HAIR REPLACEMENT SURGERY VS. TOPICAL HAIR REPLACEMENT

If you’ve never dealt with hair loss, you don’t know what its like to count the strands of hair on your brush after you comb it, to check your hair line before every shower or to spend hours on a search engine looking up hair growth supplements. Hair provides confidence. It gives the look of youthfulness and it is simply an attractive genetic trait to have, a full head of hair. According to studies, 25% of the time, Male Pattern Baldness Starts Before the Age of 21. That is an extremely early start. A human brain isn’t even full developed until the age of 25. With the prevalence of hair thinning and balding, its no wonder there are so many options out there. Many have done hair replacement surgery but topical hair replacement is rapidly on the rise. So which option is best for you?

Hair Replacement Surgery

Hair Replacement Surgery or Hair Transplant Surgery works to restore patches and areas on your scalp that are bald or thinning. This is possible through the removal of hair from other parts of the body and grafting it to the parts of your scalp that need it. There are two possible transplant methods FUT (Follicular Unit Transplantation) or FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction).

Follicular Unit Transplantation

The surgeon removes a piece of scalp, usually from the back of your head using a scalpel.
They then surgically close the area where the scalp was removed with stitches.
Next, they will separate the scalp into thousands of smaller fragments, called grafts. Grafts will likely contain one hair follicle each.
Utilizing a small needle, they will make small punctures in your scalp where the hair grafts will be transplanted and the hairs will be inserted.

The amount of grafts depends on each individual case.

Follicular Unit Extraction

The surgeon will shave all the hair off from the back of your head.
Next, they will remove individual hairs follicles out of the scalp skin.
Like the previous procedure, they will make small puncture holes in your scalp and apply the hair follicles into the holes.

These procedures can take up to several days to complete depending on the individual. You’ll be wrapped in gauze and bandages and you may be given injections like triamcinolone as an anti-inflammatory.

It is likely be in pain for a few days and take pain medications prescribed by your doctor, antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and hair growth medications to stimulate growth. You’ll need at least 3 days off of work and you’ll need to practice excessive caution when washing your hair, doing exercise or normal activities, changing clothes that involve pulling over your head or hats and avoid combing your new hair grafts for usually 3 weeks.

Side Effects of these Surgical Procedures:

infections
crust or pus drainage around the surgical sites
scalp pain, itching, and swelling
inflammation of hair follicles
bleeding
losing sensation around the surgical sites
visible areas of hair that don’t match the surrounding hair or are noticeably thinner
continuing to lose hair if your hair is still balding

Hair Growth Stimulants like Minoxidil and Propecia can also have side effects, such as:

irritated scalp
dizziness
chest pain
headaches
irregular heart rate
hand, foot, or breast swelling
sexual dysfunction

Topical Hair Restoration

Topical Hair has come a long way since we’ve seen them in old movies flying off a man’s head when the wind blew to hard. They have become extremely realistic and undetectable which is where the rise in popularity has come from.

How Topical Hair Restoration Works

They begin by shaving the surface of your head to apply the adhesive.
Glue and / or tape can be used depending on what’s best for the individual client.
The stylist will line the front of the system with your nose and start the unit at the tip of where your natural hairline would start. Press down to secure the front of the system then pull the system back in a rolling method while keeping pressure applied to have the unit sit smoothly on all sides of the shaved area.
Finally, the client will instruct the stylist what style of hair they would like. Any cut and shape is possible.

Typically these topical hair units last 6 months before they need to be replaced and the adhesive needs to be reapplied every 3-4 weeks. There are no harmful side effects, no downtime, and it is a much more affordable option.

With topical hair units, you can exercise regularly, shower and sleep with it on. It is a 24/7 unit that is secured to your head when using the correct adhesives. Your scalp can still properly breathe as the unit has a mesh lining where the hair follicles are attached too so you almost can’t feel it as it sits comfortably on your head.

Conclusion

Hair replacement surgery was the only real option in the past before the advancement of topical hair units. Hair restoration doesn’t have to be expensive, painful and dangerous. You can regain your confidence with ease with topical hair restoration

Interested? At Man Hair, our focus is giving you the perfect hair replacement system so that you can regain your confidence, and look your absolute best. Located in Jacksonville, Florida, we are the leading solution for men’s hair replacement.