Hair Transplantation Side Effects

Not only is thick, shiny hair a sign of good health, it also has a positive effect on one's psychology and self-esteem. No wonder then that we spend so long and so much on hair care. Although there are numerous hair care products and medicines that can ensure good hair, in case of baldness the only way to have one's hair back is by resorting to the method of hair transplantation. This is a surgical procedure and in case one is planning on this method, it is important to know its side effects.

What is Hair Transplantation?

Hair transplants are primarily used as male pattern baldness treatment. In this procedure grafts containing hair follicles that are genetically resistant to thinning are transplanted on to the balding or recipient site. The area from where the grafts are taken is known as the donor site. Although most commonly used for treating men, hair transplants can be successful in treating certain cases of baldness in women as well. However, that would primarily be based on the type of hair loss. There are two hair transplant procedures. One is the strip harvesting method and the other is the follicular unit extraction harvesting method.

Hair Transplantation Side Effects

As with any surgery, even hair transplantation has its own side effects. Although minor and common with this procedure, it always helps to be familiar with the possible hair transplant side effects which are:

• Some amount of pain and discomfort in the scalp may be experienced after the surgery. Such discomfort is not felt during the procedure as it is carried out using anesthesia.
• Some patients of hair transplantation do complain of loss of original hair after the surgery. This is a temporary phase as the normal hair grows back along with the transplanted hair.
• Numbness of the scalp may persist for little time after the surgery.
• Swelling around the forehead and the eye. This condition generally lasts for 2 to 5 days.
• Some individuals also experience itchy scalp after a hair transplant surgery.
• In rare cases some patients may suffer from scarring, bleeding, infection and cysts in the scalp. Although these side effects are caused in a very small percentage of individuals, they are serious and a doctor should be called in to deal with such complications.

Hair Transplants Gone Wrong

Be it hair transplant, a nose job or a face lift, there are stories abound about such procedures going wrong. Why such incidents shock us is probably due to the fact that the effect is very evident and has aesthetic implications as well. Some of the common effects of a surgical hair transplant gone wrong are:

• Plug-Like Effect: In case the density of hair in the plug is more than the natural hair density in the donor site, then it means that the graft is too large. In such a scenario there are hair strands growing in high density within the large graft with prominent empty spaces between them. This results in an unnatural plug-like look on the scalp of the patient.
• Scarring of the Recipient Site: Sometimes large wounds may be created in the scalp due to improper grafting techniques. These wounds leave scars on the scalp that can cause problems like irregularities visible on the skin of the scalp and changing the direction of hair growth that gives an unnatural look. Scars may also lead to graft elevation or depression.
• Improper Hairlines: A surgeon should be aware of the positioning of the hairline. For males it is usually 1.5 cm above the upper brow crease at the midline. In case the surgery results in too low a hairline it may distort the look of the face.
• Hair Placed in Wrong Direction: In order to give a natural look to the patient after hair transplantation, it is important that the grafts are placed correctly. In many cases, inexperienced surgeons are unable to do that. The result is an absolutely undesirable hair transplantation side effect.

It is very important to do one's research before going in for any kind of surgery. Although the usual hair transplantation side effects are hard to ignore, they are easy to deal with. However, big blunders are expensive and sometimes impossible to correct.