If you’ve been thinking about getting a hair transplant, it’s probably because you’ve noticed more skin than hair when you looked into the mirror one morning. Like with good health and youth, we take a full head of hair for granted – that is, until the shock of an unanticipated bald spot or a receding hairline. For many people, a hair transplant can help bring back their locks – or at least what looks like a fuller head of hair. Is it time to schedule an appointment with a hair restoration doctor? If you don’t schedule a consultation with a hair clinic doctor right away, then when is the correct time for a hair transplant? This may be the most important question you have concerning hair restoration.
If going bald really bothers you, having the procedure done can be one way of improving your self-esteem. We continually remind our patients that they are all unique – the desired result is not to change you, but to try and restore what you had before.
Here are some general guidelines regarding when to get a hair transplant:
Your Age
Just as there is no perfect age for a tummy tuck or laser hair removal, there is no ideal age for getting a hair transplant. On the one hand, many patients wish they had undergone a hair transplant sooner after realizing how simple it was after having one. On the other hand, you might not want to start too soon and jump the gun.
Male pattern baldness can appear as early as age 18, and by the age of 35, it affects up to two-thirds of men. Even if you are experiencing hair loss at an early age, we might not recommend having a hair transplant before the age of 25. The reason being is that your hairline is still developing from ages 18 to 29. What you may mistakenly perceive to be a receding hairline may just be what’s known as a mature hairline, which is not quite the same thing as a receding hairline. Your hair restoration doctor will be able to distinguish between the two.
Any hair loss you might be experiencing usually stabilizes by the age of 35. This does not preclude you from getting a hair transplant sooner. Waiting until any sudden hair loss slows down can allow your hair restoration specialist to better understand your hair loss pattern. This, however, can be unpredictable. Alternatively, medical treatment to maintain your existing hair can be recommended in conjunction with a hair transplant procedure. You only have a certain amount of hair that is unaffected by hair loss that can be moved to where the hair is thinning or entirely bald. Hair from the back and sides of your head is used as donor hair during a hair transplant. When a hair transplant is chosen too soon and/or without treatment to maintain existing hairs, the donor hair may be distributed too densely in one location, leaving insufficient donor hair for later when it is needed in another area. Your hair’s natural density also factors into this. To create the finest overall impact, you should carefully determine where to distribute your hair. This approach not only takes into consideration the amount of donor hair that is available to use in your life time, but is also aimed at maintaining your result in the long run and preventing or minimizing your chances of wanting/needing a repeat procedure(s) to maintain your full or fuller head of hair.
We have had patients as young as 18 who had serious hair loss, and it is gratifying to watch their excitement at turning this trend around at such a young age. Therefore, once more, there is no perfect age for your treatment. We can assist you in assessing your hair loss and provide recommendations on what we believe is feasible in light of your hair loss.
Your Expectations
Your donor hair is fairly limited (as mentioned above). The donor hair comes from a region that is not prone to hair loss, which is fantastic news. This means you won’t need to worry about getting a hair transplant now only to have the hair fall out later. However, you do need to think about how to effectively use your donor hair.
You should ask yourself this: Which region would make you the happiest if you only had enough donor hair to cover one place rather than several? A successful outcome of hair restoration depends greatly on entering the procedure with the correct expectations.
Recovery Time
There are a few things to keep in mind even though there are no real restrictions on what time of year you can get hair transplant surgery.
It takes approximately 7 – 10 days to recover from a hair transplant. During your recovery time you can expect your scalp to be red, tender, scabby and swollen. Even though you should be able to return to work just one to two days after surgery, most of our patients decide to take a week or two off to encourage healing by taking it easy.
The recovery experience following a hair transplant varies depending on the operation. With a Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) there will be tiny red dots/scabs where the hair follicles were removed. When these tiny scabs fall off they are barely visible by day 10 post-procedure. With the “strip method” (FUT) there is a surgical incision that will require suture removal 10 days after your procedure and heals leaving a linear scar at the back of the head. For both FUE and FUT there will be some form of discomfort, tightness and/or pain for the first couple of days after your procedure. Very rarely, if ever, will you need more than some pain medication to manage this.
Your pre- and post care period is guided with the aid of pre- and post care instructions and the necessary medications/treatments are provided so that you take good care of the donor as well as the grafted areas during your recovery time.
Time To Get Started
No matter how old you are or to what extent your hair loss has progressed, it is never the wrong time to have an assessment with your hair restoration doctor. He or she will advise you on your treatment options, if you are a good candidate for a hair transplant and what a hair transplant tailored to might entail.
It’s always the perfect time to get started and learn more about the medical hair restoration options you have.
