Am I too young for a Hair Transplant?

There are a few key questions I ask myself when determining who is a good candidate for hair transplant surgery.

Is my hair loss stable enough for a transplant?

If you are asking am I too young for a Hair Transplant? Determining whether or not your hair is ‘stable’ or ‘unstable’ – this is one of the most important questions I ask myself when evaluating every new patient.

Hair restoration is really moving hair from the back of the head (your donor) to the area of hair loss (recipient), but there is a limited supply. Many younger patients visit the clinic complaining of significant hair loss in a short period of time.

If you are still losing hair it is often a better idea to first stabilise your hair loss with medication before proceeding with surgery. On the other hand if you have lost a significant amount of hair at an early age and your hair is now relatively static you might be a candidate for hair transplant surgery. 

How many grafts can I transplant?

At your new patient consultation I need to decide whether or not your donor will provide enough grafts to cover the recipient area and whether or not that is a good idea.

The number of grafts we can move in your lifetime is finite and will depend on your donor, specifically the size and density. It will also be determined by the surgical technique utilised, Follicular Unit Excision (FUE) or Strip Follicular Unit Transplantation (Strip FUT).

For younger patients this is especially important because it is very difficult to predict accurately your pattern of hair loss over the next 10-20 years and whether or not you will have enough grafts to achieve a natural result. 

Setting realistic expectations

Your pattern of hair loss along with your goals and expectations will not be the same as other peoples.

An experienced surgeon will be transparent about what you are likely to achieve with hair transplant surgery and will suggest the best course of action to treat your hair loss. If they are unable to meet your goals or believe you have unrealistic expectations this should be spoken about openly even if that means disappointing you. 

This can be especially important when consulting younger patients as hair loss can be a source of great stress and anxiety. I am often asked to design hairlines which are too low and straight or told that medication is not an option and a quick fix is desired.

Whilst this notion might be appealing in the short-term the long-term result will be unnatural looking hair and is often the reason why I refuse to operate.