Can Young People with Hair Loss Get Hair Transplants?

So many people give advice not to get a hair transplant for younger patients because of bad experiences but, every single story I’ve heard about regret or procedures going bad are from guys who had hair transplants in the past where it was done with hair plugs or other old procedures. I understand that a lot of caution should be taken, but  given the latest and best techniques  available from the best surgeons can you really go wrong if a well made plan is made?

In my opinion, young people with minimal hair loss are not optimal hair transplant candidates. In many cases a person in this predicament will have much higher expectations since they want to restore even the slightest bit of thinning hair and pack it as densely as possible with transplanted hair.

Though this can be accomplished early on, it’s not a realistic long term game plan. The fact is, nobody can truly predict exactly how far your hair loss will progress, and with a limited donor hair supply, it’s always better to err on the side of caution.

In my opinion, this is why it’s vital for young people with minimal hair loss  to consider non-surgical hair loss treatments like Propecia (finasteride)  and Rogaine (minoxidil). Not only may they help slow down or stop hair loss, but they could potentially stimulate hair regrowth and postpone or prevent the need for hair restoration surgery.

I think exceptions can be made for young balding patients, but the patient must be aware of all the risks, have the knowledge that subsequent hair transplant surgeries are inevitable, be aware that achieving a full looking head of hair is rare (especially if their baldness progresses to advanced stages), and develop and maintain very realistic goals.

Read also Am I Too Young for a Hair Transplant?.

Bill Seemiller
Associate Publisher of the Hair Transplant Network and the Hair Loss Learning Center
View my Hair Loss Weblog

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