Sun Exposure after Hair Transplant

[johnjoe]

Hello,

I have had a hair transplant 6 months ago and results are already good, still waiting for more growth.
The bad thing is despite mezo and plazmo therapies, my own hair continues thinning and if it does so, my transplant will look really bad and out of place.

At the clinic, where I had the surgery, I have been strongly recommended the igrow helmet to prevent my own hair from farther thinning and loss - https://www.igrowlaser.com - this one exactly.

So i wanted to ask, do you maybe have any recommendations? is it good? or isnt it dangerous in any way? im a bit afraid because it involves intensive laser therapy on the head... so am thinking about harm it may cause..

Thank you in advance, am looking forward to hearing from you.

[gillenator]

Certainly not a bad idea to wait for the total regrowth to manifest...

[MONY]

Dear JB,

Try to avoid sun exposure after the surgery as your scalp would be still pink and swollen. Wear a hat if you have to go out in the sun. As the newly transplanted hair moves towards the surface, it's possible that excessive sun exposure could be harmful to the grafts. Its better to be away from direct sunlight as you may end up getting bad sunburn, which may result in no hair growth in that area. One should take cautionary measures to avoid sunlight after hair transplant operation for atleast 3 to 6 mnths, or until the transplanted hair has completely come out.
Hope this helps. Good Luck !

[gillenator]

That is undoubtedly why some docs feel six months post-op is necessary for the scalp to recover without running the risk of damaging the grafts.

[LogicalBald068]

Hi,JB Well Direct sunlight might not be the good idea to be directly in contacted after the hair transplantation immediately. It might take more then 3-4 months to get fully recovered hair scalp after the surgery. Reasons can be like
a. Native Skin comparison vs. transplanted Hair: the comparative capabilities to recover the hair area are more strength in Native skin (which is not transplanted) then transplanted hair.
b.Skin sensation : Skin is immature to take any roughness from outer environment
It’s not like you would never expose your head to contact direct sunlight post-op it also depends upon the duration and the type of hair recovery distinctly.

[gillenator]

Hairaldo,

By your description, I doubt that you did any damage to your grafts especially if you did not sustain any sunburn.

As you can see from the prior postings, you do want to cover your scalp whenever spending any duration of time in the direct sunlight.

Most docs want their patients to keep their scalps covered from the sun for at least six moths post-op.

Congrats on your recent procedure...

[Hairaldo]

Newbie

Hi all, I just had a question that has been bothering me for the best part of a month now regarding this topic.
I had an FUE of 4000 grafts done around 6 weeks ago, and at day 6 or 7, I exposed my head to some direct sunlight intermittently for around an hour or so,maybe more. afterwards I never had any redness, bleeding, pain or anything that suggested a sunburn, in fact I remembered about exposing my head a few days later.
my head looks perfectly ok and everything.
Should I be worried I damaged the grafts in some way? Is the main worry about exposing yourself to sunlight related to getting a sunburn which if avoided, means you did not in fact damage your grafts?

[gillenator]

johnjoe,

You're welcome my friend.

Whether you use a cap or bandana, you want to be sure that the fabric is thick enough to not allow the rays to penetrate through.

Some caps have breathable openings (mesh) or holes to allow air to pass but you want one that completely protects your scalp especially the recipient area where the grafts are.

Look under the cap from the inside as it faces the sun. If you can see light passing through the cap, then you need a different one that does not.

[johnjoe]

gillenator,

thank you very much!

I'll definitely look up sun block lotions..

but theoritically, even if i dont use one, are cap and bandana enough to protect grafts and donor area, or can it still be harmed by sun?

[gillenator]

johnjoe,

Well it's good to hear that you are taking the precautions to protect your grafts with a cap...

Your face and any exposed skin can be potentially harmed by both UVA and UVB rays. UVA rays (long range) can age us however it's the UVB rays (short wave) that can burn us. Both are bad if exposed without proper protection. The closer we are to the equator, the more intense the rays are.

