Is Facial Swelling Normal after Hair Transplant Surgery?

This question, from a member of our hair loss social community and discussion forums, was answered by Coalition hair transplant surgeon Dr. James DeYarman:

I had a follicular unit extraction (FUE) hair transplant on 1st July 2013, so about 5 days ago. Now I have a lot of swelling on my forehead, reaching my nose, brows and eyelids. Is this normal? And, when should I expect the swelling to go away?

I’ve read that a lot of people had swelling, but that it goes away in the first few days or after a week. For me it looks like it will take much longer than that.

Swelling is due to the large amount of saline injected under the scalp during hair restoration surgery. I have my patients apply a hot compress to the forehead then massage the forehead from the middle out to help get the fluid to migrate down the side of the face and into the neck.

I have my patients massage the forehead once an hour for five minutes for the first 48 hours while awake. Since the swelling is due to the saline, ice will make the swelling last longer. I advise my patients not to use ice on the face or forehead.

Dr. James DeYarman

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David (TakingThePlunge)
Editorial Assistant and Forum Co-Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q & A Blog.
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