Is a hair transplant permanent? This is a common question we get asked at The Treatment Rooms London especially as the treatment can be an expensive one! Rest assured, a hair transplant can be permanent- lasting a long time and in most cases a lifetime. However, there are some important considerations you need to know about before undergoing a lifelong change. In this blog we will help guide you through them.

Is a hair transplant permanent?

A hair transplant can be permanent- lasting a long time >20 years and in most cases for life. This is because a hair transplant relocates lifelong hairs from the back and sides of your head to areas you are balding in. These lifelong hairs keen their longevity when they are transplanted to a new area in the scalp- this is why a hair transplant is a permanent solution to balding.

Why does a hair transplant last so long?

As you may know already, in most people the hair at the back and sides tends to stay there forever.

If you look at a balding man or woman, you will notice they have hair at the back and sides- even when they are old. This is because the processes that cause hair loss don’t affect these areas, (1). Whereas the hair on the top and in the crown are sensitive to hair loss, especially in diagnoses like male or female pattern hair loss (androgenic alopecia).

As a result, the hairs on the side and back tend to stay on your head throughout your life. When we take out and transplant these hairs from those areas to an area you are balding in, they keep their resistance. This means, they stay in the new area permanently- making a hair transplant permanent.

Click the following links to learn more about male and female pattern baldness:

• Male Pattern Baldness
• Female Pattern Baldness

Because the change following a hair transplant can be permanent, you need to be sure you will be happy with your result. This means taking into account a few considerations before undergoing a procedure. These include:

1. Hair Transplantation with or without Finasteride/ Minoxidil
2. Will you need a second hair transplant?
3. What hairstyle do you want after a hair transplant?

Hair Transplantation with or without Finasteride/ Minoxidil

A hair transplant is a procedure that restores and replenishes hair in areas you have lost it. However, you may still have hair on your head that you can preserve and stop from falling out.

Using medications like Finasteride and Minoxidil which have been proven in preventing hair loss and stimulating growth, you can help to keep your existing hair. This means that your hair transplant can be performed knowing that you will not bald or recede further. This gives you further reassurance that the result of your hair transplant, whilst it is long lasting, will not look out of place if you continue to bald and thin down the line.

However, if you didn’t take medications to freeze-frame your hair, preventing any more loss, you might require a second hair transplant. This separates hair transplants into those performed with or without Finasteride/ Minoxidil. In both cases, the long lasting result means two very different outcomes.

1. If you take medications that prevent further hair loss, you can expect your hair transplant result to suit you forever.
2. If you don’t take medications that prevent further hair loss, you might have a long lasting hair transplant that won’t suit you down the line as you continue to lose hair. In these circumstances you may need another hair transplant. 

Will you need a second hair transplant?

Your hair transplant may start to look out of place if you recede behind your implanted hairs. This might mean you opt to have a second or a third hair transplant if you are not taking medications to prevent further hair loss.

Because a hair transplant lasts for a lifetime, you need to be aware that if you continue to bald behind your transplant your hair transplant will look odd in years to come. This is why it is important to consider starting and continuing hair loss preventative medication.

If you decide not to take any medication and only opt for a hair transplant it might be best to wait until your hair loss stabilises at the age of 30 before having the procedure (2). This is important because you can plan what you will need from a hair transplant having an idea where your hair will eventually recede to. It also prevents you undergoing another hair transplant and spending more money.

What hairstyle do you want after a hair transplant?

Following on from our previous paragraph, this topic is also important. If you decide to have a hair transplant, no matter what age you are, your desired hairline is incredibly important when considering what you want to gain from surgery.

Your hairstyle if you take hair loss medications

If you are stable on hair loss medications then you can know you won’t recede or bald much further so you can likely plan for a hairline and hair style you desire most. But please bear in mind, your hairline should take into account what hairstyle you want when you are older. Choosing a mature hairline is important as your transplant is permanent. Don’t go for a hairline you had when you were 17 years old- it won’t suit you when you are 60!

