Is Hair Transplant Safe? Risks, Benefits, and Expert Advice

Are you experiencing severe hair loss, with a significant amount of hair falling onto your pillow or bathroom floor? Hair loss is a challenging issue affecting both males and females across the globe, leading to low self-esteem and confidence. This is why millions are seeking a definitive solution to resolve hair loss. Hair transplant is an efficient and renowned solution for regenerating your lost mane. Modern hair transplantation techniques are backed by advanced technology to restore lost hair [1]. These procedures focus on delivering minimally invasive options resulting in better hair restoration and quick-paced recovery naturally. However, the lingering question in your mind might be: Is hair transplantation safe? Before embarking on a hair restoration journey, it is essential to consider the potential risks, benefits and get expert advice on hair restoration like any other medical procedure.

How Hair Transplant Procedures Work

Hair transplant procedures are developed specifically to restore hair in areas facing balding or hair thinning [2]. Three popular hair transplant techniques are DHI or Direct Hair Implantation, FUT or Follicular Unit Transplantation, and FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction. Each of these hair transplantation procedures has a unique approach for hair follicles harvesting and implanting, as each works in a distinct way [3].

1. Strip Technique or FUT or Follicular Unit Transplantation

• Your surgeon would select a healthy strip with active follicles from the donor site in your scalp [4].
• This strip would be carefully dissected to gather the follicular units in clusters prior to implantation.
• The follicular unit grafts would be then implanted by the surgeon by making small incisions in your scalp’s recipient site.
• The stitches in the donor site would cause scarring, which might be concealed after hair regrowth.

2. FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction

• This hair transplant procedure involves direct extraction of separate follicular units from your scalp’s donor area using a specialized punching device measuring less than 1 mm in diameter [5].
• The follicular units that are extracted would be implanted with precision in the incisions made in the recipient site.
• So, your scalp will have tiny scars similar to dots, making it less visible when compared to linear scars of FUT.
• This method of hair transplant is ideal for both men and women with short haircuts, as there are no visible scars.

3. DHI or Direct Hair Implantation

• DHI is considered as a modified variant of FUE, and it focuses on follicular graft implantation with high precision [6].
• It also employs a special extracting device to remove individual hair follicles similar to FUE.
• With a specialized pen-like implanter tool, the hair follicles will be directly implanted simultaneously while creating the recipient sites.
• This hair transplant procedure offers excellent control over implantation depth, direction, and angle to offer better hair density, a high graft survival rate, and natural regrowth results.
• As there aren’t deep incisions, DHI helps achieve quick recovery and minimum scarring.

Is Hair Transplant Safe? An Honest Look

Yes, hair transplant procedure is very safe and effective solution to address your hair loss woes, especially when handled by an expert and well-qualified surgeon within a hygienic and certified clinical environment [7]. Here’s an honest overview of the hair transplant safety:

• Minimal Invasiveness: Modern hair transplant techniques, such as DHI or Direct Hair Implantation, and FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction employ minimally invasive techniques. So, there are no risks like other surgical procedures.
• Usage of Local Anesthesia: Unlike other procedures, hair transplant methods are performed using local anesthesia, thereby cutting down risks and side effects of general anesthesia.
• Optimal Success Rates: When the hair transplant procedure is handled by a board certified surgeon, there are higher success rates to help you achieve excellent hair growth in a couple of months.

Factors affecting the safety of hair transplant

• Choosing surgeon without board certification and expertise.
• Selecting a clinic without paying attention to their accreditation and hygiene.
• Not analyzing your overall health profile to identify underlying medical conditions.
• Not following pre-operative assessment procedures and post-procedure care for healing.

Potential Risks and Side Effects

Hair transplant procedures like DHI or Direct Hair Implantation, FUT or Follicular Unit Transplantation, and FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction are safe when an expert surgeon performs it in an accredited clinic. However, like other similar procedures, they too have some potential risks and side effects. Staying aware of these factors would help in forming highly informed decisions and following the right post-operative care.

1. Slight Soreness and Pain: You might feel mild soreness and pain, especially in the recipient and donor areas in the scalp, where the procedure is performed, for a few days.
2. Inflammation: Edema or swelling along the scalp, eyelids, and forehead is a common side effect of hair transplant that lasts for a few days.
3. Reddishness: The recipient and donor sites might have redness owing to the incisions made during implantation and extraction. It will fade in a few weeks and get better with healing.
4. Crusting in Scalp: You might notice some crust or scab formation in the transplanted area that develops due to graft healing. It will shed naturally in one or two weeks, but avoid picking the scabs to prevent infection.
5. Numbness or Itching: Some of you might experience temporary numbness due to nerve regeneration or itching during the healing process. These side effects will resolve in a few weeks.
6. Temporary Hair Shedding: It is also called shock loss, which normally occurs after your hair transplant. Your hair will regrow in a few months, and the coverage will be natural.
7. Scarring: Scars are a common side effect of any hair transplant method. While FUT will create a linear scar at the donor area, FUE will leave tiny scars that are dot-like and barely visible. Rarely, a few might develop keloid scars owing to genetic factors after the FUT procedure.

Key Benefits of Hair Transplant Surgery

After a hair transplant procedure, people with hair loss will not only achieve aesthetic enhancement but also an improved psychological well-being.

1. Natural Hair Regrowth Results

As hair transplant procedures like DHI and FUE utilize your own hair follicles, you will have a natural hairline, and the growing hair will naturally blend with your existing mane.

