What Kind of Hair Transplants Are Available for Women?
Like men, women too can suffer from hair loss issues. But unlike men, it can be quite traumatizing for a woman to lose her hair. A woman’s beauty is often sacred to her. So the loss of hair can be painful to deal with mentally. Women have emotional ties to their hair as with other beauty traits. Numerous events can trigger the hair loss. Stress is the primary cause of hair loss in women. Second to that are hormonal changes. Whatever the reason for hair loss is, should not be taken lightly.
Hair loss in men and women: How they differ
The options to restore a women’s hair loss are similar to those of men with one exception, hair transplants. Hair transplants are predominantly a men’s solution to hair loss. The reason behind this is due to the way women lose hair. A man’s hair loss is usually on one side of the head only. A man’s hair tends to recede at the frontal hairline. Or a man has the occasional bald spot. Otherwise, the rest of their hair grows normally. It is that area that is used as donor hair for transplants. Women, on the other hand, lose their hair evenly. A women’s hair thins out over time. It occurs all over the head at once, not in patches. So this drastically decreases the amounts of donor's hair that can be used.
This is not to say that a woman cannot have a hair transplant. However, it is a conditional procedure with the ladies. Not all women that suffer hair loss are candidates for a hair transplant.
Who qualifies for a hair transplant
- Women with thinning scalp hair.
- Hair loss as a result of trauma, scalp injuries or burn.
- Women who require restructuring their hairline.
- Women who have suffered hair loss due to mechanical or Traction Alopecia (non-hormonal).
- Women who have a well-defined pattern of baldness, similar to that of male pattern baldness, hairline recession, and vertex thinning (on the crown or top of the scalp).
- Women diagnosed with Traction Alopecia or Alopecia Marginalis
- Women who experienced hair loss after facelifts or other cosmetic procedures
Types of hair transplant available for women
Two types of hair transplants can be done on either a man or a woman. One is the FUT method and the other one is FUE method. In FUT method, a strip of scalp is taken out from the back of the head and is divided into individual grafts. On the other side, the FUE method of hair transplantation involves taking the individual follicular units and grafts from the back of the head one by one by cutting around it with tiny specialized micro instruments and removing them. The process is deliberate and takes a few hours to complete. The entire procedure is painless.
The rest of the process remains the same in both methods. Tiny sites are created using very fine surgical blades and needles in the hair loss area. These grafts/follicles are then inserted into the sites on the front of the head or wherever there is hair loss.
Both procedures are performed under local anesthesia. After the initial dose is administered, the rest of the procedure remains pain-free. Both methods are outpatient procedures, meaning no overnight hospital stay is required. Patient choice is an important factor in the final hair transplantation option. The FUT option is more laboratory based, whereas the FUE is more labor intensive and intricate.
While hair loss does happen, it is not the end of the world. There are options that can reverse the hair loss. Having a hair transplant is an important step to take. However, the effects will be long lasting with amazing results.
