However, after about two to four weeks, the newly transplanted hairs fall out again. Hair loss occurs because hair grafts, regardless of the technique used to transplant them, briefly interrupt the blood supply and, therefore, the body cannot provide them with nutrients. Hair grafts tend to come off between 2 and 12 weeks after surgery. Once shed, the hairs should start to grow back in the next 4 to 12 months.
After a follicular unit extraction (FUE) hair transplant, hair loss is an expected stage in the healing and regrowth process. Hair transplant shedding occurs 6 to 9 weeks after the procedure. This stage often referred to as "shock hair loss", resembles the catagenic stage of the hair growth process. The new hair will enter the resting phase, allowing the transplanted hair follicles to produce new growth.
Hair loss during this stage does not represent a transplant failure; the new hair follicles remain intact and ready to sprout. Approximately three months after this loss, the telogen phase of hair growth begins. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, it's normal for transplanted hair to fall out two to eight weeks after surgery due to shock. Hair usually looks thinner in the third month after the transplant.
It's important to know that the transplanted hair will fall out between two and eight weeks after surgery. By the third month, your hair may look thinner than before the transplant. After your hair transplant, you'll want to do everything you can to care for the transplanted follicles and scalp. The follicles have a lifespan, and some patients may experience thinning of the transplanted hair or spots on some parts of the scalp.
This hair loss process is expected and does not mean that the scalp rejects implanted hairs. If the implanted hairs fall out again after a few weeks, you might think the hair restoration procedure failed. However, hair grows in staggered cycles, and hair follicles will be in one of these three natural growth stages at any given time.
Sometimes, patients experience hair thinning after the transplant because they had surgery too soon. After a hair transplant, the implanted follicles and the attached hairs will stay in their new place for 1 to 2 weeks. It also helps prevent hair loss and can be used to help accelerate the growth of hair that has been shed during shock loss. Unfortunately, since there are a lot of hair transplant clinics, many don't always have high-quality service and experience.