2. Permanent Hair Loss Solution

The hair follicles that are transplanted possess DHT resistance, which helps in preventing hair loss. The hair growing from the transplanted follicular units will not fall out and helps maintain a scalp filled with hair in the long run.

3. Restores Confidence and Self-esteem

Hair transplant helps in restoring the lost hair by inducing natural growth in the donor site, leading to higher confidence levels, lower anxiety, and better self-image even in social meetings.

4. No Special Maintenance

As soon as the hair in your transplanted follicles is fully grown, there is no need for any special maintenance regime. You can treat, wash, style, and cut the regrown hair like your natural hair.

5. Safe and Less Recovery Time

As hair transplant procedures are minimally invasive, there are no major risks or side effects involved. FUE and DHI procedures leave minimal scars and require a brief recovery period of one or two weeks.

6. Versatile Solution

Hair transplantation methods are an effective choice for males and females facing pattern baldness and can be customized to restore hair in mustaches, eyebrows, and even beards [8].

Tips for a Safe Hair Transplant Experience

• Get enough rest and sleep before your hair transplant to stay relaxed.
• Have a diet with bland foods without spicy ingredients and drink a lot of water for a few days before the hair transplant.
• Wash your hair the day before the hair transplant.
• Don’t use styling or colouring products on hair for a few days before the transplant procedure.
• Avoid smoking and drinking for 2 weeks before the transplantation procedure, as it might lower the rate of circulation in the scalp.
• Discuss with your surgeon regarding the existing medical issues, like hypertension or diabetes, and the medications for them before your hair transplant.
• Avoid blood thinners and anti-inflammatory drugs a week before the hair transplant.

How to Choose a Qualified Surgeon or Clinic

• Perform Thorough Research: Your hair transplant clinic must have a high level of reputation and a panel of expert hair transplant surgeons.
• Don’t Ignore Credentials: The surgeon performing hair transplant should have board certification and expertise in these procedures to achieve high success rates.
• Evaluate and Review: The clinic’s site should have before and after pictures of patients undergone hair transplants. Check and review to assess your surgeon’s skill in maintaining natural hair growth and hairline.
• Clinic Standards: A renowned clinic must be well-equipped with the latest infrastructure while maintaining better safety and hygiene standards.
• Avoid Low-cost Clinics: Be wary of the clinics that offer hair transplant services at low costs, as their success rates might be low.

Wrapping Up

Opting for a hair transplant is a major and personal decision that requires you to weigh factors like safety, potential risks, and results that you can expect. Always remember your hair transplant procedure will be safe and effective only when you get it done by a qualified and experienced surgeon in an accredited facility. Staying aware of the different hair transplant techniques like DHI, FUE, and FUT will help in understanding their potential risks and side effects as well as success rates. These minimally invasive procedures will have temporary effects like swelling, pain, and reddishness, along with rare risks like scarring or infection. Having realistic expectations about the outcome of a hair transplant will be helpful. Make a well-informed hair transplant decision by visiting Akruti today and walking out feeling confident and beautiful.

Don’t let hair loss hold you back any longer. Talk to our specialists at Akruti and discover the safest, most effective hair restoration solutions.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

References

1. Razmi, T Muhammed; Subburaj, Kiruthika1. Hair Transplantation: A Brief Review. Clinical Dermatology Review 6(2):p 80-87, Jul–Dec 2022. | DOI: 10.4103/cdr.cdr_76_21 – https://journals.lww.com/cddr/fulltext/2022/06020/hair_transplantation__a_brief_review.5.aspx
2. Bansal A, Sethi P, Kumar A, Sahoo AK, Das P. Use of Implanters in Premade Recipient Sites for Hair Transplantation. J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2019 Oct-Dec;12(4):250-254. doi: 10.4103/JCAS.JCAS_33_19. PMID: 32001973; PMCID: PMC6967169. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32001973/
3. International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery – https://ishrs.org/patients/treatments-for-hair-loss/surgical-treatments/
4. Walter P. Unger, Hair Transplantation: Current Concepts and Techniques, Journal of Investigative Dermatology Symposium Proceedings, Volume 10, Issue 3, 2005, Pages 225-229, ISSN 1087-0024, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1087-0024.2005.10111.x. – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022202X15525943
5. Sharma R, Ranjan A. Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) Hair Transplant: Curves Ahead. J Maxillofac Oral Surg. 2019 Dec;18(4):509-517. doi: 10.1007/s12663-019-01245-6. Epub 2019 May 28. PMID: 31624428; PMCID: PMC6795649. – https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6795649/
6. Sethi P, Bansal A. Direct hair transplantation: a modified follicular unit extraction technique. J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2013 Apr;6(2):100-5. doi: 10.4103/0974-2077.112672. PMID: 24023433; PMCID: PMC3764754. – https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3764754/
7. Patwardhan N, Mysore V. Hair transplantation: Standard guidelines of care. Indian J Dermatol Venereol Leprol 2008;74:46-53 – https://ijdvl.com/hair-transplantation-standard-guidelines-of-care/
8. Razmi, T Muhammed; Subburaj, Kiruthika1. Hair Transplantation: A Brief Review. Clinical Dermatology Review 6(2):p 80-87, Jul–Dec 2022. | DOI: 10.4103/cdr.cdr_76_21 – https://journals.lww.com/cddr/fulltext/2022/06020/hair_transplantation__a_brief_review.5.aspx