About Hair Transplants
Hair transplants can have life altering effects on those individuals that suffer from hair loss. Even though this procedure is cosmetic, it is still performed by a trained medical doctor and should not be taken lightly. Anyone considering having it done should be well educated in the procedure, cost and any risk involved.
What are hair transplants?
Hair transplants involve the procedure of taking healthy hair from the back or sides of the head (donor site) and placing them within the area that is suffering the hair loss (recipient area). These extractions of hair are called grafts. Grafts are compiled of the donor hair, hair follicles, surrounding tissue and the skin of the extraction.
In order to be successful, hair transplants take place over a series of sessions that vary depending on how extensive the hair loss is. Generally, men receive success after just two sessions, whereas women need several more in order to achieve success.
Popular hair transplant procedures
Strip Incisions - This method involves surgically removing strips of skin from the donor area and carefully placing those strips onto the recipient area of the scalp.
Micrografting - With this method hair follicles are taken from the designated donor area using a micrografting procedure and placed onto the recipient area of the scalp in an easier manner than the strip incision method.
Follicular Unit Extraction - This method involves extracting individual hair follicles from a particular area within the scalp and reinserting those hair follicles into the hairline.
Cost
The actual cost of hair transplants will vary depending on how many grafts you will need restored and how many sessions it will take to complete the process. Additionally, what part of the country you live in and the skill level of the specialist that performs the procedure will play a part in the cost. Typically within the cost of hair transplant procedures vary from $4,000 to $20,000.
Advantages
- Promotes hair growth
- Has the appearance of natural looking hair even to the trained eye
Disadvantages
- Can be costly
- Sometimes requires painful procedures