

grafts taken from the scalp. In the years to come, several other experiments were conducted and today,

hair restoration has reached the stage it is at today. Today, machines have been developed which can

perform procedures such as follicular unit extraction, with ease and precision.

What are the types of transplants?

There are mainly two types of hair transplant processes:

Follicular unit transplantation or strip excision harvesting:

In this method, a strip of hair is removed from the donor area of the scalp and then individual follicular

units are harvested. These follicular units are then implanted into the areas where the balding is most

prominent. Since an entire portion is removed from the scalp, there is normally a long linear scar, which

can be covered by a properly thought of hair style.

Follicular unit extraction:

This is a more advanced method of hair transplant and is more suited to people who need to have

smaller sections of their scalp covered. In this process, small follicular units are painstakingly removed

and then implanted into the area where the hair is required. There are no obvious scars in this process;

however, this procedure requires a lot more finesse and expertise. In this process, individual follicular

units are harvested, stored in a physiological solution till the time of their use and then implanted in the

direction of the natural hair growth.

Who would be an ideal candidate for a transplant?

You might be losing hair, but this does not mean that you would be an ideal candidate for hair

transplant. There are actually certain criteria which need to be met, for a person to be considered ideal

for a hair transplant. Here are some of them:

• Ideally, hair loss needs to stabilise before a transplant can be considered. This is why, many doctors

will not suggest such procedures to people who are still below 23 years of age. The reason for this is the

fact that for people above 23, usually, the hair loss stabilises. This means that the donor area and the

recipient site, both might not have further losses.

• For people who have just started losing hair, transplant would not be a good option, because there is

bound to be more hair loss. This means that even the transplanted hair might not hold root. For such

people, medications such as Finasteride and Minoxidil would be better choices.

• Just losing hair is not enough for a transplant, because you need to have a clear donor and recipient

area. Your donor area should have the capacity to provide sufficient grafts and the recipient area should

have complete loss of hair, without any scarring.

• The area of the head that needs to be covered also plays an important role in the course of deciding

whether a transplant would be suited or not. If there is complete balding, all over the head, there is no

point in having a transplant in the first place.

In most cases, a single or a few sittings are more than enough; however, in rare cases, the person might

have to keep returning to the doctor for subsequent restoration sessions. Such sittings would be

required to fill in the gaps that might emerge in the course of passing time. Such sittings might also be

required if some of the transplanted hair does not take root or if you feel that your hair does not look

dense enough.

Once your hair transplant has been completed, there are certain dos and don’ts that you need to follow.

You will have to take care of your transplanted hair and ensure that there is no damage to the same.

A transplant might seem like the most obvious choice for someone who is losing hair, but as seen in this

article, there are plenty of factors that need to be considered first. This is why, it is crucial that you find a

good doctor who will guide you through what might seem like murky waters!

Author's Bio:

This article was written by Dr. Kapil Dua, A Pioneer Hair Transplant Centre in India & Co-founder of AK

Clinics. He loves to help people get the hair back and keeping it healthy all the way.

Article Source: http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/all-you-need-to-know-about-

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