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Hair Transplant Recovery and Timeline: What to Expect for FUE Hair Transplant
Young man with long wet hair shaking his head.

Hair Transplant Recovery and Timeline: What to Expect for FUE Hair Transplant

Young man with long wet hair shaking his head.

Are you considering having a FUE hair transplant? Maybe you have seen and heard about people on social media and in the news getting hair transplants and seen the amazing before and after photographs of this great cosmetic process, but how does it truly work, and what should you expect if you are thinking about going ahead and getting it done? As with any invasive cosmetic procedure, research is important. However, it is also important that you be prepared for the highs and lows following the operation. The following is a realistic timeline of what to expect: 

The week before your hair transplant

This is when you really need to evaluate your lifestyle and diet. You are about to go through a  fairly invasive procedure, so it Is necessary for you to get your body ready for what it is about to experience. During the week before the procedure, you shouldn’t smoke, drink alcohol, eat foods that are too spicy, take painkillers, or take vitamins. You won’t be able to drink caffeine on the day of your surgery either,

On the day

The day is finally here! You probably feel a little anxious, which is perfectly understandable. It is a big experience that will have a huge (and positive) impact on your life. 

A hair transplant is a three-point procedure. First of all, there is the removal of the grafts, then the opening of the channels in your scalp, and finally, the implantation of hair follicles.

During the first phase of the process, the grafts will be removed from the location that will serve as the donor. This is usually the back of your head, where the hair follicles are strongest. To manage the pain, you will be given an anesthetic injection. This is often described as similar in pain to having a tattoo. You should only feel mild pain after the injections, which will be caused by the slight pressure the surgeon’s hands put on your scalp when hair transplants are taken from the back of your head. 

In the next step of a hair transplant, small channels are opened in the region of the scalp where you want the transplant to take place. Local anesthetic is injected once more, but this time it is in the area that will get the injection. By this point, you should be accustomed to the slight discomfort that this causes. 

The third and In the third and final step of the process, the grafts that were taken from the donor area are put into the area of the recipient. This typically takes place immediately after the second part of the procedure and is the part where you can lie back and relax. Because the anesthesia has already been administered, there is no need to give you any more, and now it is time for the surgeon and the technicians, who are so skilled, to finish the beauty that is your hair transplant. 

The recovery

2 weeks post-transplant

Sleep on your back and in an upright position for at least a week. Make sure that you use the saline solution that has been provided by your surgeon as often as recommended and that you keep those grafts moist for the first several days after the procedure. After a few days, it starts to stiffen up, scabs are forming, and the urge to pick at it becomes stronger, but it is important to resist the temptation and keep up with the washing routine that your surgeon has recommended, the scabs will fall off before you know it.

1-3 months post-transplant

Because the hair follicles enter a transitory state known as “sleep mode,” you will not notice much, if any, progress for a considerable amount of time. This can be difficult to accept since, up until this point, you have seen continual but at this level, you truly do not notice any change in the recipient region. The recipient area may still be a little sore looking from the process, but this should go away as the week goes on, and the donor area should look very much the same as it did before the hair transplant procedure.

3-4 months post-transplant

This is when you start to see the new hair. This is where the growth really starts. When new hairs first start to show, this phenomenon is referred to as the “popping through” of new hairs. The maturation phase refers to the process through which the hairs become thicker and more natural looking.  At the end of the third month, somewhere in the range of 10% to 30% of the transplanted hairs will have popped through. They can be a little wiry to touch with lots of space, but growth will speed up over the next few weeks.

4-9 months post-transplant

Around forty percent of the hairs should have broken through the surface of the scalp by the end of the fourth month, fifty percent by the end of the fifth month, and anywhere between sixty and seventy percent of the hairs should have emerged by the end of the sixth month. At the conclusion of the ninth month, you should be able to see 90 to 100 percent of the transplanted hair. However, the process is not going to stop there because the maturation of each and every hair still needs to take place, and it is only going to get thicker from here on out!

9 months post-transplant

Even if most of the hairs have emerged and you could not be happier about it, it is still not finished yet. As a point of reference, the newly grown hairs are about 40% mature after six months, and most patients are over the moon with the results at that point. The hair, on the other hand, will not lay down flat and instead has a frizzy and fine appearance. But between the ages of 9 and 18 months, each hair on your head will start to grow, and you’ll be able to enjoy the slow but steady process of getting your dream hair.

Interested? Why not book a consultation with Burbank Hair Transplant? We are the leading experts in hair restoration and transplant in Los Angeles and can get you on your way to a full head of hair. Get in touch with us today. 

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