Final result timeline in women versus men

[Plum]

I have heard that when a woman has a hair transplant, it takes longer to see the final result than when a man has one. Men generally have full results of their surgery in about a year's time whereas women tend to have full results in the 16 to 18 month timeframe.

Can anyone confirm or correct my understanding of this?

[gillenator]

I believe what you are referring to has to do with the final "visual result". Women generally wear their hair length longer than men and so yes, it will take longer for the re-growth to catch up in terms of length.

[Jeffrey Epstein, MD]

There are several challenges specific to working on women- one of them happens to be the fact that they often have finer donor hairs, another one is that they already have existing longer hair in those areas where they wish to see more density. With both of these conditions, it takes a bit more time for appreciation of the results. In those cases where density is being restored to the frontotemporal recessions, or a hairline is being lowered/advanced, the results are detectable quite soon, usually within 4 to 6 months.

Jeffrey Epstein, MD, FACS
Miami and NYC

https://www.womenscenterforhairloss.com

https://www.foundhair.com

[Plum]

Thank you very much for your responses gillenator and Dr. Epstein. What you have both said makes complete sense.

[Dr. Glenn Charles]

I think it is safe to say that the time it takes for any patient to see a final result
following hair transplantation generally ranges somewhere between 9-18 months. There are so many factors that probably play a role for each patient as to where they are going to fall within this time line. I will mention a few and quite sure there are many more, they include gender, race, hair characteristics, type of procedure performed, and patients health. Final result to some people means some hair growing from every graft. Most patients want to know how long it will take to achieve final aesthetic results, which in some patients can take between 1-2 years. This is because hairs from the first growth cycle of the transplanted grafts is often very stiff and brittle. This may not give the patient the best appearance or the appearance they were hoping for. Then, 6-12 months later which may be 18-24 months after their procedure where the hairs have had sufficient time to grow out and the stiff and brittle portions have now been cut off. Now this patient is looking at a final result.

[Plum]

Thank you very much for your insight on this topic Dr. Charles. It is greatly appreciated.

I am at about 16 months post-op and because I have shoulder length hair, I am finding it a bit difficult to style because the front where I had the transplants is still too short to pin back the way I like. (My recipient area was shaved down for the procedure too so I'm still trying to grow out that hair as well, especially in the temple area.)

I am also contemplating having a second procedure to further refine the results as my hair is very fine and I'd like to get a bit more density in the hairline and temples. I'm just not sure how long I should actually wait before having a second procedure should I decide to go that route.

[gillenator]

Plum,

IMHO, I would say that at 16 month post-op, there would be no more grafts coming through. Hair on average grows about one half inch per month. So at 16 months post-op, you probably have roughly 13 month of real growth. Take that times 1/2 inch and you get approximately 6 1/2 inches of growth. If you are wearing you hair length at your shoulders, you have a way to go.

Also at 16 months post-op you should be fine to have another procedure because again, I highly doubt if you have any more new sprouts coming through from your last procedure.

[Plum]

Thank you very much for your input on this topic again gillenator. You are always such a tremendous help.

And you are right that I have about 6 and a half inches of length to my transplanted hair....

[gillenator]

Thank you very much for your input on this topic again gillenator. You are always such a tremendous help.

And you are right that I have about 6 and a half inches of length to my transplanted hair....

Hey, you're very welcome Plum. Whenever I talk with someone post-op who wears their hair length long, I do the quick math accounting for 3-4 months dormancy, and they are always surprised by the accuracy.

Best wishes to you on your next procedure!