Thanks to local anesthesia and post-operative pain medications, no, a hair transplant is not painful. While no surgery can be completely painless and some brief and likely temporary level of discomfort is possible, a hair transplant is typically a pleasant and easy experience for most hair loss sufferers.
Most patients experience only slight discomfort as the numbing agent is applied. After the procedure you might feel slight discomfort as the scalp heals, but typically patients experience little to no pain during and after NeoGraft hair transplants.
The discomfort and pain should begin to decrease within 48 to 72 hours after surgery. A significant increase in pain after this period should prompt you to call the office. Generally most of the discomfort that you will feel will arise from the tightness in your scalp.
Approximately three months later (90 to 100 days), new hair starts to grow and continues to grow at a normal rate. About six months after a hair transplant session, the transplanted hairs begin to take on a natural appearance and will continue to grow for a lifetime.
Is a hair transplant painful? People often report mild pain for 1 to 2 days following hair transplant surgery. But pain medication and icing the treated areas for 48 hours can ease any discomfort. The FUT procedure may be more painful than FUE.
Although it's normal to experience temporary hair shedding a few weeks after your treatment, your hair will follow its normal life cycle, and new hair will grow where it was transplanted. It is unlikely that you will continue a pattern of baldness again after your surgery due to the nature of the harvested follicles.
Con: Recovery time
Hair transplantation surgery is a serious procedure and should be treated as such. When you don't treat your recovery time seriously, you increase risks of infection, bleeding, scarring, and numbness.
The advisable age for hair transplant is 25 years and up to 75 years. The early 20s are not advisable as the patient tends to lose hair even after transplant with age, which looks highly unnatural as it leaves behind the transplanted strips.
Hair transplant surgery will not alter the color of your hair. In rare cases, the procedure may stimulate premature greying some of the transplanted hair but will not affect its overall health or lifespan. Once the donor area starts to grey, the recipient area will eventually follow suit.
The bottom line
Hair transplant surgery can range from $3,000 to more than $15,000, with treatment averaging $10,000. Hair restoration surgery can be successful for men and women. Your costs can vary based on the type of procedure, where you have treatment, surgeon's fees, and other factors.
Immediate Post-Op
Immediately after surgery, the area where the doctor worked is going to look slightly red, shiny, and swollen. If you look closely, you will also see thousands of new little hairs standing up where the follicular unit grafts were implanted.
One week is the amount of time required for your transplanted hair to settle and the incisions to heal. You should be able to sleep normally and resume your usual physical activity 10 days after your surgery.
After 7 to 10 days, wearing a hat is considered safe. However, experts recommend not to use any tools that pressure your scalp at least 3 months after a hair transplant. Your surgeon will recommend you to wait at least 10 days before you wear hats.
Hair transplant is contraindicated in the presence of active AA, even if there is also PHL. Surgery may precipitate a recurrence and the transplanted hair may be affected by AA. If there has been no active disease for an extended period (2 or more years), the risk with hair transplant is diminished but not eliminated.
Graft survival rates following a hair transplant are between 90-95%. This essentially means that hair that's transplanted from the donor area into the recipient area should remain in good condition.
A hair transplant is an effective and safe solution to hair loss. Most of the time, the procedure offers positive overall results, and individuals regain the sense of security that comes from looking and feeling younger. However, in rare cases, a hair transplant can fail due to a variety of circumstances.
Answer: Yes, it is possible for a patient who had a hair transplant to allow the hair to grow to a length where a ponytail could be worn. The only thing that really determines how long the hair will grow after hair transplantation is how long the patient decides to wait before he or she has a hair cut.
The results can look exceptionally natural and patients can often wear their hair short because any scarring from the procedure should be barely noticeable. Dr. Bernardino Arocha always strives to create the most realistic hair restoration results possible.
According to Dr. Sanusi Umar, a renowned hair transplant specialist from Manhattan Beach, Calif., after a hair transplant, it is normal for it to look a little “weird.”
Hair transplants are definitely worth it when you consider the effects on confidence, appearance, and the long-lasting nature of the treatment. Then we may consider how big of an influence it will have on our lives, how long it will take to recover, and what the end outcome will look like.
SMP is the process where basically a small amount of pigment is added on the thinning / balding area of the head. The result can look much more natural when compared to the transplant.
Some transplanted hair will fall out in the weeks following treatment but should regrow properly afterward. New follicles eventually re-grow stronger and thicker than before. Results continue to improve over time, and patients typically see full growth within 12 months. The thickness should match the surrounding hair.
While it is common that some bald men do desire hair restoration, it's actually best if patients are not completely bald in order to receive hair restoration. Large bald areas actually cannot reach full coverage by a hair transplant.
Patients can immediately bathe after a hair transplant procedure but should keep their scalp dry. After 48 hours they can gently wash the transplanted areas but should not allow shower water to directly hit the new grafts. After one week, patients may shower and wash their hair normally.