I am thinking about getting a hair transplant, but I keep reading horror stories about hair transplant shock loss after. If I do have a hair transplant, is there any way to know if I will have hair transplant shock loss? Is there any way to prevent shock loss from hair a transplant?
Hair Transplant Shock Loss Is Temporary in Most Cases
Hair transplant shock loss stories are terrifying. Patients have a hair transplant to make their hair loss situation better, and end up looking worse than they did before they had the hair transplant. First, it’s important to understand that the rate of shock loss is only 1 to 2 % in our practice and that hair transplant shock loss is temporary in most cases (shocked hairs typically grow back between 3-6 months).
Patient with shock loss in the donor area from another clinic. Hair transplant shock loss is temporary in most cases and typically shocked hairs grow back between 3-6 months.
Hair transplant shock loss is when physical trauma done to the transplanted hairs causes them to shed from the recipient or donor area after a transplant. The trauma to the hair is caused by the very tools and chemicals that are used to perform the transplant. It can happen no matter what method of hair transplant is being performed by the doctor.
There is no way to predict if you will be subject to shock loss after a hair transplant before the procedure occurs. This is due to the fact that how your doctor performs your hair transplant has a greatest effect on whether you will experience it or not.
The chance of shock loss after a hair transplant increases if your doctor has no respect for the hair angle when making the incision sites, packs the transplanted hair too densely or if the hairs are fragile and in the end of the anagen cycle.
Medications Can Decrease Your Chances of Hair Transplant Shock Loss
Aside from your doctor properly respecting the hair angle at the incision site and grafting healthy hair in an appropriate density, there is little that you can do to prevent shock loss after a hair transplant. You can try to strengthen your hairs with medications like minoxidil or propecia (consult your doctor first). The use of either of these two medications can possible decrease your chances of hair transplant shock loss.