Hair Transplants

In cases when hair loss medications, commercial, and natural treatments fail at their best
to regrow hair, the next viable (but rather a skeptical) option is hair transplant surgery. In 1952, the first doctor to introduce and perform the technology was Dr. Norman Orentreich, in New York City.

In the decades succeeding that, the hair transplant procedure used was somehow crude, and appeared like patchworks of hair. Nonetheless, hair transplants became a lucrative procedure that benefited all too many surgeons, despite of the fact that the technology never really improved, not until the early 1980's. From then on, surgeons and scientists discovered revolutionary techniques to make hair transplants "work".

Before you go through a hair transplant surgery, though, you need to evaluate with your physician whether you are a candidate. Although almost all sufferers of androgenetic alopecia can benefit from a medical hair restoration, the success rate depends largely from person to person. In some cases, one patient can achieve a fuller look while using only lesser grafts than did a man who did more grafts. Meanwhile, women may also benefit from hair transplants if their type of hair loss is concentrated in one area.

Today, three known hair transplant procedures are getting a lot of interests not only from medical community, but also from the millions of hair loss patients who are tired of pharmaceutical companies offering hackneyed testimonials and ineffective treatments. The plug technique involves extracting a cluster of at most 10 hairs from a "donor" area of the scalp to the bald areas. Micro-grafting was popular in the 80's and 90's – a technique that used small grafts incised from a strip of donor tissue with 1-2 hairs.

"Follicular evolution" revolutionized hair transplants and brought the technique to a higher level. Folllicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) relocated hair in its naturally occurring clusters of 1-4 hairs. Follicular hair transplants uses microscopic tissue dissection obtained from one donor strip or taken out directly from a donor area.

Hair transplants Chicago Hair Institute advise that patients need to research on their prospective physician's profile such as doctor's primary practice, his track record in hair transplant, professional certifications, professional societies he belongs, how the doctor extracts hair for the grafts, does he use laser to cut donor sites, and does he have experience working your type of hairline. Your surgeon must provide you with answers to these questions because a successful hair transplant chiefly relies on the surgeon's performance.

With regards to cost, we know that hair loss treatments don't come cheap. Even commercial, natural, herbal, or medication treatments can cost thousands of dollars for 2-4 years of use. The only non-medication, surgical permanent solution to hair loss also will not solve your hair loss problem without robbing your bank account. A typical hair transplant costs around $4,000, provided that the surgeon has the expertise and artistry to recreate a hairline.

Hair transplants is considered a last resort for a person pursuing hair restoration without wasting their time and money from non-FDA approved hair loss products offering vague results. Unlike the breakthrough drugs, finasteride and minoxidil (which have side effects noted) that require daily application, hair transplants have no associated side effects. If the procedure was accomplished accurately, medical hair restoration can give you a natural look.

You can search in forums in the online community to gain information about the experiences of hair transplant patients and how they are living with the results. Looking for "before" and "after" pictures can be a source of idea for you, and whether you want to go as far as a hair transplant surgery to restore your lost hairline.