Your hairstyle if you do not take hair loss medications

If you decide not to have hair loss medications then you should wait until your hair loss stabilises before having a hair transplant. You should also consider your family history of hair loss. If you have many members of your family who bald completely, there is a high chance you might also bald the same way. For this reason, it might be useful if you wait until this happens before having a hair transplant.

If you still wanted to have a hair transplant then the hairstyle and hairline you opt to go for in your hair transplant will need to take into account future hair loss and recession. So going for a mature hairline and hairstyle might suit you better. This means a hairline that is a higher up than your ideal hairline. This is beneficial for a number of reasons:

• It will give you a hairline you can style in your own way
• The procedure saves more grafts for future hair transplants needed when you bald further
• Your hairline will suit you for your whole life as it will never look too low down
• A higher hairline will give you denser results as your transplanted hair is not spread over a larger area

-For more information on a hairline hair transplants click here-

What happens when you have a bad hair transplant?

If you have had a bad hair transplant- or one you are not happy with, you may look to fix the result. Knowing the result is long lasting, correcting any problem can be a pressing concern.

You have a few choices available to you:

• You can correct poor hairline design by undergoing another transplant
• If you have a hairline that is too low down you can have laser hair removal and another hair transplant to make your hairline more natural
• If your result is not dense enough you may decide to have another hair transplant to thicken your result. But you must be aware that this further uses up your donor hair leaving less for another transplant if you needed it

Interested in discussing a hair transplant?

At The Treatment Rooms London we take pride in giving you a permanent hair transplant that suits you forever.

If you are interested in having a hair transplant at The Treatment Rooms London- click HERE to find out more and book your free consultation today.

References

(1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6371726/

(2) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2825128/

(3) https://academic.oup.com/asj/article/33/1/128/209891

 

 

We wanted to write a short piece on why it is so important to see you hair transplant surgeon regularly- before, during and after your operation. At The Treatment Rooms London we are seeing more and more patients asking us for help when it comes to fixing a previous hair transplant or advice about aftercare. In almost all cases, the patient had barely seen their hair transplant surgeon and in some cases didn’t know what their name was! This is particularly worrying. So who is your hair transplant surgeon? Why is it important to see them? Find out in this blog!

Why Do You Need A Hair Transplant Surgeon?

If you are suffering from hair loss you might be wondering what is the cause and what is the best treatment for you? The causes of hair loss are explored in earlier blogs that you can click on below:

• Male Hair Loss
• Female Hair Loss
• Male Pattern Baldness
• Female Pattern Baldness

Treating hair loss can be tricky and requires specialist knowledge. Sometimes you might ring a hair loss clinic and get booked into see someone who is not a hair transplant Surgeon or Doctor. In most cases this person is not medically qualified to diagnose and manage your hair loss. In reality you need to be seen by a GMC registered Doctor or Surgeon, or a trichologist.

Furthermore, your Doctor or Surgeon needs to have a specialist interest in hair loss and hair restoration surgery if they are going to advise you about having a hair transplant. They are best placed to know how suitable you are for a hair transplant. We have written a lot about what you need to consider when choosing to have a transplant. You can click the two links below to find out more:

• 5 Considerations Before Choosing A Hair Transplant
• Are You A Candidate For Hair Transplant Surgery?

Once you have decided to have a hair transplant you then need your hair transplant surgeon to plan your operation and your new hair. They will need to account for any future hair loss and ideally you need a hair transplant surgeon to do this. Their training and experience is important to ensuring your hair is cared for not only now but for the future too.

This means that if you decide to undergo your treatment with your Surgeon, you both have come to a mutually agreed treatment goal. This is important as you can feel at ease knowing your Surgeon is operating to achieve a result you have agreed on and will be happy with.

What Happens If You Don’t See A Hair Transplant Surgeon?

