Hair loss is something two in three men must deal with by the age of 35. Those numbers only increase by age 50 and beyond. This means that you will likely have some concern about your own hair at some point in your life. Luckily, you have hair restoration options, such as hair transplant. But how much do these transplants cost?
About Hair Transplants
Hair transplants are one of the most popular solutions for hair restoration. This is because this method helps you regrow your own natural hair. As part of this procedure, your surgeon removes healthy follicles from one part of your scalp. This donor hair typically comes from the back, where the small scars are easily concealed under thicker hair growth. Your surgeon then transplants this hair to thinner areas of your male pattern baldness.
This is surgery. Like any surgery, it can be costly. But most men believe the cost is worthwhile as they start seeing the permanent results. Expense is only one consideration, with recovery time, risks and side effects being other things you should think about. You should discuss all of the available treatments and what to expect before deciding on the right option for you.
Types Of Hair Transplants
In the 1970s, the relatively new procedure of hair transplantation left much to be desired. The process left many men looking like dolls, but not in a good way. Instead, they grew hair only in clearly defined and highly visible patches. This is where the term “hair plugs” originated. The plug look made it difficult to enjoy having hair regrowth where it was once lost. Instead, many of these men felt compelled to hide their plugs by avoiding short hair cuts and activities like swimming.
Starting in the 1990s, the process of hair transplantation refined. Surgeons improved in their methods and created two separate types of transplant surgeries. These are follicular unit transplantation (FUT) and follicular unit extraction (FUE).
FUT harvests a strip of hair from a donor area of your scalp, typically on the back. Your surgeon then transplants this donor tissue onto the front or top of the head, where hair loss occurs. But FUT leaves a scar that can be noticed with very close-cropped hair.
FUE is a newer process that involves the removal and implantation of individual follicle units. To do this, your surgeon uses micro-punches to remove only follicles and small areas of tissue around them. As a result, no scarring is visible. On the downside, FUE takes a lot longer than FUT and is costlier. It is also typically used only for small areas of hair restoration.
Hair Transplant Cost
How much your hair transplantation will cost depends on multiple factors. These include:
- Local market where you live or have the surgery conducted
- Whether you undergo a FUT or FUE procedure
- Travel costs, if travel is required with your surgery
- Your chosen surgeon’s rates
- Difficulty of your case
According to recent online estimates for FUT and FUE surgeries, you can expect a cost of between $3,000 and $15,000 for your procedure. Obviously, this is not inexpensive. It is also difficult to know what your individual costs will be until you meet with a hair restoration surgeon for an estimate.
When looking for a London hair transplant surgeon (or someone local to you) to perform your hair restoration, you should meet with more than one, so you can get a second opinion regarding the cause of your hair loss and proposed surgical solutions. By seeing at least two surgeons before committing to the costly surgery, you also gain a clear understanding of what is involved in these kinds of procedures.
