Is Asian Hair Better for Hair Transplant Surgery than Caucasian Hair?

This below question was asked by a member of our Hair Loss Social Community and Discussion Forums and answered by recommended hair restoration surgeon Dr. Wen-Yi Wu:

Why is it easier for Asian hair transplant patients to achieve better coverage/density than Caucasians with fewer follicular unit grafts? Is is mainly due to the texture of their hair or color of the skin?

There are five commonly accepted characteristics of hair that are important to consider when performing hair transplantation. The hair restoration surgeon must project mentally how these physical features of the hair will affect the transplant result.

1. Caliber – The caliber of the hair shaft contributes most to the final fullness and perceived bulk of the transplanted result. An increase in hair diameter of a mere 0.01 mm increases hair bulk by an astounding 36%. The hair caliber varies greatly from one individual to another. In general, Asians have a thicker hair caliber than Caucasians.
2. Color contrast with skin – The less contrast between the color of the hair and skin, the less noticeable any bald gaps between hairs become. Put differently, the less the color contrast between hair and skin, the more even and the more natural the hair coverage appears to be and, therefore, there is the illusion of more hair. Most Asians have black or dark brown hair, and this creates more contrast among those with light complexions such as the Chinese, but would be less of a problem for darker skinned Asians such as the Indian or Malay populations. This unfavorable color contrast of the Asians may be somewhat compensated for by the larger hair caliber.
3. Curl – See Wave below.
4. Wave – The more curl or wave to the hair, the denser and fuller the hair appears to be. A natural wave to the hair not only increases the naturalness but also increases the apparent fullness and density. Most Asians have straight hair.
5. Frizziness – Hair is said to be frizzy when it possesses a visibly irregular surface and, therefore, flows unevenly. The individual hairs lay “roughly” upon each other, with more space between them and they thus give an appearance of increased density. In addition, the more frizzy the hair is, the more natural the transplant looks because bald spaces between hairs are blurred by the frizz.

In summary, having thick, slightly curly and frizzy hair will contribute to a good outcome.

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