Initial growth a good indication of a successful surgery?

[shanti]

Post transplant the grafts grow in the recipient site a little before shedding a few weeks later.

 

Mine when transplanted were short, stubby grafts but already 10 days later they have grown and almost doubled/ tripled in length.

 

Is this initial spurt of growth prior to shedding enough to suggest they have survived the transplantation process?

 

I guess if they had been transected/ damaged during extraction they wouldn't have this initial post transplant growth, they would be dead, and would just stay as stubs.

 

Is this correct?

[Bill - Seemiller]

Shanti,

 

Transplanted hair will grow like regular hair in the beginning, but this doesn't mean that you've escaped the inevitable shed that most patients experience.

 

But don't be discouraged. Shedding is a normal part of the process and they'll grow back in time.

 

Also, some follicles may remain but not grow. This doesn't mean they've necessarily been damaged. Instead, the hair has separated from the follicle beneath the scalp but remains lodged in the scalp. As the new hair grows months later, it will push the old hair out as the new one grows in.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[shanti]

Thanks Bill, but that's not quite what I meant.

 

I understand that they will shed but can we presume that if we have that initial spurt of growth before shedding then the bulb is intact and will return healthy.

 

And conversely, if the week after surgery the hair graft stays as a stub and doesn't grow at all before the shed then it's been damaged during the surgery.

 

If this is the case then it's early indication of the success of the transplant. If they all grow a little before the post op shed then we know they are healthy and will return.