In our first part of this series we briefly introduced you to the most common cause of hair loss, androgenic alopecia (male pattern baldness), which affects both men and women though in different ways.

We also discussed the most common, permanent, and proven solution to hair loss and how to research what is best for you whether you are a man or woman.

There are differences in how a woman’s hair thins when compared to a man’s. Women’s hair typically thins all over while a man’s will typically recede from the front and/or begin to thin on the crown. One of the best ways to determine the extent of your hair loss is to compare your hair loss pattern and its extent to the Norwood Scale, which can be seen here. It’s typically best to have someone help you with this, sometimes it’s difficult to place ourselves on the scale properly so an objective third party is helpful.

You may have already researched hair loss solutions and by this time decided that you are beyond maintenance and are seeking a permanent solution. Deciding that you are beyond maintenance is a personal decision where you’ve been informed on treatment options and simply decided that a permanent solution is what you desire.

By permanent solution we mean one that uses your own hair that for all intents and purposes will continue to grow forever. How can this be?

In our previous article we mentioned a hormone called DHT, which is the primary cause of hair loss in men. DHT affects hair on the top of the head but has little affect on hair to the sides and back. The good news about this is that this DHT resistant hair can be used for your procedure and even though it’s being transplanted to the top of your head the resistance will travel with it, effectively giving you hair that will grow for a lifetime.

Is this the best solution for you? If you want a solution that is permanent and has no more maintenance than when you were younger and had a full head of hair, we’d say so.

As we mentioned, the decision to have a hair transplant starts with an educational session with your senior counselor and will always involve the doctor. Your doctor will determine if you are a candidate after reviewing the extent of your hair loss along with your medical history and goals.

One necessary criterion is your available donor hair and its density. In men, donor hair comes from the side and back. Darker hair is typically thicker in diameter while lighter hair is thinner but has greater density or follicular units. In the end everyone is different but your senior counselor will give you a very good idea of your donor hair and its related density.

Your hair will determine the size of the donor strip necessary. Obviously this is also dependent on how much coverage you desire. Again this will be a discussion that is ultimately had with the doctor .

The number of grafts involved in a hair transplant procedure varies greatly. Some start with as few at 800 grafts while others can have a single transplant with 3000-3500 grafts, still others will have more than one procedure to achieve the best coverage over time.

And although a procedure only lasts for ½-1day, the growth of your new hair will take longer. This is just the simple reality of having your own hair back .

Your hair grows at an average rate of ½ inch per month. This means that after your procedure you’ll have anywhere from 6 months to a year to really see the impact your new hair has on how you look. The good news is that this change is so gradual that most people won’t even realize that you had a procedure at all.

After your hair has fully grown in the look is completely natural and virtually undetectable , this is the art of hair transplant procedures that can only be accomplished by surgeons with experience, skill and artistry.

In our next segment in this series we’ll take you through the actual surgical procedure from beginning to end.

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