How to reverse genetic hair loss

People facing genetic hair loss desperately look for a solution to control it and regain lost hair. Hair transplant surgery is considered as the best way to reverse genetic hair loss thus far. The unmatched advantages of the procedure give it a respected place among all other treatments which people opt for to either cure hair loss or camouflage it. It is amazing how a hair transplant gives back you natural looking hair for the rest of your life on an area that has almost lost its ability to grow hair. People all across the world affected from genetic hair loss prefer hair transplant over all other available options because so far it is the only procedure which regrows hair permanently.

The procedure of hair transplant

A hair transplant surgery does not increase number of your hair; rather it relocates some of your existing baldness resistant hair follicles from an area where they are in abundance to a bald patch. The first step of the surgery is “graft harvesting”. The surgeon harvests hair follicles from the back or the sides of the scalp (donor site) and collects them in an artificial medium to ensure their safety outside human body. Different techniques are used for graft harvesting. Two most common methods include Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT) and Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE). Then, the surgeon prepares bald area by creating tiny holes in it. Each hair follicle is then carefully placed in these holes crafted in the recipient site. This completes the surgery.

It is a minimally invasive surgery performed with local anesthesia on outpatient basis. The surgery usually takes 4 to 8 hours for its completion, depending upon the extent of baldness and the number of grafts transplanted.

The recovery process:

Recovery from hair transplant is a little time taking, but completely safe and does not involve any complications or side effects, given you follow your surgeon’s post-op instructions carefully. Stick to your surgeon’s dos and don’ts and you will be up and back to work maximum by the 5^th day of the surgery. The newly transplanted grafts usually take 7 to 10 days to anchor themselves at the recipient site and develop their own blood supply. After that, the follicle initially sheds any hair attached to it and undergoes state of dormancy for 4 to 6 weeks. After that hair tips spring out of the treated area and the hair keep on growing and multiplying like the rest of your hair. These hairs do not need any special care or maintenance. You can wash, brush or comb them and make whichever hairstyle you like.

Potential side effects and complications

As stated above, hair transplant is a safe surgery, but after all it is a surgery that does involve some degree of complications. The good thing is that these complications are all mild and temporary. Some of them are listed below:

·         Like all other surgeries hair transplant also causes swelling in treated area and forehead, which disappears soon. Consult your surgeon if swelling turns to be painful.

·         Itching in the treated area is a common side effect. It is due to tiny scabs that are formed around the roots of the hair. You must not scratch your head as it may dislodge freshly transplanted hair follicles.

·         Some patients also experience hiccups after surgery, but this is not very common.

·         Scars come inevitably with hair transplant. Type of scar depends upon the method used for graft extraction. FUT causes a linear scar at the donor site, whereas FUE results in tiny pinprick scars.   

Hair transplant is a unique surgery which gives you lifelong hair and due to this reason it is considered the best way to reverse genetic hair loss. It is amazing how a onetime surgery gives you a youthful appearance for the rest of your life.