How Hair Restoration Surgery Works

Posted on: November 20th, 2015 by csiaccess

When visiting California Skin Institute for hair restoration, some patients choose hair transplant surgery as a long term solution to hair loss.* This treatment option is designed to provide long term improvements by surgically transplanting healthy hair follicles into areas of the scalp affected by baldness.*

Though hair restoration surgery is often used to treat the cosmetic appearance of male pattern baldness, the expert surgeons at California Skin Institute have successfully use this procedure to address baldness in women, help men achieve fuller beards, and hair loss due to physical injury.*

However, to achieve the best outcomes with this procedure, it’s vital to work with an experienced surgeon who understands the nuance of hair growth and follicle positions, and can produce outcomes that look natural.*

Why Hair Loss Occurs

Hair loss is a common problem that is experienced by men and women alike, and is largely determined by genetics and hormones. At the heart of the problem is DHT, a metabolized version of testosterone. This chemical affects hair follicles by blocking blood supply to the follicle bulb.

With an inadequate blood supply, the bulb experiences miniaturization – it doesn’t receive enough of the essential nutrients that keep the hair strong and its ability to grow healthy hair is significantly reduced. Over time, this causes the resting phase of the hair to become longer, and the growth phase to shorten. Further, even during the growth phase the lack of nutrients causes the hair to become thinner and lighter.

How Hair Restoration Surgery Works

The idea behind hair restoration surgery is to take follicles from the part of the scalp where the hair is thick and strong (typically in the back of the head), and to transplant the follicles into areas where male or female pattern baldness has appeared (typically on top of the head and along the hair line).*

During your hair surgery, your California Skin Institute surgeon will remove a strip of skin from the back of the head, to harvest the healthy hair follicles.* During this step it is vital not to damage the hair follicles or the bulbs, as that may render them useless.*

After the follicles have been harvested, they are meticulously divided into smaller sections.* For example, some sections will only contain one follicle, while others may have two or three.* These sections are then implanted into the scalp, one hair follicle unit at a time, in a random pattern that creates a natural appearance.*

Creating a Natural Appearance

There are many important steps during hair restoration surgery that must be taken in order to create a natural appearance.*

For example, in some cases the implants containing just one follicle are often implanted near the front of the hair line, to produce a natural aesthetic effect, while sections with more follicles are implanted behind, to create hair density.* Further, this helps create a hair pattern that looks more random, and therefore more natural (unlike the early methodologies of hair transplantation, which were often compared to the unnatural look of hair on children’s dolls).*

Additionally, it’s also important to consider the angle at which the follicles are implanted.* Hair doesn’t grow straight out, but rather at whorl that typically follows either a clockwise or counterclockwise pattern.* Therefore, implanting the follicles at the correct angle is vital to producing an outcome that doesn’t look like a wig.* Our surgeons will even devote special attention to creating a natural-looking spiral at the back of the head.*

How Soon Will I See Improvements from Hair Restoration Surgery?

Improvements from hair restoration surgery typically take about a year to fully appear, and this time frame will vary from patient to patient.* This is because the transplanted follicles need time to heal, recover, and then begin growing new hair.*

In some cases, the surgery may need to be repeated after a few years, to further enhance the hair density at the treatment site.*

Although waiting as long as a year may initially seem like a long time, California Skin Institute patients are typically very happy with the transformation and the fact that their hair doesn’t just look natural but also feels natural.* There are not afraid to run their fingers through their hair, they can wash it just like they did before, and get any type of haircut, hair color, or style.*

Taking the First Step

The first step toward hair restoration surgery is a consultation with an experienced provider who can assess your hair loss and develop a custom treatment plan.* To schedule your appointment, please call a California Skin Institute practice near you, or fill out the Contact Form!

*Individual results may vary and are not guaranteed.