Transplanted Hairs Falling Out 5-10 Days Post Surgery (FUT)? Date of transplant: 4th. of December. (photo)

Question

- 2000 grafts. - 3500 hairs. Is this a normality... the hairs falling out this early in? I've read that the hairs usually shed after 3-4 weeks time. I might have managed to dislodge a couple of grafts, but no more. Have the hairs anchored by this time? Certain areas are entirely hairless and scabless. Thus far, I've paid my doctor 2-3 visits ever since the hair transplant was carried out. He tells me there is nothing to worry about, and that everything looks just fine. Thanks, in advance.

Jae Pak, MD · Answer

You will have hair loss after surgery. You may have graft loss after surgery. Not all the grafts will take.  You won't really know until you see results in 6 to 12 months.If you are still concerned please follow up with your doctor for another exam.

Tim Neavin, MD · Answer

Thanks for the photo.  It is normal for the hair to fall out within a week while the follicle integrates into the scalp. I'd trust your doctor on this one.

Amiya Prasad, MD · Answer

Hair transplant is the movement of an entire hair follicle
into a small slit. The skin and tissue heals well enough the majority of the
time, the dermal papilla or the part of the hair necessary for growth can be
intact even if the grafts fall out. The general term used for grafts falling
out during the early post-operative period is called shock loss. Shock loss
happens to both the grafts as well as the adjacent hairs that are subjected to
the swelling and trauma of the actual procedure.

As a specialist in hair loss treatment, we have been in a
remarkable leadership position with a technology we developed called Hair
Regeneration. We have been doing our transplants with a material called
extracellular matrix and platelet-rich plasma and we’ve seen a significant
improvement in the rate of shock loss so this difficult transition period is a
little bit easier. Even with advanced healing technology, the patient can still
have a certain period where the existing hairs can look a little thinner, the
grafts are not growing and the grafts aren’t seen anymore. You are somewhere in
the early 4-6 month period if you lost all the grafts. Fortunately, the hair is
remarkably resilient. This is clearly demonstrated from the field of laser hair
removal where people come for multiple laser hair treatments to suppress hair growth
for a long period of time. Also, several studies have demonstrated that the hairs
that are transplanted, even if the dermal papilla or the base is not intact, the
middle part of the hairs or the hair shaft can still grow.

I noticed in your photos the level of your receding frontal
hairline. You may want to discuss with your doctor the use of some type of oral
medications such as finasteride. In our practice, many people come to us for
Hair Regeneration treatment which is a non-surgical injection that helps
reverse the thinning process of hair. This is through a method that restores
critical stem cells as part of a wound healing mechanism that stops the
thinning process. Many people who had a transplant and want to avoid a second
transplant actually benefit from this because we are keeping the hairs.

In traditional hair transplants they restore to try to keep
the appearance of hairs in areas which are actively thinning. So a person who
wants to get one transplant will need a second transplant, a third or even a
fourth depending on how much donor area they have. Unfortunately, there’s a
limit of how much donor area a person has. Fortunately, our Hair Regeneration has
been able to balance out hair transplant very well so that we are able not only
improve our transplant procedure but also prevent the progression of hair loss,
thicken hair and reverse thinning hair.

At this point, you just have to wait this out. You have to
follow-up with your doctor and the final result is somewhere in a year to 15
months. There is a lot of variability between the hair growth cycle of individuals.
Some people’s hair grows faster while some people’s hair grows slower. Ultimately,
at the one year point, you are close to a 90% zone of recovery. We have also seen
people in 15 months, a combination of shock loss where there are grafts or the
native hairs eventually synchronizes to the point where the growth and density
match to give you a better sense of the final result.  I hope that was helpful, I wish you the best
of luck, and thank you for your question.

Rashid M. Rashid, PhD, MD · Answer

Yes, the fall out can start as early as 3 days, although this is not common.  However, it is possible.

Sara Wasserbauer, MD - Account Suspended · Answer

Hair shedding 5-10days after a hair transplant is very normal. People heal at all different rates. Make sure to be gentle with them and let them naturally come off as you wash your hair. Don’t pick at them. Just lightly scrub.

Transplanted Hairs Falling Out 5-10 Days Post Surgery (FUT)? Date of transplant: 4th. of December. (photo)

Answers (6)

Answer: Fall out of hairs

Answer: Fall out of hairs

Answer: Post Surgery

Answer: Post Surgery

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Transplanted Hairs Falling Out 5-10 Days Post Surgery (FUT)? Date of transplant: 4th. of December. (photo)

Answers (6)

Answer: Fall out of hairs

Answer: Fall out of hairs

Answer: Post Surgery

Answer: Post Surgery

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Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Hair Transplant

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.