What is a hair transplant?
Hair transplant is a procedure refers to the transplantation process of the healthy and DHT-immune hair follicles from the backside of the head to the bald areas by surgeon. Hair transplants should be performed in fully-fledged operation rooms at hospitals or under local anesthesia. It should be noted that only a specialized doctor can perform a hair transplant with his/her medical team.
Who might benefit from a hair transplant?
Hair transplants can improve the self-confidence and outlook for men with male pattern baldness or women with thinning hair. However, hair transplant might not be an option for people who do not have enough donor, lose hair due to an illness or form keloid scars after injuries/surgeries.
Types of hair transplants
There are two main types of hair transplant available: FUT and FUE.
Follicular unit transplantation (FUT) is one the first hair transplant methods available. In a nutshell, a strip of scalp with hair would be removed from to donor area and stitched to a bald area of the head in FUT operations. In recent years, FUT operations are replaced with follicular unit extraction (FUE) method.
What is a FUE hair transplant?
Follicular unit extraction (FUE) method is a newer and more widespread method nowadays. The main reason is that FUE is more successful in terms of results, more hair follicles can be transplanted, less painful and has an easier healing process than FUT. In the FUE operation, micro hair channels are opened by the incisions of the surgeon, then the hair grafts are extracted from the donor area one by one (instead of stripe with skin), then these follicles are implanted into the new channels.
Are there any risks or side effects?
Hair transplants are one of the safest aesthetic operations available. However, there can be minor side effects after the operation such as:
- Minor swelling.
- Itching
- Discomfort at the donor area
Recovery and aftercare
After the surgery generally, pain killers and antibiotics are prescribed for several days to avoid pain or infection. In most cases people return to their work and daily lives 2 days after the operation.
Crusts forms after the implantation of the hair follicles to the new channels, these crusts will disappear in 10-14 days after the operation. Also, you will have a special hair wash routine for the initial 14 days.
The newly transplanted hair grafts will be shed/fall out in the first month after the operation. This is a normal process for all the FUE operations. After a few months, there will be new growth. In most cases, any noticeable growth starts to be visible between 6-9 months. The full results can be observed 12-15 months after the operation.
What is the long-term outlook?
A natural and dense look can be reached with FUE method. However, this depends on the donor area and baldness level. An experienced and specialized doctor should be able to offer an in-depth analysis about your case. At Drt Hair, our surgeons offer free online consultations.
Factors affecting hair transplant cost
- Number grafts to be transplanted
- Surgeon’s experience and skill
- Location of the or the doctor (cost of living)
Hair transplant cost in United States, the UK and Europe
Depending on the aforementioned reasons, cost of a hair transplant can vary a lot.
- In US, the cost of a hair transplant is generally between 5.000$-20.000$ or can be even more with multiple sessions.
- In the UK, hair transplant costs vary between 4.000£-15.000£
- In the Europe, hair transplant costs change a lot because the cost of living throughout Europe varies immensely. The estimation is between 4.500€-18.000€.
Hair transplant cost in Turkey
Turkey has a flourishing and popular hair transplant industry. Some 60,000 people travel to Turkey each year and come back home with a luxurious head of hair. People choose Turkey for affordable prices and experienced surgeons. In general, the price range of a hair transplant operation in Turkey with an experienced and renown surgeon range between 2000$-6000$ (~1.500£-3.500£ / ~1.700€-5.000€). This price range depends on the experience of the doctor and the necessary graft number. Furthermore, these price in Turkey generally includes, the operation, airport transfers, accommodation, and all the post-operation medications/products. In this sense, Turkey really offers a great deal for the health tourists.