The goal of hair transplants is to restore hair to balding or thinning areas of the head. The procedure involves extracting hair from other regions of the body or thicker parts of the scalp and grafting it onto the balding or thinning area of the scalp.
What is a hair transplant?
A hair transplant involves transplanting healthy hair follicles from one area of the scalp—typically the back or sides of the head—to an area of the scalp where baldness has developed.
The procedure is intended to treat hair loss that is caused by an injury or an uncommon ailment, as well as genetic and hormonal hair loss. Many men discover that getting a hair transplant can help them look younger again, improving their self-confidence and general wellbeing.
An expert surgeon should carry out a hair transplant. Before the procedure begins, you will typically receive a local anesthetic to ensure that you won’t experience any pain. Follicular unit excision (FUE) and follicular unit transplantation (FUT) are the two most popular hair transplant techniques.
Patients’ appearance and self-esteem may suffer as a result of hair loss. With surgical hair restoration, the thinning hairline and other prominent scalp areas can be filled in or recreated.
Major advancements in hair restoration for both men and women have been made recently, and the natural-looking outcomes are preferable to the ugly “hair plug” appearance caused by procedures utilized in the past.
What causes hair loss?
Hair loss can be brought on by trauma, such as burns and extreme mental stress, hereditary, hormone changes, drugs, sickness, or aging naturally. A mix of these variables can lead to hair loss in certain persons.
The patterns of hair loss in men and women are also different. Men typically experience hair loss beginning at the temples, the M-shaped hairline, and the crown region (the “bald spot”). Women typically notice hair thinning towards the top of the head, which broadens the section of the hair.
How does a hair transplant work?
A FUE hair transplant entails the removal of healthy hair follicles from donor sites on the sides and back of the head using tiny punch incisions, followed by their implantation into tiny holes in the recipient area.
A FUT hair transplant entails removing a strip of scalp from the back of the head, sewing the wound, dividing the extracted strip into individual hairs, and implanting the hairs into the recipient area.
It may take up to four hours to complete the hair transplant procedure. It will take about ten days following the procedure to remove any non-dissolvable stitches you may have. The majority of patients can comfortably relax and heal at home. You’ll receive easy-to-follow instructions on how to care for yourself in the days after the procedure.
Simply defined, a hair transplant involves taking the hair you currently have and transplanting it to an area where you are hairless. Although it can be obtained from various body locations, it is commonly taken from the back of your skull.
Before beginning a transplant, your surgeon cleans and local anesthetics the region where the hair will be taken. You can even ask for medication if you want to doze off throughout the procedure.
There are numerous available techniques.
FUE and FUT are the two primary hair transplantation methods. Let’s take a closer look at them:
Surgery for FUE hair transplants
Hair grafts are extracted from the back of the head as individual follicles during FUE hair transplant surgery. It takes thousands or even hundreds of microscopic “punches” to do this.
It is then possible to carefully insert the hair follicles into the tiny holes made at the recipient location. After each individual hair graft has been implanted, the back of the scalp from which the hairs were removed will be bandaged and kept that way for 24 hours following the FUE procedure.
Follicular unit extraction (FUE)
Your surgeon follows these procedures to carry out a FUE procedure:
- On the back of your head, they shave the hair.
- After that, the surgeon removes a few hair follicles from the scalp skin. Each follicle’s removal site will leave minute marks.
- The surgeon cuts tiny holes in your scalp similar to the FUT procedure and inserts hair follicles into the holes.
- They next apply bandages or gauze to the surgical site.
Surgery for FUT hair transplants

The FUT procedure includes removing a strip of scalp from the back of the skull. Usually, this strip is several inches long. The scalp strip can then be cut into numerous smaller parts of hair transplants, and the area can be sewn together. After that, the recipient area receives these hair grafts.
A Plastic Surgeon Consultation for Hair Restoration
A person considering hair transplant surgery should consult with a qualified surgeon who has experience doing the procedure. The surgeon may even take a tiny sample of the patient’s hair or scalp skin while examining the person’s hairline and scalp during the consultation.
The surgeon will take into account:
- The patient’s overall physical and emotional well-being
- Skin tone, hair color, ethnicity, age, and family history
- The kind of procedure that is best for the individual
- The outcomes that the person anticipates and aspires to as a result of the procedure
Surgery for hair transplantation: Technique and Care
Hair redistribution, also known as hair restoration, is most likely to take place in the operating room. To make the procedure more comfortable, the surgical team numbs the patient’s scalp first with an anesthetic.
The surgeon will next cut a thin strip of hair from the sides and back of the scalp, delicately separate it into tiny “micro” grafts, and apply the grafts to parts of the scalp and hairline that need more thickness.
The result is natural-looking hair growth since the hair and root grafts are so tiny and replanted one at a time. The donor area on the side or back of the head heals as a straight scar that blends in very nicely with the remaining hair.
The actual procedure lasts between five and eight hours, and depending on the patient’s needs, more than one session can be required.
Once the grafts are in place, they only resemble little incisions. These recover fast and after a few days blend in with the surrounding skin. Patients can wear a loose-fitting cap or carefully comb their surrounding hair over the grafts in the interim.
The transplanted hair may start to fall out after a month or two, which is normal and nearly always transitory. The grafts will start to grow hair once more in another month.
It is crucial to carefully follow the surgeon’s post-operative recommendations, especially:
- Notifying your surgical team right once if there is a problem or an unexpected change
- keeping appointments for follow-up
Does a hair transplant hurt?
Does getting a hair transplant hurt? This is a typical query from someone considering a FUE hair transplant procedure.
Some folks think the procedure is excruciatingly unpleasant. On the other hand, many people who have hair transplants report feeling nothing during the procedure. A patient shouldn’t experience any discomfort following the injection of a local anesthetic into the desired scalp location.
As an additional means of easing discomfort, we can also offer painkillers. It takes a lot of effort to make patients more comfortable during the procedure. If you want to take your mind off the procedure, you can watch TV or listen to music.
You typically won’t experience a lot of pain when recovering. You should adhere to your aftercare and recovery instructions and take enough time to rest (about 4-5 days). During a patient’s recovery, there should be little to no pain, and any discomfort can be quickly treated with Ibuprofen or paracetamol.
Antibiotics will help prevent infection, and if you experience swelling following surgery, medicine is given to treat it.
For whom are hair transplants appropriate?
Let’s discuss whether or not someone is a good candidate for a hair transplant now. Generally speaking, candidates for a hair transplant in Turkey should be in good health and have healthy hair follicles that will continue to grow following the procedure.
Male pattern baldness patients who have stabilized their hair loss either through medication or naturally with age can benefit from the treatment. Both men and women who experience hair loss as a result of burns, trauma, or other uncommon disorders may choose to have a hair transplant.
Men are recommended to wait until they are 30 years old or older before getting a hair transplant because hair loss usually slows down and becomes more predictable at this age.