Hair Transplant Shedding Is It Normal?

I had a hair transplant a month ago and everything was looking great, but now my hair is shedding and I don’t know what to do. Is this normal?

Having a hair transplant can be stressful, but the hair grafts shedding are a normal part of the hair restoration process. Contrary to popular belief hair shedding does not mean a person has androgenic alopecia (genetic hair loss). In fact, everyone sheds around 100 hairs per day, the fact that a persons hair is shedding does not mean they are losing their hair.

The hair life cycle has three phases:

*Anagen (growth phase)

*Catagen (transitional phase)

*Telogen (resting phase)

A hair transplant consists of the follicular units being extracted from the scalp and transplanted in to the thinning/balding area. The entire hair root must be removed and transplanted in order for the hair follicle to grow in another location. Once the hair root has been grafted and transplanted, the hair root anchors in to the scalp and begins the hair follicle life cycle. Thus, causing the follicles to go in to the telogen (resting) phase and shed.

It is important to remember that each hair follicle is independent and goes through the anagen, catagen and telogen phase at different times. Therefore, some patients may experience some of the follicular unit grafts shedding faster than others, this is a normal part of the process. In rare cases, not all of the transplanted hairs shed.

Unfortunately, the majority of patients shed all of the transplanted hair around the fourth to sixth week following surgery. This can leave patients feeling anxious and disappointed, but this is completely normal. The majority of hair transplant patients will begin to see noticeable hair growth around the third to fourth month after surgery. However, transplanted hair can appear fine and whispy in the beginning, which can make it difficult for a patient to see or even notice. With each month that passes, the hair shaft diameter will increase and mature until reaching their final state, which for most patients is around eighteen months after their hair transplant procedure.

Written and published by,
Melvin- Editorial Assistant and Forum Co-Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network and The Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians