Hair Restoration Blog

Q:

Hi, My name is XX XX and I am from India. My age is 27 years. I am suffering from scarring alopecia from last 10 years. Initially I have 4-5 very small patches, but now they have increased slowly, these patches are very smooth and of red color. I never feel and pain, burn or sever itching on my scalp, but many times I feel sensation under my scalp area and on my face, it is just like something is moving. I have taken lots of treatments Dermatology, homeopathy, ayurveda but none of these worked, may be because I did not continue any one of them more than six month. One or two year back it was kind of arrest but from last one year it again starting and I can see some new small small smooth and red color patches. I am very depressed and don’t know what to do. Please tell me if you can help me in any kind of diagnose or treatment in your research center or by any other way, please help me out. I will be very grateful!!

A:

Scarring alopecia (Cicatricial Alopecia or CC) is a broad term that applied to a diverse group of hair loss disorders.  An inflammatory condition is usually present that causes destruction of the hair follicles.  Biopsy of the scalp is generally needed to establish the diagnosis. Treatment options are different based on the exact microscopic diagnosis.  In many cases the treatment of cicatricial alopecia is difficult and a complete recovery may not be achievable with medical treatments.

Hair transplant has been tried for the treatment of cicatricial alopecia for those who have a healthy donor hair with limited success.  In some cases the process of the disease may flare up and stimulate losing patient’s original hair along with the transplanted ones. I usually obtain a scalp biopsy from patients who have atypical patterns of baldness to role our cicatricial alopecia before planning for a hair restoration surgery in our Los Angeles Hair Restoration Centers.

My recommendation to you is to find a good dermatologist and stick with his or her plan. You need to understand that the treatment of cicatricial alopecia might be long and a complete recovery might not be achievable in many patients.

Q:

Dear Sir,

I am 27 years old now and I have the problem of hair falling, I lost 60% of hair in a period of last 3-4 years. I am basically from India and currently working in Dubai.  I heard about your treatment for baldness; I am interested in hair transplantation. I had gone through the details through internet, Can you provide more details about the transplantation.

·        What is the percentage guaranteed for the transplantation

·        What are the side effects

·        Can I do the treatment in India / UAE (mention places)

·        How is the treatment period

·        What are the pre and post procedures of treatment

·        How is the treatment done

·        What about the price for the transplanting

·        How is the growth of hair after transplanting? Gradual, Immediate……

With regards

Patient’s Name

A:

Below you can find the answer to your questions as they were asked:

·        What is the percentage guaranteed for the transplantation?
If diagnosis is done correctly with an expert eye, it can be 95-99% successful.

·        What are the side effects?
A linear scar on the back, some swelling and redness on forehead for a few days after surgery and possibility of some numbness at or around donor and recipient area.  For more you see donor scar complication post in my blog.

·        Can I do the treatment in India / UAE (mention places)?
We are in process of having regular visits to Dubai, but we don’t have a certain day yet.  Please check with our office within the next few months for the schedule of our Dubai, UAE hair transplant clinic.  However, if you are willing to travel to get your hair restoration surgery done in our Los Angeles hair transplant clinic, we do have a special program for the patients from other countries in which they can get 10% off the cost of their hair restoration procedure toward their traveling expenses.

·        How is the treatment period, what are the pre and post procedures of treatment and how is the treatment done?
Please see our website to get more information of hair transplant surgery with follicular unit transplant method.  You can also see some before and after hair transplant pictures there.

·        What about the price for the transplanting
Check the website of US Hair Restoration for cost of hair transplant surgery.

·        How is the growth of hair after transplanting? Gradual, Immediate……
It usually takes 3 months for you to see any growth, and then it will get better and better until 1 year post surgery.

Please don’t hesitate to ask any other questions by email or through Hair Restoration Blog.

Best,
Parsa Mohebi, MD

Many hair transplant patients are concerned with the scar of cosmetic surgeries including hair transplants. Several techniques have been suggested to minimize the scar such as corticosteroid injections, irradiation, ultrasound, silicone applications into and around the forming scar. However, the effects of most these methods were far from satisfactory. Botox is a new method that could be used to minimize the size of both facial and scalp scars. The use of Botox for reduction of facial scars from surgeries was first suggested by plastic surgeons who were trying to reduce postoperative effect of facial muscles on stretching and widening of scars.

In many patients with ugly scars of the face, Botox or botulinum toxin was used successfully to induce temporary paralysis of the muscles during revision surgery. Botox with the same mechanism can help minimizing tension on the healing wound edges until collagen could mature and scar if completely and firmly formed.

The use of Botox has been suggested for the treatment of stretched scars on the face by many plastic surgeons now. Hair transplant surgeons also use Botox for treatment of the hair transplant widened scars of the donor area that do not show improvement with a simple scar revision procedure. There are reports of successful decrease in the final size of the scars with injection of Botox into the muscles surrounding the maturing scar. We at the Los Angeles hair transplant offices of US Hair Restoration don’t offer Botox to every patient who is having a hair transplant surgery through strip technique, but it certainly could be used for the patients who suffered from widened scars of prior surgeries and did not respond to the other methods of scar revision.