FAQs
In most clinics, procedures are performed by technicians only. The owner of the clinics are plastic surgeons and dermatologists who are mainly involved in sales and marketing. Their involvement in the actual procedure is very limited. You should go for a clinic where a doctor performs the entire procedure himself/herself, and not through a technician.
It is also important to check if the clinic/doctor specializes in hair transplants or does other aesthetic treatments also, like Botox etc. A better choice would be go for a super specialist doctor.
In most cases, hair transplant is learnt by doctors from other doctors, without any evaluation or certification process. This way, it can take years for them tolearn the intricacies of hair transplants. Further, most doctors do not follow any written protocols and perform procedures based on personal preferences. This leads to sub-optimal results.
Please check if the performing doctor has training and accreditation from a reputed institute. Very importantly, personally verify if the clinic has written protocols for all stages of hair transplant procedure including detailed safety protocols.
Hair Transplantis a relatively new area of practice, which has lured many doctors to leave their practice in the field of their expertise and move towards hair transplants only in last 3-5 years. Many clinics may not have the experience, or protocols or the necessary expertise to handle hair transplant cases. Please ensure that the clinic has been established for many years and has a verifiable reputation. Do not just rely on what they claim.
Research shows that on an average only half of the implanted hair may grow in certain clinics without proper experience. This is because the clinic may not have access to latest techniques, instruments, tools, protocols etc. Please stay away from freelancers who work in many clinics on case by case basis. They are most likely to spoil your case as they may care least for the patient. Sometimes the doctor may be very qualified or experienced but past his prime to be able to give good results.
Do check if the work done by the doctor is supervised by someone. Does the doctor follow any certification, assessment, and quality monitoring process. It is not advised to go to a clinic where there is only one doctor whose work goes unsupervised.
Good results can only come with right technique, instruments, tools, protocols, training, assessment, and quality control.
Generally, hair transplant is a safe process and cannot lead to severe risks. However, sometimes there could be scalp infections or even more severe conditions if the correct safety protocols are not followed. This risk is very high when procedure is performed by technicians or inexperienced doctors.
You are advised to ask relevant questions, and see the written safety protocols at the clinic.
Please see the procedure room and ask yourself if you feel confident of the safety protocols.
The answer is obviously No. There are 10 kinds of alopecia.Unless aproper diagnosisis carried out,the correct treatment cannot be recommended. Many clinics recommend hairtransplants without doing a proper diagnosis.They also may not conduct amathematical count of the donorand recipient are astogivea correct assessment of the hair transplant requirement and feasibility. Please invest time and effort during your diagnosis and evaluate the doctor on proper diagnosis of dermatological examination,precisehair count of donorand recipient are and computerized alopecia test.This results in a comprehensive lifetime treatment plan and bestresults for your hair lossproblem.
Yes of course, price is indeed a very important criteria. But you should not choose a clinic or doctor purely on the cost. Many doctors are able to reduce their costs significantly, by reusing the instruments, compromising on safety standards, using technicians to do the procedures etc. Quality and Safety comes at a price. This is your investment in your safety and great looking results for life. So choose wisely.
Hair is made up of Keratin – a fibrous structural protein.
Hair also contains natural oils (lipids) and water. These hair “ingredients” are arranged in 3 primary structures: the cuticle (which is the outermost, shingle-like layer); the cortex (the inside of the hair consisting of bundles of protein filaments); and the medulla (a soft spongy-like core in the center of the cortex).
On an average there are over 100,000 hairs on a human scalp.
The growth cycle of hair consists of 3 stages:
- Anagen – It is the growing period of a hair follicle that typically lasts about 3 to 5 years.
- Catagen – At the end of the growth period, hair follicles prepare themselves for the resting phase. This stage of the hair growth cycle usually lasts about 1 to 2 weeks.
- Telogen – This is the resting period of a hair follicle. It is usually 3 to 4 months in length and at the end of this period older hairs that have finished their life will fall out and newer hairs will begin to grow.
By far the most common cause of hair loss in men is “Androgenetic Alopecia” also referred to as “male pattern hair loss” or “common” baldness. Androgenic Alopecia is due to the male hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT) acting on genetically-susceptible scalp hair follicles that causes them to become progressively smaller and eventually disappear. This process is called “miniaturization.” The other causes can be Stress, scalp bacteria, poor nutrition, hormonal imbalance, injury and high fever.
Alopecia is classified into 2 major groups: Non-Scarring Alopecia & Scarring Alopecia
Types of Non-Scarring Alopecia:
AGA, Alopecia Areata, Telogen Effluvium, Anagen Effluvium, Trichotillomania
Types of Scarring Alopecia:
Lichen Planopilaris, Frontal fibrosing alopecia, Pseudopaladae of Brocq, Folliculitis decalvans, tufted folliculitis, dissecting cellulitis, folliculitiskeloidalis, central centrifugal alopecia, alopecia muconosis, keratosis pilaris atrophicans
The most common form of hair loss in women, Chronic Telogen Effluvium (long term diffuse hair loss), is an increase in hair loss and decrease in hair thickness over a long period of time.
One week prior to procedure the patient needs to avoid vitamins, aspirin, consumption of alcohol and smoking.
Also, the TCC (Total Care Consultant) needs to advise the patient in case he’s diabetic, suffering from high blood pressure, on cardiac related medication or prescribed any medication by a psychiatrist. The doctor will prescribe antibiotics for 3 days after the procedure. Heavy exercise, weight lifting, swimming and scalp exposure to direct sunlight has to be avoided for 15 days after the procedure. The patient can resume light exercise and brisk walks 7 days after the procedure.
The patient is prescribed antibiotics and anti-inflammatory course which needs to be followed for 3 days post procedure.
There’s no requirement of any medication, as the implanted hair will not fall.
However, Minoxidil applications are required to prevent thinning and falling of the existing hair.
Proper care must be taken of the implanted and donor area after the procedure. If not, there could be complications such as folliculitis infection, bacterial infection etc. in such an unforeseen situation, proper and immediate medical attention should be availed.