STOP SUFFERING FROM HAIR LOSS WITH HAIR RESTORATION
Hair loss is a sensitive topic for many men and women. Yet this common problem has become one that can be treated with hair restoration.
So put away the hats, wigs, toupees, and other cover-ups once and for all. Get a new wave of confidence and self-esteem, and leave home without needing something to cover up that bald spot. All you have to do is meet with a hair transplant surgeon to discuss your own treatment options.
Sudden and mysterious hair loss can come as quite a shock. In some cases, understanding the cause of this hair loss can help to stop or curb it for some time. In other cases, knowing the cause can help determine whether surgery is an option at the time and, if so, which type of hair restoration might be best.
THE CAUSES OF HAIR LOSS
• Aging. It is normal to experience some degree of hair loss with age.
• Hormonal changes can trigger significant hair loss.
• A family history of baldness plays a large role.
• Certain medical conditions, including thyroid problems, scalp infections, alopecia areata, and other skin disorders.
• Some medications used to treat common medical problems can also trigger hair loss. For example, drugs used for arthritis, depression, heart problems, and high blood pressure have been associated with hair loss.
WHAT IS HAIR TRANSPLANTATION?
Hair transplantation is just what it sounds like: taking small pieces of hair-bearing scalp from one location to a donor site to correct baldness or thinning hair. These types of procedures have been performed successfully for more than 30 years. The technique of hair restoration that can be performed on a large-scale area of the scalp is called follicular unit grafting or follicular unit transplantation.
In addition, some female patients with a high forehead can find the help they need with a hairline advancement procedure that lowers the hairline. Other less common techniques include scalp reduction and the Juri flap. In the occasional patient these more invasive procedures may be suitable. Scalp reductions reduce the size of the balding crown prior to follicular unit transplantation and Juri flaps create a dense hairline.
ABOUT FOLLICULAR UNIT TRANSPLANTATION (FUT)
Because the hairs on the scalp grow through the skin in small groups, today’s hair transplant strategies focus on keeping these “units” together to provide the most natural results. With follicular unit transplantation, hair is transplanted in the lowest common denominator — the follicular unit. These units are harvested in strips to create non-detectable scars in a series of sessions. These scars would only be visible if you were to shave your head, so most patients are hardly aware of their existence.
Each harvested strip is then dissected into follicular units by a trained specialist. Once separated, these units can be placed by design to follow the angle, direction, and design of the patient’s hairline. By controlling each individual unit of hair growth, hair-transplant specialists are able to achieve very natural-looking results.
ABOUT HAIRLINE LOWERING
Although many women have high hairlines, it can be considered a masculine trait. High hairlines leave a large part of the forehead exposed, affecting the balance of the facial features. For women who have a high hairline, whether from genetics or hair loss, styling their hair to hide or mitigate it can become an everyday chore. A procedure called hairline lowering is designed to help these women create a more feminine, natural look.
Hairline lowering can be performed if the patient has good scalp laxity. This means that the skin on the scalp is flexible enough to be shifted downward. During this surgery, the physical hairline is lowered up to one inch. Surgery can still be done for those patients with an inelastic scalp by using a balloon-like expander device that is placed under the scalp, stretched out gradually over six to eight weeks, and then removed to perform the surgery.