Unlocking the Secret to Successful Hair Transplants: Why "Less is More" Approach is the Way to Go
At Tir na nOg Clinic, we know that choosing the right hair transplant clinic can be a daunting task. With so many options out there, it's easy to feel overwhelmed and unsure of where to start. That's why we want to put your mind at ease and answer one of the most common questions we receive: how many hair grafts will be transplanted during our treatment? Not all clinics harvest or count grafts in the same way. Our expert team, led by Dr. Kevin McDonald, aims to strike the balance between harvesting the necessary amount of grafts without over-harvesting and thereby depleting the donor area. But don't just take our word for it - continue reading to learn more and discover why less really is more when it comes to hair transplants.
Don’t rob Peter to pay Paul
The objective of having a hair transplant is to reverse baldness as much as is desired and possible. Although more hair grafts per transplant may appear that the patient is getting more coverage, in fact often the opposite is true. Lifting large amounts of grafts runs the risk of leaving bald patches in the donor area of the scalp , a term called over harvesting - the last thing you want after a hair transplant!
Our expert team carefully assesses each patient's individual needs, taking only the necessary number of grafts to achieve the desired result. An optimal hair graft will contain the correct number of two to three hairs, which, when transplanted, will add density and thickness to the treated area. The result is thick and healthy looking hair regrowth.
Some clinics will lift similar numbers of grafts from the donor area as we do and then split them, thereby doubling the number of grafts being transplanted and giving the impression there will be more hair in the area. These thinner grafts are often dispersed over a larger area, but the result is actually thinner, more dispersed grafts which can make the regrowth look sparse.
Get curious
For these reasons, we advise exercising caution when opting for treatment from a clinic purporting to transplant larger numbers of hair grafts, as these claims can be misleading. Patients attending these clinics should query the need for such a large number with the transplant team. Some questions worth raising with them include the following:
- How will I know the agreed amount of hair grafts have been transplanted?
- Will the hair grafts taken from the donor area be split to make many more thinner grafts in the transplant area?
- Is there even a small risk of baldness developing in the donor area- over harvesting ?
Be confident
Hair transplant surgery is a very safe procedure, but it is surgery nonetheless. It is of utmost importance that patients can trust the surgeon and their team, not only to perform the procedure to a high standard, but to practise good ethics when it comes to the information they relay to the patient and how the treatment is marketed.
At Tir na nOg clinic we keep things simple and fact-based. We will always try to meet realistic expectations of our patients. We are aware that the integrity of our service lies in both the skill and experience of Dr Kevin and his team, as well as the trust our patients place in us. For this reason, all of the issues discussed here will be covered in depth at the initial consultation. We want our patients to understand our approach and be confident that we will provide you with the best possible outcome , but the patient and the surgeon must both have reasonable expectations from the start .