At our clinic we have heard from many patients asking for help. They may have had their hair transplant abroad or in the UK but often they complain of the following problems:

• Too much hair taken out from the back of their head
• Poor hairline design
• Poor hair density following a hair transplant
• Large scars
• Skin necrosis
• No hair growth 1 year after hair transplantation

A recurring theme is that they haven’t had a consultation with a Doctor or Surgeon who is carrying out the procedure. This has some main consequences:

• You may not get treated by a surgeon at all but a hair transplant technical assistant with poor surgical technique
• Your hair transplant surgeon doesn’t know you and is not familiar with your concerns e.g. pain, recovery, bleeding
• Your surgeon doesn’t know how many hairs to take out or takes out too many
• You may be given a hair transplant that is not what you expected- hence a result you will not be happy with

During your consultation you need to address your concerns around surgery and what your expectations are following hair growth. But you shouldn’t overlook the problem of losing more hair behind or around your hair transplant. Stopping your hair loss is as important as undergoing the hair transplant procedure. You might be able to obtain a head of hair following your hair transplant, but if you don’t take steps to prevent further hair loss, your transplant is rendered useless.

What is the right clinic for me?

In the UK, you need to be seen in a hair transplant clinic that is CQC registered. This is a legal requirement. Your surgeon should be GMC registered and they should be carrying out your operation.

Interested in booking a consultation?

If you are interested in knowing more or discussing your treatment options with our hair transplant surgeons please contact us. You can use the link below and fill out an enquiry form. One of our team members will contact you shortly.

– Enquiry Form–

Does FUE hair transplant surgery leave scars? This is a common question asked by many patients who visit us. In this blog we explain the answer to this common concern.

Can having a FUE Hair Transplant leave scars?

FUE hair transplant surgery does leave scars at the back and sides of your head.  These scars occur in the donor area of your scalp- the area where hair follicles have been taken out.

Why does an FUE hair transplant leave scars?

FUE (follicular unit excision) hair transplant surgery involves taking each individual hair follicle and re-implanting it into areas of balding. In order to take out a hair follicle our surgeons need to cut around each hair using a small punch (0.8mm-1mm). This area of the scalp then heals in 2-3 weeks, creating small 0.8mm-1mm sized scars in the places where hair follicles have been taken out.

Is it possible to have no scars?

It is NOT possible to have no scar formation during an FUE hair transplant. The process must involve cutting around each hair follicle individually. Because of this, having scars is unavoidable. However a core principle of FUE hair transplant surgery is the ability of the surgeon to conceal these scars. This means you won’t see the scars that form unless you cut your hair very short.

Hiding scars in FUE hair transplant surgery

One of the main benefits of FUE hair transplant surgery over FUT (strip) hair transplant surgery is that it is easier to conceal your scars. As the scars formed in FUE hair transplants are very small (0.8mm-1mm) it means they can be hidden by surrounding hair. One of the main factors your surgeon will need to keep in mind is not to take out too many hairs from the back of your head. Leaving plenty of hair at the back of your head will allow for any remaining hairs to grow and cover any scars.

If you wanted to cut your hair down to a grade 0 or 1, these scars may become visible as the surrounding hairs aren’t long enough to cover them. It is important to discuss this with your surgeon before your surgery. You must be aware that you will have to keep you hair longer than a grade 1 at the back of your head after FUE hair transplant surgery.

Can I treat these scars?

If you want to cut your hair to a grade 0 or 1 and have a hair transplant you can conceal small dot scars. You can undergo scalp micropigmentation (a form of medical tattooing) to the small scars. The aim of the treatment would be to colour the scars a similar tone to your hair colour. This would help conceal any scars by blending the contrasting scar and hair colours together.

What can go wrong?

At The Treatment Rooms London we often see patients who want a poor hair transplant result fixed by us. They often complain of large visible areas of scars at the back of the head. The main reasons why their scars are more visible than patients who have undergone a hair transplant at our clinic are:

1. Too many hairs have been extracted from the back of the head- this means scars cannot be concealed by remaining hair
2. The surgeon did not spread out the extraction of hair follicles. This means too many hair follicles in a small area have been taken out- leaving patchy areas of no hairs

Examples of the above are shown in the picture below: