What is a Hair Transplant: 4 Key Points to Know

Due to changing lifestyles, pollution, and some genetic factors, some people start losing their hair at a very high speed, which makes the person bald. Further, we will discuss some problems related to losing hair. Well, a hair transplant¹ can help recover your hair. You must be wondering, what is a hair transplant?

In this article, we discussed in detail what is a hair transplant surgery, what are transplanted hair, hair follicles, hair-bearing scalp, hair growth, hair loss, hair transplant procedure, hair restoration surgery, and many more.

1. What is a Hair Transplant

Hair transplant surgery is cosmetic surgery. In a hair transplant surgery hair follicles play a significant role. This surgery, which is also known as hair transplant surgery or hair transplantation, involves the procedure of adding hair follicles from different parts of the head. Generally, the surgeon takes hairs from the back of the head and adds them to the surgery area. 

The transplanted hair is the hair of the same person, and in some cases, the hair transplant surgeon may take hairs from other body parts.

To perform hair transplant surgery normal anesthesia is required. It depends on the plastic surgeons to advise for flap surgery or follicular unit extraction fue procedure. There are many other techniques also which the doctor can advise to restore the hair apart from hair transplantation.

Pattern bald areas of the scalp reduction are the major reason that is responsible for the majority of hair loss. Hormonal imbalance, changing lifestyle, and use of prolonged medicines are some other reasons for baldness.

Generally, it is proven that loss of hair or pattern loss is mostly seen in males. Moreover, hair loss is more constant in human beings due to acquired genetics. 

2. Type of Hair Transplants

Slit grafts and Micro-grafts² are the two mostly used procedures for hair transplantation. The type of graft that has to be taken in depends on the surrounding hair-bearing scalp, bald area, and coverage needed.

2.1 Slit Grafts

Usually, in slit grafts, the surgeon removes the good health-containing hair from the removed scalp and transplants it in the bald area. The donor site is the name given to the place from where the hairs are taken for transplantation. The donor site can be the same area or the area present in the body anywhere. 

The hair transplant surgery can cause allergic reactions in a few weeks due to disturbance in the original blood supply and tissue expansion.³

2.2. Micro Grafts

The second type of hair transplantation is micro grafts in this treatment session, around 1 to 2 hairs per graft are done. It depends on the coverage area. Both the producers are performed with the help of local anesthetic.

Other instruments including a tissue expander and pressure bandage are used if required during the procedure.

3. Side Effects of Hair Transplantation

Yes, every surgery has some kind of side effects and this also applies to hair transplant surgery Although reconstructive surgeons try to give the best treatment to the individual. However, the side effects of this surgery vary from person to person.

The after-effects of hair transplantation include pain, swelling, and inflammation. To reduce these effects the doctor may prescribe you some anti-inflammatory medicines along with some antibiotics to stop the bacterial infection in the scalp reduction area.

In the majority of cases, these side effects are normal and not severe, after a few days the person can return to his work normally.

Along with hair grafts and tissue expansion procedures, the doctor will also provide you with some medication that will be related to hair growth development. Usually, the individual will observe the newly grown hair after 12 months of the hair transplantation procedure.

4. Complications Related to Hair Transplantation

The complications in most hair transplants are:

• Infection
• Bleeding
• Bruising close to the eyes
• Swelling in the scalp
• Inflammation in the scalp
• Numbness, and lack of sensation in the treated area
• Itching
• Shock loss
• Unnatural tufts of hair
• The slow growth of the original hair

5. Procedure of Hair Transplantation

The first step in hair transplantation is to clean the area where the transplantation has to be done, then using local anesthesia the area is numbed for the procedure.

Now come to the major two techniques to obtain the follicles which are then used for the transplantation. These two techniques are FUT and FUE.⁴

5.1. FUT (Follicular Unit Transplantation)

• In this process the scalp from the back of the head is taken out with the help of medical instruments, then the site from where the scalp is taken is stitched.
• After that, the removed scalp is separated into small portions using a knife and lens. Then finally these small portions are transplanted in the scalp where baldness is present.

5.2. FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction)

• In this procedure the surgeon will make several holes in the area where the transplanted hairs should be transplanted, then From the back of the head, the surgeon will cut out hair follicles and simultaneously place those in the transplanted area.
• The surgeon will place or transplant hundreds of hairs. A special type of bandage is given by the doctor to cover the area. 

6. What is a Hair Transplant: Conclusion

Hairs are an essential part of our personality, so every person wants good and shiny hair on their head. But not everyone can maintain natural hair throughout their life.

Perhaps the main reason for baldness is genetics, lifestyle, and many more. To overcome this hair translation procedure was invented. We hope helped you get the answer to your question: what is a hair transplant?

Read more from us here.

7. FAQs

Q. Is getting a hair transplant painful?

You won’t experience a lot of pain because local anesthetic is utilized during the process. Following surgery, there may be some discomfort and some soreness, but these side effects are typically tolerable with the use of painkillers as directed.

Q. How does the healing process work?

While every patient recovers differently, most can return to their regular activities within a few days to a week. Scabbing, redness, and swelling may appear at first, but they usually go away. The newly transplanted hair will at first fall out and then begin to grow again after a few months.

Q. Do I have a decent chance of getting a hair transplant?

A suitable candidate for hair transplantation will normally have stable donor hair, be in good overall health, and have reasonable expectations for the outcome. To ascertain candidacy, a consultation with a trained surgeon is required.

1. Jimenez, Francisco, et al. “Hair transplantation: basic overview.” Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 85.4 (2021): 803-814. ↩︎
2. Unger, Walter P. “Hair transplantation: current concepts and techniques.” Journal of Investigative Dermatology Symposium Proceedings. Vol. 10. No. 3. Elsevier, 2005. ↩︎
3. Marcus, Jeffrey, Douglas B. Horan, and June K. Robinson. “Tissue expansion: past, present, and future.” Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 23.5 (1990): 813-825. ↩︎
4. Williams Jr, Ken L. “Current practices and controversies in cosmetic hair restoration.” Dermatologic Surgery 39.5 (2013): 797-801. ↩︎

Last Updated on January 26, 2024 by Muskan Mishra