This is where a good quality sun block lotion for any exposed skin would be beneficial. But be sure to compare both the quality of the product as well as the rating. Not all sun block products are the same so it's a good idea to research the ratings on these various products.

If you are going to be in the sun for prolonged periods, you want the highest rating passible and be sure to apply in regular intervals especially if you are experiencing a higher rate of perspiration and/or are swimming.

[johnjoe]

Hello,

I had a fue procedure one month ago,

I'm going to the sea and was wondering if its ok be in sunlight/to tan wearing a cap?

meaning, might it be dangerous in any way to get sunglight in the face for example? even though i'll wearing a cap and therefore transplanted area wont be exposed to direct sunlight...

thank you in advance!

[gillenator]

You would have to potentially get a very bad sunburn pre-op to negatively affect your upcoming procedure.

Yes, a loosely fitted ball cap post-op or even a loosely fitted bandana would work well in protecting your grafts post-op.

Most guys choose the ball cap because the fabric tends to be thicker to keep the UV rays out.

[censur]

Hi!

I know now that it's certainly not recommended to expose the scalp to sunlight directly after HT.
I am now planning for another HT and also a holiday in Asia. I may undertake the Asia trip either before or after I do my HT.
Are there any restrictions or recommendations regarding sun exposure the weeks BEFORE the HT as well? Or is it mainly the months following the HT when it's important to avoid the sun?

If I wear a baseball cap on my head basically all of the time when I'm in the sun, I should be alright, right? Almost no UV-rays get through the baseball cap?

[gillenator]

There are considerable differences of opinion regarding the exposure of the scalp following a HT procedure. And although I am not the most knowledgeable on the scientific side, I can tell you that even though your recent exposure may have appeared detrimental, it is unlikely that you did any damage to your grafts.

It is more the direct exposure to the UVA rays that can cause significant burn to body tissue. Unless you experienced this, you should be ok. The grafts are placed deep into the dermis layer of scalp tissue where the blood supply exists and that's where the newly implanted grafts/follicles re-connect to the blood supply. At one month post-op this probably already occurred otherwise the grafts would have perished without a blood supply, and necrosis occurs.

Most of the time, a first degree sun-burn will not do much damage. But it's the more 2nd degree and higher burns that can do damage below the epidermis.

Still, to be on the safe side, most docs do not want their patients exposed directly to the UVA rays for 3-6 months, and some docs even feel 9 months.

And many docs advocate covering the scalp (cap or hat) rather than using a sun block because as you already know, sun block is not that effective other than for very short periods of time. So it's best to not expose the scalp to direct UVA rays for more than say 7-10 minutes depending on the forecasted UVA rating.

I think you're going to be fine even though you experienced some additional shedding.

[gallovolador]

Is there any evidence of which part of UV radiation damages grafts after hair transplant?. Is it UVA or UVB or both?. It is an important issue because most of cream sun blockers do not protect against UVA, also when indoors UVA passes because glass does not block UVA radiation.
I had a bad experience just one month post: I was inside airport building where walls were glass walls, I thought that type of glass would block most of UVA radiation and I exposed myself to direct sunlight on scalp for around 15 to 20 minutes, I never had any redness because redness is due to UVB and glass block it effectively but I had massive shedding that night and day after, much more than shedding experience on previous days. I concluded that UVA radiation damaged my one month grafts, because UVA gets deeper into dermis. From my research I found out that that type of special glass (insulated glass unit to reduce noise and save energy cost) block around 50% of UVA thus I guess that my 15-20 minutes exposure was similar to 10 minutes outside exposure.
Could someone gives a feedback about it?.
How can we know if we get damaged by UVA exposure if there are never signs of it in skin?. Do HT Drs use any special surgery lamps that do not emit UVA radiation during surgery?.
When Drs recommend sun cream protection SPF+35, do they take into account that most of it do not block UVA?.
I hope I did not ruin all my efforts with this 20 minutes close to this glass walls, in about eight months I promise I will come back here to tell if my result could have been impared by this.
Any help on this will be much appreciated.