Hair Transplant Removal

Hair transplants are much more natural looking than they used to be. If you received your transplant before techniques improved, there are ways to remove it and get yourself a better-looking one. Under a procedure called follicular isolation or follicular unit extraction (FUE), plugs are removed and implanted in other areas to make the bad transplant look more natural. This is recommended over removing them completely, which will leave patients with a scalp marked with little white scars where incisions were made to remove plugs.

Today's Transplants

• The methods of transplanting hair have changed from inserting a plug consisting of 30 hairs to inserting hairs one by one---thus resulting in a more natural look. The old method often resulted in an artificial "pluggy" look and made it obvious hair was transplanted. FUI can be used to correct a lack of thickness, misplacement of hair follicles or an unattractive hairline.

Choosing a Specialist

• Schedule a free consultation with a hair-transplant specialist in your area. Ask your primary care physician or acquaintances to recommend someone. Interview a few different doctors and look at photographs of their work. Ask the doctors how they would fix what you don't like about your previous transplant. Discuss maybe removing some of the hair in the plugs and thinning them out to achieve a more natural look rather than removing them altogether. Removing hair grafts is a very precise procedure and needs to be thoroughly discussed beforehand. Find out if financing is an option if price is a concern for you. Prices typically range from $3 to $10 a graft. A higher price is no indication of the skill of the doctor. Do your homework beforehand.

The Procedure

• If the patient decides to remove all the grafts, it is a fairly quick procedure that is performed in one office visit. FUE is a more tedious procedure because the grafts are singularly removed using small punches in the scalp and inserted elsewhere on the head. It is important when excising grafts that the hole be sutured closed to reduce scarring. Because of this, the doctor can usually do only about 500 grafts in one sitting. Even with sutures, there may be scarring. The patient will leave the doctor's office with small stitches on his head. In two to three weeks, the patient will return to the doctor's office to have the stitches removed. Once the stitches are removed, a patient will need to allow his hair to grow out to see the full effects of the procedure.