When planning a hair transplant, one of the most lingering questions you might have is how long the results of the procedure last. You are not alone. People often have concerns about the longevity of hair transplant outcomes because of the cost they will invest. While a few types of beauty treatments offer short-term results, the hair transplant procedure has gained popularity for offering permanent hair growth outcomes that last for a long time [1]. It is essential to have a thorough understanding of the longevity of the results of hair transplants and the factors that determine it. Keep reading as this write-up explores how permanent the results of the hair transplant procedure are, what you can expect over several years, and maintenance tips to flaunt voluminous hair.
What Determines The Longevity Of A Hair Transplant?
Even though the results of hair transplants are considered to be permanent [2], factors like frequent hair loss in non-transplanted regions of the scalp and aging might influence the way your hairline appears with time. So, it is essential to keep a note of such factors before you embark on a hair transplant journey and consider your surgeon’s instructions regarding hair maintenance seriously. The longevity of the hair restoration procedure relies on:
- Technique of Hair Restoration: Choosing between FUT or Follicular Unit Transplantation [3] and FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction [4] will affect the longevity of hair transplant results. Both these hair restoration techniques are equally popular for maintaining better graft survival rates when a board-certified surgeon performs them [5]. While for some people FUT might be a suitable option, FUE might be a better option for the rest. Some people might undergo both these procedures to optimize their hair regrowth results in the long run.
- Surgeon’s Skill and Experience: Opting for a surgeon well-experienced in performing advanced hair transplant techniques like FUT or FUE will reflect in expertly harvesting, preserving, and placing grafts. It will also influence the rate of graft survival of the follicular units transplanted to the treatment site [6]. A renowned surgeon with several years of expertise in handling hair restoration procedures will have impressive hand-to-eye coordination to deal with hair graft placement with perfect precision.
- Your Donor Hair’s Traits: The density, thickness, and overall quality of your hair in the donor site play a vital role in deciding the longevity of transplant outcomes. If you have healthy and strong hair follicles in the donor area, it indicates that the transplant results would be natural and durable. Factors like your ethnicity, gender, genes, and age might also influence hair density and quality.
- Relationship between Hair Loss Pattern and Genes: Your genes have a pivotal role in deciding the progression rate of hair loss. It might also decide how your transplanted hair appears in the long run. Your surgeon would analyze your family history to get an idea about your hair growth rate in the future. This evaluation will help ensure the health of the transplanted grafts remains intact in the long run.
- Your Overall Health and Age: Young people with perfect overall health undergoing a hair transplant procedure will get long-lasting and better hair restoration outcomes when compared to elderly people. Plus, factors like medical history, health parameters, density of donor follicles, and rate of hair regrowth can assure the best outcomes despite aging.
- Healthy Lifestyle and Post-op Care: It is essential for people undergoing hair transplants to stay away from alcohol and smoking, which can directly affect their hair health. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle and following the post-operative care procedures religiously can help enhance the longevity of the hair restoration outcomes.
The path towards achieving final hair restoration results is a patient process that might need several months. Be ready to handle discomfort like scabbing, swelling, and redness that will fade away in a week [7]. You can expect the following changes as your scalp recovers from the hair transplantation procedure.
1st Year of Hair Transplant: What Happens Every Month?
This initial period after a hair transplant requires you to be patient as your hair follicles undergo the shock phase before sprouting baby hairs.
- 1st Week: The transplanted area will begin to develop scabs along with redness and swelling, requiring you to follow post-op care to make it subside.
- 2 – 4 Weeks: During this period, scabs begin to fall, marking the beginning of the shock phase. You can expect shedding of transplanted hairs as the scalp begins to heal.
- 1st to 3rd Month: During this dormant phase, hair shedding continues, leaving the scalp with minimally visible hair growth. Do not panic, as it takes time for your scalp to heal completely before preparing to welcome new hair growth.
- 3rd and 4th Month: This is the early growth period, where you will find fine hair growth that looks thin and curly, developing as patches.
- 5th to 8th Month: This period will accelerate your hair growth pace, and the strands will become longer, stronger, and thicker. During these months, hair density improves, and you can get up to 80% visible outcomes.
- 9th to 12th Months: This is the maturation phase that offers final results in terms of scalp coverage and density in line with the existing hairline and hair growth direction.
- 1 to 2 years: After one year, you will notice fuller and thicker hair that looks natural and seamlessly blends with other hairs. It might take an extra 6 months after a year to get complete hair coverage in the crown area.
