FUE Donor Area regrow. (photo)

Question

Can you remove hair from any side of the body to use on the head? Dose the donor area hair re-grow? they say , white dots will appear Will i have to use medicine/ Rogain / Proscar or anything for the rest of my life? What about density ?

Manu Gujrati, MD · Answer

I hope that you were able to meet with an experienced surgeon to have these questions all answered. All of your questions are important ones to discuss for any hair transplant patient. 
1. Yes, donor hair can be taken from many sites of the body: scalp, beard, chest, back, even leg and groin. Some areas are worth avoiding so have a detailed discussion with your surgeon.
2. Yes, if the procedure is performed properly and there are no major changes to a person's health over time, the hairs will grow WHERE IT IS TRANSPLANTED TO. BUT:
NO, the donor hair will NOT grow back in the donor area from which it was removed.
3. Any donor area, if very closely examined by a trained professional, will have small, circular scars which have no hair and sometimes noticeably less color. So in the worst case, it would look white (or colorless) next to your normal colored skin.
4. In most patients, prevention medications (like Rogaine/minoxidil, Propecia/finasteride or other brands) should be used to help decrease the speed and amount of future hair loss. That is just a basic principle for hair loss patients: Keep as much of your "native" hair as possible so you have to have less surgery over your lifetime.
5. Density can vary based on each patient's needs, goals, and available donor area. If the transplanted are can get to 30-50% of "normal" density, it generally makes for a very nice result.
Hope all of this helps!

Anil R. Shah, MD · Answer

Hello,Density is one of the most critical factors after hair transplantation.  Early on you may not be able to fully determine your density.  Density depends on various factors including the number of hairs  per cm squared, the thickness and vibrancy of hair, direction and design of hair.  Techniques for density vary from surgeon to surgeon.  In my office, we utilize a specialized technique that allows for optimizing density and found it to be helpful.  Best, Dr. Anil Shah

Matthew Richardson, MD · Answer

Yes, hair can be taken from other body sites to be transplanted to the head, but this is only a last resort, and only in select patients. Most commonly, the donor areas are the back and sides of the scalp. The FUE donor sites do leave small pinpoint scars after extraction. The donor area hair follicles do not re-grow, but with a carefully-planned transplant, the donor area extractions can usually be performed in such a way as to make the donor area appear normal without any significant thinning.
Additional medical treatmnets such as Rogaine or Propecia are optional, but can be beneficial in many patients.
All the best,

Scott C. Sattler, MD, FACS · Answer

We use the back of the head for donor site hairs - density is usually quite good in most patients and a substantial number of FUE grafts can be removed without changing the visual density of the donor site hair.

Jae Pak, MD · Answer

Yes, you can remove the hairs from anywhere on your body.  How it looks is another topic.Yes, you WILL have white dot scars for every FUE attempt.  FUE is not scarless.No, you do not need to be on medications for the rest of your life.  It is an option.No, the donor area hairs do not regrow (from where you took it).What about density?

Ali Emre Karadeniz, MD · Answer

Yes you can remove but the scalp hair will give better solution than Body Hair Transplant. The donor are doesn't grow again so it is very important that an experienced doctor does the graft extraction. You will have white dots but they won't be seen unless you shave your hair. You will get better solution if you use Finasteride.

Peter J. Malouf, DO · Answer

Hello,You can remove hair from other parts of the body, and it will not regrow since the follicle will be removed.However, I don't suggest using body hair if you have a good donor area.  Scalp hair works best and the scarring from FUE is less visible there.You should have a consult with a surgeon who has had extensive experience with this technique.Dr. Malouf

Bessam Farjo, MBChB · Answer

Physically it is possible to remove hair from anywhere on the body with variable level of difficulty. The scalp hair though is by far the most reliable and suitable source when available. Body hair has a different growth cycle from the scalp. Second best site is the beard. The white dots you are talking about are the scars left behind after making the FUE incisions to extract the hairs and is quite normal. Visibility will vary from person to person but more prominent in darker skin.You should use medicines or low level light for the long term if you believe you may still lose significant hair in the future. Your family history may help guess what the future holds in that respect

William Rassman, MD (retired) · Answer

The donor hair will always grow if the hair transplant was done properly provided that there are no skin diseases on the scalp. Hair from other parts of the body like arms, chest, legs, pubic hair and beard hair has been used for hair transplant when a person runs out of good scalp donor hair. Bu running out I mean have had so many hair transplants that the donor area is depleted.

Ekrem Civas, MD, FISHRS - Account Suspended · Answer

The best donor hair is from the back of the scalp. Body hair might be used in various clinic, however the results might not be natural. Generally, only around 500-600 grafts can be harvested from body hair. The graft survival rate of body hair on the scalp is only 50%. The characteristics of body hair and scalp hair are not the same, for instance length, thickness, color and shading rate and cycle completely differ. For this reason, we do not encourage body hair transplant. However on special conditions like reconstructive surgery after an accident/burn or some cases of alopecia causing scars, body hair can be considered as donor.

FUE Donor Area regrow. (photo)

Answers (10)

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