Failed Hair Transplant? How to Reverse It and What To Do

Key takeaways:

• Why might a hair transplant fail to deliver the expected result? A failed hair transplant can happen because of poor planning; an unsuitable donor area might have been used; you could have had ongoing hair loss at the time of transplantation; you might have neglected the correct aftercare procedures; or there could have been poor surgical technique used. 
  
• What signs suggest that a hair transplant has gone wrong? Signs could be an unnatural shape or failure to blend nicely with the rest of your hair. Also watch out for excessive scarring or sparsity of hair in the transplanted region.
  
• When is the right time to judge your results? We typically see that a full result usually takes shape around the 12-month mark. This can vary from around 9 to 12 months. Before that time, it is hard to assess how the final result will look, so it is important to be patient while waiting for the new growth to appear. 
  
• Can a disappointing hair transplant be corrected? Yes, there are options to correct a poorly carried out hair transplant. Depending on your surgeon’s assessment, the hairline can usually be reshaped, with poorly implanted follicles being removed and replaced. 

Hair transplants are generally a safe and effective procedure, with a success rate of around 90–95%. However, in some rare instances, you may be unhappy with your FUE or FUT hair transplant, and this can include some of the following:

• Poor growth/ density
  
• Poor healing
  
• Incorrect angle and direction of implanted hairs
  
• Further hair loss following surgery
  
• Visible scarring in the donor site

Thankfully, there are options available that can help correct a hair transplant that doesn’t meet expectations.

In this article, we look at some of the most common reasons why hair transplants might fail, what to look out for if you think yours might have gone wrong, and what you should do if a hair transplant doesn’t meet expectations. 

Why do some hair transplants fail?

At The Treatment Rooms London, we audit our success rates following hair transplant surgery. They tend to average above >95% with patients reporting positive changes in their mental health and hair following surgery.

“At our clinic, we have developed a huge amount of experience in repairing poor quality hair transplant procedures. These can be patients suffering from poor density, poor hairline design, and overharvesting of their donor area.”

Dr Roshan Vara, Hair Transplant Surgeon and Co-Founder at The Treatment Rooms London

Since 2021, our clinic has been collecting data on patients whose hair transplant surgery has failed. We have collected information on what has gone wrong and what may have been the reasons for their issue. It has helped to increase understanding of why a hair transplant might fail, which can help patients make a better-informed decision about correction going forward.

Here we’ll look at a few of the most common reasons why some hair transplants fail.

Hair transplant graft rejection

Graft rejection is a rare reason for hair transplant failure. This is often compared to kidney or heart transplant rejections and is usually interpreted as the body not accepting the transplanted hair. This can be down to a variety of factors, often secondary to a patient’s autoimmune condition. An example of this is lichen planopilaris.

This condition affects the hair by attacking and destroying the hair follicle, resulting in a degree of scarring. Another condition is alopecia areata, which causes patchy hair loss. Both of these conditions can result in temporary or permanent hair loss and contribute to why hair transplants fail to grow in some individuals, often undetected before surgery is even performed.

Ineligibility for hair transplants

Your general level of health and hair loss is important when considering why hair transplants fail.

The ideal hair transplant candidate has a healthy donor area of hair and is generally below the age of 65. They would have often stabilised their hair loss with medications such as Finasteride or Minoxidil.

Sometimes, patients will naturally reach a point in their life where they are no longer losing any hair. It is essential to assess the potential risk of hair loss, as excessive hair loss after a hair transplant can compromise the appearance of the transplant result, making it look patchy.

Poor donor area for hair transplant surgery

Failure to have a thick, healthy donor area with hair that is viable for transplantation can ultimately lead to a failed hair transplant. Patients should have their donor site evaluated by their Surgeon to understand how much hair can be transplanted across their lifetime. This also allows for future hair loss planning.

Poor hair transplant aftercare

The recovery and aftercare process is an essential part of any hair transplant. Correct post-transplant care helps support the transplanted hair follicles, promoting growth and assisting with the healing of both the donor and transplant areas.

Failing to follow optimal aftercare can result in a failed hair transplant. If you undergo a hair transplant, be sure to follow any advice your surgeon provides. This can include sleeping in a position that avoids friction in the transplanted area and properly washing your transplanted area.

Inexperienced hair transplant surgeons or clinics

In some instances, a hair transplant may fail due to the use of poorly skilled or inexperienced surgeons or clinics.

While hair transplants are generally a safe operation, due to their popularity, many clinics offer the service but fail to meet the strict safety and hygiene guidelines required.

An inexperienced surgeon may transplant the wrong donor grafts or over-harvest the transplanted hair follicles. Unhygienic clinic practices can also increase the risk of post-surgical infection (folliculitis).

When considering a hair transplant, ensure that you choose a clinic registered with and inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). This regulatory body provides safe, high-quality clinical practice in every healthcare setting.

In the UK, you should also verify that your chosen surgeon is registered with both the British Association of Hair Restoration Surgery (BAHRS) and the General Medical Council (GMC). These professional organisations ensure that your chosen hair transplant surgeon is regulated and operates in accordance with their rigorous codes of conduct.

For more information and advice, visit our article on how to find a good hair transplant surgeon in the UK.

