It may be a shock to you, but 30% to 40% of hair transplants I perform are repair cases. These patients come to me, usually devastated, with the results of an inexperienced doctor's attempt at a hair transplant.
There are two types of repair cases - repair of the donor site and repair of the recipient site.
Donor site repair
Repair work in the donor site is essentially scar reduction. It occurs in patients who have had too much skin taken from their donor site, or their donor site was poorly sutured. In one in five of these donor site repair cases, I can surgically remove the scar and close the area again using the Tricophytic closure. A lack of loose skin in the donor area makes this procedure difficult with most patients. In these cases I perform an FUE transplant into the entire length of the scar. In this case I find body hair (from the chest, back, etc.) very useful. I will often put 200 to 300 body hairs using FUE into a scar, and they will grow and sufficiently hide the scar, allowing patients, if they so desire, to cut their hair short.
Recipient site repair
These cases involve the removal of plugs or large grafts on the hairline and/or moving back a hairline that has been poorly created, e.g. it is too low down on the brow.
Removal of larger grafts is usually done using the FUE technique. I am amazed at how many patients come to me, self-conscious about the horrible result of a past transplant, and how easily these large grafts can be removed. If there are a lot of grafts in the hairline, I can also take a strip out along the entire hairline, thus creating a new one, higher up on the forehead. I can then plant single hair grafts on and in front of the scar created by this surgery, creating a completely natural appearance.
The following is a letter from a repair patient that I received about a year ago:
I could not decide whether to scream or cry. What I had was not a bad hair transplant, but a horrible transplant. My gratitude to you will last forever. After surviving the war, I feel like have been given a third chance at life. My confidence is at an all time high. I got a huge promotion and my social life hasn't been better. Before, especially at work, a stare at my hair line would simply disarm me; I couldn't function. Thanks again!
This letter shows the devastation that a poor transplant can cause a patient. I have several photos of repair work on my site at
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