Body Hair Transplantation, an Introduction.

[sl]

Body Hair has proven to be a valuable resource for those with either extensive hair loss or with an especially limited donor due to previous surgeries. It can on occasion be harvested via Strip in some cases, i.e. pubic or armpit hair for example, but most frequently is harvested via the FUE method.

It can differ in characteristics to scalp hair in terms of colour, coarseness, curl, growth phases, and even the hair to graft ratio which is often lower than scalp and finer quality hair if chest, arm, leg is utilised. The yield can be slower to grow or lower than traditional scalp hair yield. Usually the growth phase is much shorter for body hair, with the exception of beard hair that cycles much more like scalp hair, so patience is needed when awaiting growth especially with this type of procedure that can often be into scar tissue of a repair patient.

Some note that when transplanted to the scalp the body hair takes on similar growth cycles of the local area of where it is transplanted and over time in that the hair will eventually grow longer in the recipient than where it was taken from. This has been noted conversely in scalp hair transplanted to other areas such as eyebrows whereby patients have been known to report that after a few years the transplanted hair there grows at the same length as the surrounding natural eyebrow hair and does not need to be continually trimmed as in the early stages of growth and we have had patients report this to us.

Coarseness can be an issue if it doesn €™t match the hair in which it is being placed amongst, and beard hair for example would not be considered a good choice for delicate hair-line work to make an obvious statement. Beard hair is being used however elsewhere on the scalp and often into scar tissue to good effect. It is also a good €œfiller € to use in and amongst scalp hair if possible. Although it presents a lower hair to graft ratio than scalp hair, it will often be naturally coarser so in effect give more surface area coverage than scalp hair when comparing hair diameter.

Unlike scalp hair, body hair generally benefits from the hormone DHT (dihydrotestosterone). Some patients who take DHT blockers such as Propecia, have found a diminishing of body hair in both number and quality. This seems to affect the chest, arm and leg hair more so, and to a lesser degree the beard area. If the body hair is severely compromised by such medication then it would be unwise to use body hair as a viable transplant alternative, as there would be doubts concerning its efficacy in such cases.

Minoxidil has been noted often to increase the quality of body hair with some reporting an increase of facial or body hair and has been an unwanted side effect for some female patients who take this medication.


Clinics who undertake body hair transplantation will have varying protocols as to how much to harvest in one sitting, where to harvest from, where to place it, and the ratio of scalp to body hair needed to achieve the best result. A patch test may be required by some clinics, depending on the amount of grafts needed long term, in order to monitor the healing and growth results before both parties commit to larger surgeries.



Body hair transplantation is still relatively new but does appear to be on the increase with more and more cases being published annually and we expect a continued growth with respect of this.

Please see the below cases for some examples of body hair usage:-

http://www.hairlossexperiences.com/view_topic.php?id=2377&forum_id=17

http://www.hairlossexperiences.com/view_topic.php?id=1414&forum_id=17

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[garageland]

Good informative post Steve.

 

[topccat29]

I agree where lack of scalp donor is an issue body/beard hair can be a real savior.

 

[Bigmac]

Body hair is used to good effect in many cases when mixed in with scalp hair rather than a stand alone scenario.it has helped many patients out.
Thanks for sharing this information Sl.
Regards Bm.

 

[topccat29]

I agree with body/beard hair mixing it is the best approach and even that might not make sense depending on the situation. A really good clinic will do what makes sense and only do what benefits the patient which is too often forgotten by too many. One really needs to have that voice in their head that tells them I can €™t do this when that is the right answer regardless if they themselves would pesonally benefit.

I have seen some body hair cases that I myself looked at whether it was the recipient area or donor area and asked myself why would a clinic do this to a patient and I have also seen cases that have had a very positive effect on the life of the patient.

 

[janna]

Nice, informative post SL. We do a very limited number of cases of body hair and the cases that we do are considered very small cases. We'll go back to the same area to harvest if the results are looking good.

 

[Bigmac]

Is there any difference between Chest and Back hair as you never really see hair used from the Back.

 

[sl]

We don't per se use back hair, for some it may be good quality but usually single haired grafts so a lot could be needed.

If one has a good back then usually a good beard and chest is there and we tap into beard firstly as grows similar to scalp in cycles originally and coarse so can give good surface area coverage even if mostly single and double haired grafts.

 

[Bigmac]

Thanks Sl, reason I ask is I'd like the hair gone from the top of my back and if I do something about it I'd like to put it to some use, ie in my scar from accident years ago.

 

[sl]

Sure, for scar beard is really the preferred source or scalp but worth sending photos to any clinic of your choice to see what they say as working into scars is a challenge and usually we like to go for the best quality FU as possible, although I do understand the reason for wishing to utilise back hair as it is a pain more than a pleasure for most.

 

[Bigmac]

Cheers Sl,