Question:
What is the recovery like after a hair transplant?
Answer:
For the majority of patients, the post procedure course is relatively uneventful. Most patients return to the office the first post procedure day to have their hair washed. No bandages or dressings are used so generally a baseball cap can be worn the very first day after the procedure. Appearance-wise, the use of Toppik concealing powder, which is color matched to the patient’s hair, can be used in those patients with some existing hair to allow them to resume public appearances as soon as a day or two after the procedure. Hair washing is permitted on the second day post procedure and slow resumption of normal activities and normal hair washing on the fifth day after the procedure. There is a bit of mild to moderate discomfort the first night of the procedure which is well treated with pain medicine that is supplied by the office. Three months after the procedure, most patients begin to notice some very early growth. The use of laser post procedure does seem to accelerate the recovery process so that all crusts in the grafted areas are gone by one week.
Posted by Jeffrey S. Epstein, MD, FACS
