Hair Transplantation

When we look at our hair follicles at a microscopic level it is found to be a very fascinating minuscule dynamic organ, which sets it apart from all the other tissue based organs in our body.

• Hair loss is undoubtedly a common issue that occurs when the process of hair development gets disrupted.
• But modern technology has made a great breakthrough by making it possible to restore this lost hair through transplantation.
• Hair Follicles are present in the dermal layer of the skin all over the body, except the lips, sole and palms.

Hair Anatomy

• Hair is made of a tough protein called Keratin.
• The hair follicle helps in anchoring each hair to our skin.
• The Hair Bulb forms the base of the hair follicle. In the Bulb, living cells divide and grow to build the hair shaft. And these cells are nourished by the Blood Vessels that deliver hormones that modify hair growth and structure at different points of life.
• Germinal Matrix: Also known as the Matrix, is located in the lower region of the Hair Follicle. This is where the cells produce new hair as the old ones die out.
• Bulge: This is located in the middle region of the Hair Follicle. It contains Stem Cells, which not only help in the regeneration of new Hair Follicles, but also the sebaceous glands, and the epidermis too.

Hair Cycle - Different stages of Hair Growth

The first part of the Hair Cycle. It is the Hair Growth phase. It ideally lasts about 2-7 years. Duration of the Anagen Phase determines the maximum length of the person's hair. About 80-90% of the Hair follicles are in this phase at any given point.

This short transition phase lasts only for about two to three weeks. At this point, the hair stops growing, and detaches itself from the blood supply. It becomes what is known as, Club Hair.

This is the resting phase, where the Club Hair rests, while new hair starts growing beneath it. This new hair will eventually take the place of the Club Hair. About 10-15% of the hair strands are at this phase at any given moment.

This is the last phase of the Hair Cycle, where the resting Club Hair detaches and falls out. Every hair eventually sheds. It is considered normal to lose about 50-150 strands of hair per day.

What is Hair Transplantation?

• When a surgical procedure is conducted in order to improve baldness in specific part of the body, or to stimulate hair growth, it is known as Hair Transplantation.
• Hair Follicles are relocated from the "Donor Site" which happens to be an area of dense growth to the "recipient site", which is the balding portion. Hair Transplantation is usually used to treat Male pattern Baldness.
• This modern and minimally invasive procedure utilizes Grafts which comprises of Hair Follicles that are created to be genetically resistant to balding. It is usually assumed that a transplant is only done for a balding scalp. But this is not true. A transplant can be done even to restore Beard Hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, pubic hair, chest hair, and sometimes to fill up scars caused by previous surgeries.
• Naturally growing hair occurs in units, ie , in groups of 1-4. The modern and progressive transplanting techniques have made it possible to acquire these units, which thereby aid in obtaining a natural appearance to the Transplanted Hair.
• We basically offer FUE and FUT types of hair transplant, with most patients preferring FUE(Follicular Unit Extraction).

FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction)

FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) is a procedure used to extract follicular units of hair. In this procedure, a small circular incision around a follicular unit is made on the skin, separating it from the surrounding tissues. This follicular unit is removed by direct extraction from the scalp, leaving a tiny open hole.

The extraction procedure involves the removal of individual follicular units present on the back of the scalp (benefactor territory) and its transplantation to the bare area (beneficiary territory). The follicles need to be taken from the last hair bearing region. Follicles that are located close to the neck’s scruff or the crown may have hair sparseness; in that case the contributor area is likely to go bald.

The FUE is the most commonly used procedure in the world. This procedure yields strong unions that serve in extensively blanketing uncovered areas in a singular session.

FUE is a time consuming procedure in comparison to the FUT technique. However, with technological advancement and experience, the duration of this procedure can be shortened to a great extent. Due to improvements in this technique, overall interest in Hair transplantation is observed to have increased.