Can a Hair Transplant Be Done on a Scar?

Hair transplants into scar tissue are possible. However, there are more complex assessments and considerations needed compared to a standard hair transplant. The additional challenges with hair transplants on scars mean the procedure can be longer, and further rounds of surgery may be required. Choosing an expert hair transplant clinic increases your chances of success.

In this article, we’ll be discussing hair transplants for scar repair in more detail, answering common questions and going through what the procedure entail

Summary

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1. What Is Scar Tissue?
2. What Are the Natural Methods to Reduce the Visibility of Scars?
3. Why Hair Doesn’t Grow on Scar Tissue?
4. Hair Transplant on Scar: Is It Possible?
5. What Is the Procedure for Hair Transplants on Scar Tissue?
6. Fue vs Fut Procedures
7. Conclusion

What Is Scar Tissue?

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Scar tissue on the scalp can be caused by burns, surgery, trauma scars, scars from infection, scarring alopecia, skin grafts, radiation therapy or an injury. 

Scar tissue forms following the process to protect an open wound from infection. This begins when our body first bleeds, and then the blood clots to form a scab. The scab acts as a shield from bacteria and further external damage. Fibroblasts (a connective tissue cell that secretes collagen) then build restorative scar tissue beneath the scab formation.

The characteristics of scar tissue mean there is stiffness of the skin, which makes it more challenging to transplant the hairs precisely. Additionally, there is no existing hair follicle pattern to guide the placement, so hair transplants into scars can be more lengthy as our expert surgeons take time to make the placement as natural as possible.

What Are the Natural Methods to Reduce the Visibility of Scars?

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If your scar is on this area of the scalp, wearing a hat or a headscarf is the easiest way to hide it, although this isn’t always ideal. The most effective solution to covering scars on your head is with a hair transplant over the scar.

While scars won’t go away, there are natural methods to reduce the visibility of scars. However, there isn’t a natural way to regrow hair here (only surgically through a hair transplant on scar tissue).

Eventually, the colour of your scarring can blend in with the surrounding skin, which means it becomes less noticeable. This process can be sped up using natural methods such as:

• Aloe vera
• Vitamin E
• Honey
• Coconut oil
• Apple cider vinegar
• Lavender and olive oil
• Lemon
• Baking soda
• Rosehip and frankincense

Why Hair Doesn’t Grow on Scar Tissue?

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Humans are born with all the hair follicles we will ever have – that’s a total of 5 million hair follicles. Hair doesn’t grow on a scar because the scarred area is new skin that doesn’t contain any hair follicles.

When your skin becomes injured or burnt, the hair follicles in that location are destroyed, and they don’t regenerate afterwards. Thus, the damaged area appears bald and with a slightly different skin texture and appearance.

Unfortunately, these scars are very visible on your head, especially if they are where hair grew before. A hair transplant on the scar is effective because it covers the area, meaning you won’t notice where the scar was.

Hair Transplant on Scar: Is It Possible?

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Yes, hair transplants on scars and scar tissue are possible. An assessment would be needed to understand the position, size and type of scar and discuss the next steps. Since scars aren’t uniform, they are assessed on an individual basis.

Therefore, the number of hair grafts needed is calculated depending on the size of the area. Elithair would use FUE hair transplant surgery for scars, and this includes scars on the scalp caused by injury, burns or radiation therapy, or scars from a FUT hair transplant. 

A hair transplant on a scar is a permanent solution to hide the visibility of this damaged area. By restoring the natural hair growth, you will no longer be able to see the scarring, and you’ll be able to move on from it.

If you’re wondering if a hair transplant on a scar hurts – for all our hair transplant procedures, we use a local anaesthetic that’s administered using the Sleep-Deep technique. This ensures that you are comfortable during the process. We use this anaesthetic for normal hair transplants and for a hair transplant on scar tissue.

What Is the Procedure for Hair Transplants on Scar Tissue?

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Hair transplants can effectively cover areas of a scar by inserting individual hair follicles into the scarred skin. As the blood supply to this skin is different compared to normal skin, more than one hair transplant on the scar may be required for a thick coverage of hair.

As with a standard hair transplant, the hair grows 3-4 months after the procedure. Full hair growth is achieved after approximately 1 year.

During the hair restoration procedure:

• Hairs are taken from a donor area (usually at the back or side of the head, but this will depend on where the scar is) using FUE hair transplant surgery.
• The hairs are placed into a nutrient-rich solution.
• The transplanted hair follicles are inserted into the recipient area. The hair transplant procedure used is dependent on where the scar is, and what will achieve the best results.

Aftercare and recovery from a hair transplant on a scar:

• Pain medication is offered to alleviate any pain or discomfort in the first few days after the procedure.
• Antibiotics may be prescribed to reduce the risk of infection.
• Aftercare guidelines are talked through and a hair care package is given to follow during the postoperative period.

Aftercare and recovery guidelines may include:

• Wear a loose-fitting hat when outside to avoid sun damage and exposure to UV rays.
• Avoid picking, itching or scratching the scabs that form following the procedure.
• Keeping the area clean and avoiding excessive sweating or strenuous activity.
• Following instructions for aftercare and hair washing to ensure a successful healing process

New hairs growing on the scar following a hair transplant

It is difficult to give a precise timeline for hair restoration on scars as hairs growing on the scar following a hair transplant can vary greatly depending on your unique situation.

However, studies have shown great success, with the majority of patients seeing 75% or more hair growth by six months. Other studies reveal a satisfaction rate of 4.6/5 following hair transplants on a scar. 

Fue vs Fut Procedures

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Your scar may not be caused by an injury but actually the result of a FUT hair transplant. FUT strip method hair transplants are an outdated technique that sees a strip of skin (full of hair) removed from the back of the head. The infographic below provides more information on the difference between a FUT and FUE hair transplant.

A FUT hair transplant technique leaves a strip scar at the back of the head. Although it can be covered with long hair, it can also be visible. You can hide the transplant scars from a follicular unit transplant (FUT) with hair transplantation using the FUE method (follicular unit extraction).

This effectively inserts hairs into the scar, and when the hairs have grown the scar is no longer visible. Occasionally, dot scars remain after the FUE procedure, but these are more naturally hidden by your hair than the strip scar.

Studies have shown that FUE hair transplant procedures for treating scarring hair loss resulted in a high graft survival rate of nearly 81%, rivalling hair graft survival rates for those without scarring.

Conclusion

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To conclude, a hair transplant into scar tissue is possible and can be the perfect solution to the common and distressing impact living with a visible scar on your scalp or face can have. Do you have more questions or are you suffering from hair loss issues? Then feel free to contact our friendly team who can answer all your queries.

Furthermore, they can also offer a free and non-binding hair analysis. So don’t hesitate if you want to benefit from Dr. Balwi and Elithair’s expertise for a successful and affordable hair transplant in Turkey.