You are fed up with your hair loss. Time to start looking for a good hair transplant Clinic. Where do you go, in terms of the location? It is actually far less important than the quality of the Clinic. If you are fortunate to have a high-quality surgical hair restoration Clinic on your doorstep lucky you. Even then do your research. You may find they do not always meet your needs or expectations. Regardless of their standards.
The internet has made it simpler for any Clinic to reach hair loss sufferers around the globe. Occasionally, with offers that appear too good to be true. Substantially reduced costs. Especially compared to the highly regulated Western countries like North America and the European Union.
Changing Ways
Cosmetic surgery is generally for those that wish to improve their appearance. In this case, remove a receding hairline or thinning on top. By covering with genetically strong hair.
Surgical hair restoration is a specialist treatment that the top Doctors take years improving their skills. The focus is on the quality of medical standards and aesthetic beauty and not on speed. Patient numbers or one results fits all. A hair transplant is considered to be a very individual treatment. With variants from person to person.
A hair transplant, the FUE hair transplant technique especially, is a simple cosmetic treatment
A hair transplant is a medical procedure that requires surgical skills. If to be performed to the highest level. A technical understanding of the makeup of the skin and hair. To ensure when hair is removed the minimum changes are made to the scalp and hair. To maintain the best quality possible. Fundamentally, minimal scarring and or damage to the hair and skin.
Artistically, a hairline needs to be designed to frame the face well whilst planning for future hair loss. Then, the hairs need to be placed in the surgically made slits or recipient sites that are created mimic the natural angle of hair growth, following the correct angles, depth, and orientation of the surrounding hair.
A skilled and dedicated hair transplant Doctor will look at a number of aspects before deciding whether an individual is a good hair transplant candidate. Be prepared to make concessions in your goals and expectations as it is normal what you may want is simply either not possible medically/technically or if it is, it is against your best interests cosmetically and your long-term well-being.
Finding the holy grail of hair transplants
You do a quick search through the inter-web and start to see two very different approaches to surgical hair restoration.
There are those Clinics that almost put you off, they make restrictions on who is a good candidate and how they perform a hair transplant. Rather than making having a hair transplant simple they put up barriers that make it hard to hide or fit around your busy lifestyle.
There are those Clinics that nothing is a problem, the technique is possibly explained in a simple non-medical manner to keep it easy to understand and play down and fears that it may require acute medical and surgical skills to be performed to the highest level. Any concerns that may contradict research are rebutted, there can always be a technical answer, having special treatments or instruments or know-how to get around these concerns and you should not worry.
Doctor Input
A hair transplant Doctor should have the major role in your hair transplant from the moment of your consultation to the final graft being placed. They should be making the decisions and personally involved in specific aspects of the medical procedure. The medical understanding of the skin and hair will ensure the hair is harvested from the donor hair successfully, without damage being caused to the removed graft or the surrounding hair and skin. The graft placement and hairline design are crucial for the look and planning of the hair transplant.
Over-harvesting
The FUE technique has grown to be the most desired technique, partly due to some dubious marketing tactics, although in the correct hands it is an excellent surgical procedure. The problem for some time, it was normal for FUE only to perform smallish procedures in respect to graft numbers, this was because it was safe and best for donor hair management. It is common now to hear of FUE transplants of 4, 5000 and even high numbers being performed without regard to the consequences to the remaining hair and skin. Nothing has changed in respect to the skin surface or the hair follicles or the common sense maths that only so much can be removed safely, regardless how it is taken.
Scarring
The FUT hair transplant technique has been given a bad rap by some for bad scarring across the board and how you are more likely to be badly scarred than receive a fine thin scar line which is actually more common, especially when performed by a quality Doctor who understands the skin healing properties. The irony is a large FUE procedure can easily cause more scarring than a similar size FUT procedure, the difference, FUE spreads the scarring randomly around your head so less obvious compared to a line.
With Follicular Unit Extraction hair is removed from the donor area, they do not regrow and the more removed the less remains so the hair density reduces. If the amount is reduced too much the area will become patchy and visible unnatural looking in terms of hair density. The number varies depending on the starting hair density and hair characteristics but often any more than 4500 – 5000 taken over multiple procedures will start to be detrimental and if removed in one procedure will almost certainly create long-term concerns.
How Many Transplants in a day
This also concerns the role of the Doctor. As a person who can only spread themselves so thin. If they have serious responsibilities to each patient they treat. On the other hand. If they are not responsible personally or have a limited role to play. Then this is not a concern and they can oversee maybe ten hair transplants in a day. The actual work can be carried out by lower skilled or qualified staff. Certainly less expensive compared to a Doctor. Can be employed en-mass to perform multiple hair transplants per day. A similar concept was invented 100 plus years ago. By the Ford motor company to build multiple cars at the same time. Has evolved in almost all aspects of mass manufacturing. From foods to electrical goods. But not something you would consider entering the medical field. When care and duty used to mean everything.
Planning
Sensible hairlines, donor management, goals, and expectations checked. Hair characteristics are taken into account. These are not exciting topics about hair transplant procedures. But they are very important to the short and long-term result. As well as your well-being and happiness. Planning is necessary to ensure your hair transplant looks natural today. And in 20 years time. Your hair loss will progress because of male pattern baldness. Your Doctor has taken this into consideration when they performed your first hair transplant procedure.
Creating low, adolescent hairlines may give short-term satisfaction. But if hair restoration cannot be sustained the hairline will look unnaturally low. Planning will ensure progressive hair loss can be treated. With future hair transplants and or treatment combined. Rather than the donor area being used within one procedure. Leaving little to occasionally no options later.
Making the decision
So, where to get a hair transplant? The answer is simple but requires you to research. Take your time until you find the right Doctor and Clinic. The answer is the one that best looks after your hair. And your well-being with the emphasis on your well-being as opposed to the cost. Regardless of whether the cost is high or low-cost. Take advantage of online consultations and question the information you are being given. Especially when it appears to contradict other Clinics information.
Importantly, on such an important decision do not allow your heart rule your common sense. If things sound almost too good to be true, it´s probably because they are.
