Hair Transplant Surgery

The first step in any hair transplant procedure is removing donor tissue after anesthesia has been administered. Follicular units are found in the donor tissue.

Using a technique called stereomicroscopic dissection, the follicular units are removed from the tissue. Because it is a delicate procedure, stereomicroscopic dissection is done by skilled surgical technicians or nurses.

When the follicular units are extracted from the donor tissue, they are placed in a saline solution and set aside. In this stage, surgical technicians are careful to set the right temperature to keep the small grafts alive.

Using a very thin surgical needle, the surgeon then starts to make small incisions into the patient's scalp. He'll do these incisions on the areas where the grafts are going to be inserted. These areas are referred to as receptor sites. The surgeon works to ensure that the receptor sites are properly set. He also needs to display artistic skills so that the end result is a natural look, particularly if he is transplanting hair at the hairline.

The surgeon takes into account the direction of hair growth on the front and on the top of the head when he is making his small incisions. His goal is to make sure that the transplanted hair looks like hair that grows naturally in the receptor areas. The doctor also ensures that the angle of the hair is just right as the angle the new hair is put in determines how it will stand up from the scalp.

When the surgeon is done making the incisions, he steps back and a specially trained surgical team takes over. This team works by following the plan that the surgeon has laid out. The surgical team is responsible for putting the hair transplant grafts into the receptor sites, specifically in each incision that the surgeon has made. Each member of this team works quickly, wasting no time; they know that the grafts are vulnerable when the follicles are exposed. The longer they are exposed, the higher the chance that they will not survive.

When the surgical team finishes transplanting the grafts, the surgeon steps in again and looks over the work. He makes sure that every graft is inserted properly -- towards the right direction and at the right angle. He may spend some time tweaking some grafts to make sure that they are set correctly.

When the surgeon thinks everything looks good, the surgical technicians step back in. They work about to permanently set the grafts into place. They do this by blow drying the area. Blow drying with cool air helps set the grafts more permanently into place; bandages aren't needed. Prior to the procedure, the patient is asked to bring with him a cap to wear afterwards.

The next day, the patient visits the surgeon, who then looks at how the grafts are doing. A next-day check up is important because the doctor will be able to quickly correct any problems, if there are any. Depending on the extent of hair loss, a patient may need to have periodic checkup or even undergo more hair transplant procedures.