Can you reverse a hair transplant?

Skilled surgeons, such as the experienced team at The Treatment Rooms London, can reverse or repair a poor hair transplant. Many patients visit us with unsatisfactory hair transplants that require repair, and we have successfully performed hair transplant repair surgery numerous times over the years.

“Reversing a hair transplant can be tricky. This can involve removing previously transplanted grafts, or transplanting grafts to hide existing ones. Both techniques require careful consultation and planning, and we go through these options with all our patients.”

Dr Dilan Fernando, Co-Founder and Hair Transplant Surgeon at The Treatment Rooms London

There are several methods for corrective hair transplant surgery, but the most common and practical approach is to undergo a second hair transplant. This is one of the reasons why having a hair transplant in an inadequately regulated country is not always worth it; you may have to pay for another transplant to correct it. 

How to tell if you’ve had a bad hair transplant

Although usually successful when carried out by a qualified professional, sometimes transplants can go wrong. There are several ways you can tell if you’ve had a bad hair transplant. These include:

• Excessive scarring: An inexperienced surgeon using substandard surgical tools or a poor technique can lead to increased visible scarring. 
  
• Unnatural direction of hair growth: You can identify this by transplanted hair growing in the wrong direction–this is often a result of poor surgeon technique.
  
• Infection: Excessive swelling or redness around the transplanted area may indicate infection. This is either due to a lack of adequately sterilised tools or not having a clean working environment. 
  
• Unusual hairline: Perhaps your hairline just doesn’t look natural. Usually this is because of hairs being placed at an unnatural angle, something which indicates that your surgeon is inexperienced or uses a poor technique. 
  
• Insufficient hair growth: This one takes longer to recognise, as you will be advised to wait 12 months before you can expect a near final result. There can be many causes, but usually we find it is a lack of adherence to the aftercare guidance. 

It is a common experience to wonder if your hair transplant has failed. This is because newly transplanted hairs shed initially, and it can be a few months before you start noticing any new growth at all. Be patient; you should have regular checkups already planned with your surgeon to make sure everything is as it should be. At the same time, if something doesn’t seem right, don’t hesitate to seek help. 

What to do if a hair transplant doesn’t meet expectations?

Sometimes, hair transplants don’t quite turn out as you might have been expecting. In this case, you may have several options, including:

A second hair transplant

If your first hair transplant didn’t deliver the results you expected, a second hair transplant is still an option.

A second hair transplant can help improve follicle density in the affected areas and add coverage to large balding spots. Many patients choose a second hair transplant if they feel their first one failed and they are not happy with the results.

Before you get a second hair transplant, your surgeon will first need to assess your eligibility.

This gentleman had a reasonable result following his first transplant at another clinic but wanted to achieve a better outcome. He approached our clinic looking for a solution to increase the density with a second hair transplant, and his result is shown above

Scalp micropigmentation

Scalp micropigmentation, also known as a hair tattoo, involves carefully filling in and completing any balding areas of the scalp with a coloured pigment to mimic the colour of your natural hair.

These can be customised to suit your unique hair type and style, with adjustments for depth and angle available to help it appear natural. Scalp micropigmentation is often considered when it is difficult to achieve a high-density hair transplantation.

Second hair transplant surgery

Revision or having a second hair transplant surgery typically takes place following a failed hair transplant that occurred as a result of the surgeon’s poor performance.

If you are unhappy with your result from another clinic and are looking for a quality result, The Treatment Rooms London offers four types of revision surgery.

Unnatural hairline repair

If your hairline looks unnatural after your hair transplant, this can be corrected with a follicular unit extraction (FUE) transplant or FUT hair transplant. This involves taking hair from the donor area and then transplanting it to create a new hairline or mask an unnatural one.

Poor follicle quality repair

If a poorly performed procedure results in insufficient hair-follicle quality, the affected hair follicles can be removed and replaced with new grafts taken from a donor area. This is also performed using the FUE procedure, which allows us to accurately target individual hair follicles for repair. 

Poor hair density repair

Poor hair density is usually a result of poor planning by a surgeon, not implanting enough hairs during the original procedure. This is repaired using the FUE or FUT technique by adding more hairs into the gaps that were left in the affected area.

Wide FUT Scar Repair

Wide scarring can occur after a follicular unit transplant (FUT), but it can be remedied by repeating the procedure and implanting new hair into the scar or using scalp micropigmentation. Patients can also explore scar revision surgery, where the scar is opened up again surgically and closed again in a better way; the final scar may appear smaller. 

The surgeon can even use a trichophytic technique, which allows hair to grow out from the scarred edge, allowing better coverage. To find out if you’re eligible for a hair transplant scar repair, please visit our page.

Book a consultation

If you are unhappy with your hair transplant, our expert surgeons at The Treatment Rooms London offer a range of corrective techniques to help achieve a clean and neat result that is undetectable from your normal hair. 

At The Treatment Rooms London, we offer our patients world-class care before, during, and after their procedure. Our surgeons will consider factors such as hair texture, curl pattern, and natural hairline progression to create a seamless, undetectable transition from existing hair to transplanted areas.

Contact us today to book a consultation with one of our surgeons.