Question:
I am interested in getting a hair transplant and was just wondering what sort of density you need to achieve successful coverage. I am sure you cannot achieve the same as the original density but what would the approximate percentage be compared to the original coverage?
Answer:
This is a difficult question to answer in the sense that everyone’s hair is different. Some people have very thin hair, some people have very thick hair, some people have gray or blonde hair and some people have very dark hair. All these different characteristics make the aspect of density a variable concern depending upon what you present to the original surgeon with. However, with good modern hair transplants, we are able to get successful coverage in almost all individuals and the coverage is usually dense enough to look both natural and satisfying to the patient. It will never be quite as dense as the original hair, however in many areas, especially the frontal areas, we can probably get between 80% and 90% of the original density of the hair and over the crown area we can probably get closer to 70% density.
Again, the important thing is that the hair transplant look natural and that the density be good enough to satisfy the patient and this is usually achieved without any difficulty in almost all our patients.
Posted by Richard Galitz, MD, FACS
