What is a hair transplant?

Nowadays the term “hair transplant” is being used as a solution to a crucial cosmetic problem of some men and women. Hair loss even caused some physiological problems for many men and women. Thanks to the efforts of the experts who took action to overcome the hair loss problem, hair transplant has become more popular in recent years. Thanks to the efforts of these experts, Turkey has become the leading country in hair transplant. In light of these developments, every year many people visit Turkey for hair transplants.

What is a hair transplant?

A hair transplant is an operation where a person's hair is taken from their nape and transferred to the hair loss area under local anesthesia.

Hair transplant is a treatment method provided as a solution to hair loss and should be performed under healthy operating room conditions by experts. The hair transplant operation is generally performed by plucking the hair follicles from the strong areas one by one and transferring them to the bald areas under local anesthesia to close baldness on the top of the head or in the forehead.

Since hair transplant is an aesthetic operation, hair transplantation cannot be performed if the patient has health problems. Hair transplants can only be performed on healthy people. Also, the psychological condition of the patient and their ability to decide on their own play an important role in the hair transplant decision of the patient.

Where to have a hair transplant?

As the hair transplant is a serious operation it must be done by an expert surgeon in operation conditions with medical support. Having hair transplant in places which do not have these conditions increases the infection risk. Those could cause to get infected by very serious and various infectious diseases.

Having hair transplants in "backstreet" hair transplant centers or hairdressers or beauty salons might cause health problems.

If the local anesthesia elements in the hair transplant are not dosed properly or used by unprofessional people this might even cause death risk.

What should be the qualities of a hair transplant clinic?

As the interest in hair transplant has increased in recent years, backstreet clinics trying to profit from this work has started to appear in the sector. To not be fooled by such backstreet hair transplant centers, it would be beneficial for you to do a thorough search about the hair transplant center.

The hair transplant center needs to have the following qualities.

- Hair transplant center should abide by the regulations set forth by the Ministry of Health

- It should have a well-equipped surgery.

- It should be working with the same surgeon and team for years.

- It should not request a price over the rightful price by using the sensibility of the patients.

- It should be a center that gives a realistic price by correct hair count.

- It should be a center that can intervene in case of an emergency.

It is important to visit the hair transplant center before a hair transplant and have pre-interviews with the hair transplant expert surgeon.

Who are the hair transplant candidates?

A hair transplant operation could be performed on anyone who has a hair loss problem regardless of sex. If there are no obstacles in the conducted tests and analysis the hair transplant operation could be done immediately.

Oncological (cancer) patients who wish to have a hair transplant, are allowed to have a hair transplant provided that their treatment is finished.

Diabetes patients must be careful while having hair transplants as the bleedings that could arise during tunneling and hair follicle plucking during the operation might be risky.

Hair transplant operation cannot be done to people with allergies to the ingredients of the solutions applied to the scalp during a hair transplant, if the operation is to be done it should be done with great care.

The hair transplant operation might also be canceled because of insufficient donors on the head. Also, if there are no healthy follicles to transfer in the hair or other areas of the patient, the hair transplant cannot be done.

How is the hair transplant operation done?

Hair transplant operation is similar to the tissue operation in the surgical field. The hair transplant operation is a surgical operation that takes between 6 to 8 hours and performed under operating room conditions and facilities. In a hair transplant operation, a person's own hair is taken from their nape and transferred to the hair loss area after under anesthesia.

While a single session of hair transplant is enough for many patients, for some patients the operation takes 2 or 3 sessions. Also, in a hair transplant, there should be 6 months between two sessions.

The hairs growing after hair transplant are the actual hairs of the person and this hair grows and can be even cut or dyed. As the transferred hairs are taken from the nape area where the hairs are healthy, new hairs are also healthy.

Is it possible to perform a hair transplant with body hair?

Hair transplant is generally performed by plucking the healthy hair follicles from the nape area and transferring those to the balding area. Yet, if the healthy follicle count is low or there is a problem in this area it is possible to supply people with body hair. If there are not enough donors for transplant; it is checked if there are any hairs that could be taken from beard, chest, and leg areas. Characteristics of the hairs in these areas are different than the hair strands.

The hairs on the different parts of the body do not grow as the hair does and they only grow to a certain extend. Those who like to have long hair should avoid such hair transplants.

Also, the structure, thickness, and follicle models of the body hairs and head hairs are different. Transplants with body hair could cause problematic sights.

The hair transplant operation from body hair can be done easily yet the patient must be informed about the risks beforehand before transplanting those hairs.

How to have a successful hair transplant?

The success of the hair transplant, first of all, depends on the experience of the doctor or expert to perform the hair transplant. Also, it is required for the individuals who have hair loss to have realistic expectations in the hair transplant As long as they have realistic expectations, the results shall be satisfactory. Those who have unrealistic expectations could experience immense disappointment.

How important is the technique used in the hair transplant?

To help the newly transplanted hair to adapt to the scalp and grow healthily, the technique used in the hair transplant must be the right one. Hair transplant patients should not panic if they lose hair a few weeks after hair transplant, new hair shall grow from the newly transplanted hair follicles as the follicles are still there.