Decision to have a cosmetic surgery brings along many different concerns; although the cosmetic procedures are carried in a very safe and comfortable conditions, there are many questions that needs to be replied before making a final decision. First question of the people who consider to have a hair transplant is usually “how long does a hair transplant last?” and it is completely normal.
Are hair transplant results permanent?
Hair transplant procedures promise life-long results; the procedure aims to provide the most permanent and satisfactory result to patients with revolutionary and high-quality techniques. The transplanted hair follicles are not artificial implants but patient’s own hair follicles; so the expectation here is for natural growth cycle to keep going after hair transplant.
The hair follicles keep their original structure after the procedure and grow just like when in their original place. In order to estimate how would the structure of transplanted hair be and have an insight on how long does a hair transplant last, you can take your donor area as reference.
Male pattern baldness is triggered by DHT hormone; the harvested hair follicles in the donor area are accepted to be resistant to DHT hormone and they keep their resistance after the hair transplant procedure in their new place.
Hair transplant has proved its effectiveness and long-term results and convinced many patients for hair restoration saving them money and time spent on temporary and ineffective treatments.
Is it possible to need another hair transplant in the future?
Another common question other than how long does a hair transplant last is whether it is possible to need further treatment after having hair transplant once. Although it is not so common, it is possible to need more than one sessions of hair transplant in some conditions to achieve more desired and satisfactory results.
Need for multiple hair transplants usually does not derive from the shedding of the transplanted hair (if you do not suffer from an interfering medical condition) but occurs when hair loss is a pattern type and it continues to effect the surrounding original hair area of transplanted hair. The new follicles are already resistant to the pattern hair loss; however, the remaining original hair may keep shedding and patients may want to have more sessions for a fuller look.
Hair transplant is a delicate and a long operation; this can be another reason for multiple sessions although it would be more expensive. Some patients may want to divide their treatment in more than one sessions for shorter sessions and a more comfortable experience; this is especially beneficial for treatment plan with high number of grafts.
Shock loss
Shock loss is a factor which makes the patients hesitant about the permanence about their results; shock loss. In the first months after the hair transplant operation, patients may experience their transplanted hair to fall out. This is completely normal; however, it gives the patients an impression as if their operation were unsuccessful at first which is not correct.
After the shock loss period, the transplanted hair follicles will begin their growing cycle and it may take around a year for them to complete it. Patients seeking for an answer for the question of “how long does a hair transplant last?” should be familiar with shock loss.
Factors affecting the success and permanence of hair transplant
Suitable treatment planning
Although hair transplant is a very developed hair restoration treatment, it requires adequate effort in the treatment planning process since the surgery should be custom-made. Without knowing the needs and expectations of the patients, it is hard to achieve desirable results.
Proper aftercare
Hair transplant recovery is very easy and smooth; however, patients should follow the post-op instructions and be gentle with their surgical site. A good aftercare process makes patients to go through the recovery without any complications.
General medical condition of patients
If there is a medical condition of the hair transplant patients which may hinder good results, it is usually foreseeable in the initial consultation; however, since different patients may have different body habits, it can be hard to foresee such condition as well. It is important to share all details about the any prior operations, regularly used medication and chronic diseases in advance.
The answer of how long does a hair transplant last can also get affected from age, lifestyle or hair type of the patients; but then again these are not very big factors effective on the permanence and a proper treatment plan can give good results in most of the conditions.
How long does a hair transplant last when it is performed with FUE technique?
FUE hair transplant technique, being the latest and the most successful technique, gives permanent and natural results; in fact, all of the hair transplant techniques are able to give life-long results as their basic principles are the same.
The important point is to find the most suitable technique which can give the best quality results for the hair loss level, hair type, skin structure and expectations of the patients; when the assessment is accurate, all hair transplant techniques can give permanent results.
How long does it take to achieve the final and permanent results after hair transplant?
The most common mistake made in the recovery process is the interpreting the success of the results, too early; newly transplanted follicles needs time to achieve their final state.
The final and permanent results of the hair transplant are achieved in around 10-12 months; in some areas of the scalp, this time can reach up to 18 months. Before the final results are achieved, it is not true to claim that the operation has been unsuccessful.
Also, for the cases which requires more than one hair transplants, final results of the first hair transplant should be waited for another session. To get detailed information on how long does a hair transplant last for your individual condition, please contact Monoplant Hair Clinic and get a detailed hair analysis.