- 1 to 5 Years: The hair in the transplanted part grows and matures like the hair in other parts of the scalp.
- 5 to 10-plus Years: Your transplanted hair becomes permanent and long-lasting, as it was obtained from the donor areas that were hair loss-resistant. However, the hairs in other areas that were not transplanted might begin to thin or fall off as you age or face genetic issues.
Can Hair Transplants Be Permanent? The Science Behind It
Hair transplant procedures are specifically created to deliver permanent results to eliminate hair loss issues [8]. The surgeon will gather healthy hair follicles from the back and side of the scalp areas that are resistant to hair loss and balding for transplantation. Such an approach is very important, irrespective of any hair transplant technique (FUT, DHI, or FUE), to maintain long-term results and restore excellent hair growth. These follicular units that are removed from the donor sites have genetic resistance intact to prevent hair loss in the future, even after being transplanted in a new receiving location. As hair is a triphasic organ, it is natural for the transplanted hair to undergo phases like telogen or resting phase, anagen or growing phase, and exogen or shedding phase. So, the hairs present in the transplanted site grow continuously and naturally to last until your lifetime.
How To Maintain Long-Lasting Hair Transplant Results
For optimizing the longevity of the outcomes from a hair transplant procedure, it is essential to follow specific maintenance tips.
- Healthy Lifestyle is the Key: Ensure you follow a healthy lifestyle comprising healthy habits, clean eating, regular workouts, and stress management to enhance your hair health.
- Regular Hair Care Routine: It is essential to maintain a perfect hair care routine to extend the longevity of transplanted hair results. Do not treat hair with chemical-loaded products or use harsh hair styling products. Ensure that the shampoo and conditioner you use are free from sulfates and are gently formulated.
- Use Recommended Medications: Your surgeon might suggest the use of Finasteride and Minoxidil to avoid hair loss in the non-transplanted parts and to maintain the hair transplant outcomes.
When And Why You Might Need A Second Hair Transplant
Even though hair transplant techniques assure long-term results [9], you need to understand that your first procedure alone wouldn’t be enough. You might have to undergo several sessions to get the desired outcome, especially if facing severe patterned hair loss. Sometimes, you might require additional transplant sessions to maintain a natural look when the hair loss progresses in non-transplanted regions of the scalp. If you have any questions regarding the longevity of hair transplant outcomes, get in touch with the expert team at Akruti today and fix a consultation with Dr Rambhupal Rao for natural-looking hair that lasts a lifetime.
Reference Links
- Bernstein RM, Rassman WR. Follicular transplantation. Patient evaluation and surgical planning. Dermatol Surg. 1997 Sep;23(9):771-84; discussion 801-5. PMID: 9311372. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9311372/
- American Academy of Dermatology Association – https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/hair-loss/treatment/transplant
- Rassman WR, Bernstein RM, McClellan R, Jones R, Worton E, Uyttendaele H. Follicular unit extraction: minimally invasive surgery for hair transplantation. Dermatol Surg. 2002 Aug;28(8):720-8. doi: 10.1046/j.1524-4725.2002.01320.x. PMID: 12174065. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12174065/
- Harris JA. Follicular unit extraction. Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am. 2013 Aug;21(3):375-84. doi: 10.1016/j.fsc.2013.05.002. PMID: 24017979. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24017979/
- Gho CG, Neumann HA. Advances in hair transplantation: longitudinal partial follicular unit transplantation. Curr Probl Dermatol. 2015;47:150-7. doi: 10.1159/000369416. Epub 2015 Feb 20. PMID: 26370653. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26370653/
- Rousso DE, Presti PM. Follicular unit transplantation. Facial Plast Surg. 2008 Nov;24(4):381-8. doi: 10.1055/s-0028-1102902. Epub 2008 Nov 25. PMID: 19034815. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19034815/
- Buchwach KA. Graft harvesting and management of the donor site. Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am. 2013 Aug;21(3):363-74. doi: 10.1016/j.fsc.2013.05.001. PMID: 24017978. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24017978/
- Rose PT. The latest innovations in hair transplantation. Facial Plast Surg. 2011 Aug;27(4):366-77. doi: 10.1055/s-0031-1283055. Epub 2011 Jul 26. PMID: 21792780. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21792780/
- Kumaresan M, Subburathinam DM. Longevity of Hair Follicles after Follicular Unit Transplant Surgery. J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2020 Oct-Dec;13(4):292-297. doi: 10.4103/JCAS.JCAS_44_20. PMID: 33911409; PMCID: PMC8061642. – https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8061642/
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