Male pattern baldness is a common condition among men. In fact, it is the most common type of hair loss.
There are various non-surgical and surgical methods used to combat this condition. The most well-known methods are the FUE and FUT hair transplant procedures. These methods require the extraction of hair grafts directly from a donor area in the scalp which are later transplanted into the receiving area.
Although, extracting hair from the patient’s scalp is the most common practice, there are also other possibilities, such as extracting hair follicles from other parts of the patient’s body.
The donor hair can usually be extracted from the patient’s beard, stomach, back, chest, legs or arms. In fact, the most desirable area, after the scalp, is the beard because the hair there is thick and strong. Moreover, beard hair can be transplanted to the crown of the head. It is also used to add density to areas that are lacking it.
Chest hair is also a suitable alternative to scalp or beard hair, it is finer which makes it appropriate for the hairline. This method is used on patients who are suffering from extreme alopecia (baldness) because they have thinner or less amounts of hair on the scalp from where the hair grafts can be extracted. In other words, this method is usually done on patient’s whose level of baldness is 6 or 7 on the Norwood scale.
The most appropriate method that can be used to extract and transplant the body hair into the scalp is the FUE hair transplant method.
The hair from the chosen donor area must be shaved 2 days to 1 week before the procedure so that the most robust hair can be used for the surgery. Just as the FUE hair transplant with scalp donor hair, the scars from the donor area are minimal and practically invisible and usually heal between 4-5 days. There is a possibility that the extracted and implanted body hair will change its structure, adapting to the hairs structure.
This method, just as others have, has its positive and negative aspects. The most important pro is the fact that using body hair increases the chance for patients with very thin hair or stage 6 or 7 alopecia to have a hair transplant.
The following is a list that compares the positive and negative factors of this method.
| Pro's | Con's |
|---|---|
| The body hair changes its structure and adjusts to the one on the scalp. | It is usually used as a last resort when it comes to hair transplants. |
| Minimal scarring left on the donor area. | The survival rate of the hair is lower than the hair extracted from the scalp. |
| It can help correct any scars on the patient’s scalp. | |
| Patients can use their unwanted hair for the transplantation. |
This method is not for everyone just like any other hair transplant method. Patients must meet certain criteria to be able to undergo surgery.
As stated before, this method is used as a last resource if the patient doesn’t have enough hair on any other area of their scalp or if their scalp hair is not healthy or robust enough for extraction.
It is advised that patients contact their desired surgeon and book an online consultation to figure out if this is the best method for them.
