Hair Transplantation: Donor Grafts From Day 1 to Month 6 After Surgery
What to Expect from Your Donor Grafts
Once a hair transplantation has been completed, the new hair doesn’t spring up instantly. The donor grafts must first go through a process before yielding a lasting head of hair. During this time, they may cause concern for the patient, who wonders why these new hairs are doing strange things. In most cases, panic and worry are unnecessary, as the bizarre process is completely normal. The following steps reveal the journey of newly transplanted grafts from their first day post-operation through six months later. With this guide, a patient will know what strange things to expect.
Hair Transplantation, Days 1-14
On day one, the patient can see thousands of new transplants sticking up from the scalp. These donor grafts are causing scalp soreness, slight bleeding, and swelling. Eventually, they will scab over, and by the end of this time, the scabs will have flaked off. The donor hairs may also flake off with the scabs as a part of the healing process.
Hair Transplantation, Weeks 2-4
The transplants will continue shedding even more at this point. Many people panic, thinking their hair transplantation has failed. But these hairs weren’t meant to stay in place. They become detached from the follicle after it has taken root, in order to make way for eventual new growth.
Hair Transplantation, Weeks 4-12
Now the scalp may start to break out in pimples. This is also normal, caused either by fragments of hair caught under the skin, or by the new hairs trying to grow and push their way through the scalp. This breakout might last as long as 12 weeks and sometimes longer, since the new hairs will grow in sporadically. Tea tree oil applied after a warm washcloth should help treat these pimples and keep them under control. If the scalp acne is severe, it may be folliculitis, which sometimes happens after hair transplantation. Folliculitis requires the attention of a dermatologist and treatment with an antibiotic.
Hair Transplantation, Months 4-6
At this point, the patient may still see the occasional pimple, but the new growth should be taking over. The growing hairs should be evident, albeit strange in texture in most cases. People will notice their new growth is coarse, even wiry, and curlier than the surrounding scalp hair. However, as the hair cycles through the phases of growth, it will eventually grow in fuller, softer, and more normal. That’s why it takes up to 18 months after hair transplantation to see the maximum maturity and density of the new hair.
More information on surgical hair restoration can be found at http://www.dermhairclinic.com/hair_restoration/
