How Many Hair Transplants Can You Get?

Having any medical procedure is a stressful affair so the thought of having to go through the same surgery multiple times can put people off. In contrast, there may be instances where you want additional surgeries because the original wasn’t as expected.

Hair transplant patients often ask how many hair transplants can you have for both these reasons. Some want it done and dusted in one surgery, but others want assurance that they can have multiple surgeries if something goes wrong. We look at the possibility of multiple hair transplants below and why they may be needed.

Free Consultation

As Many as is Needed to Get the Desired Look

To answer the question simply, it is possible to have a 2nd hair transplant. Indeed, you could have a 3rd and 4th providing you have enough high-quality donor hair left that won’t leave noticeable patches on your scalp.

However, this is NOT the desired result. We ideally only want you to have one procedure to reduce the stress and hassle you have to go through. There may be instances, however, where a 2nd hair transplant is needed including:

The hair grafts may not take properly

We cannot hide from the fact that there is a chance of failure as with any medical procedure. With anything as complex as surgery, things can go wrong. Also, there is the chance that the transplanted hair simply doesn’t take properly and falls out.

The positive of techniques like FUE, however, is their excellent success rate. They have an average success rate of 95%+ which is fantastic compared to complex medical procedures like heart transplants that can range anywhere from 80-90%.

This high success rate greatly reduces the potential that you need a second hair transplant and even if some grafts fail, it doesn’t mean that the surgery has to be started from scratch.

You may need more coverage

Before any surgery, we do a thorough check of your scalp and existing hair, together with your hair loss problem and background information.

This allows us to accurately estimate how many grafts you require to cover the areas of hair loss effectively.

However, it’s not until the surgery is complete and your hair has started to grow that we can truly see the results. It is at this point that you may realize that you need a 2nd hair transplant.

The coverage may not be as thick as expected, or you may not be 100% happy with the results. In these rare occurrences, it is possible to have multiple surgeries to make sure you get the result you want.

Also Read: Can Hair Be Transplanted from Body to Head?

Your hair loss may progress after your transplant

Assessing your hair loss is an incredibly important part of the hair transplant process. We need to know where it is, how severe it is, and if you are expected to lose more.

If this info isn’t found then there is the possibility that you may need multiple surgeries if your hair loss continues after your surgery. This is why it is generally better to wait until you are a little older so the true extent of your hair loss is understood. This greatly reduces the chance of needing multiple surgeries due to an ongoing condition.

But You Shouldn’t Typically Need More Than Two Procedures

As stated, it is our aim for you to only need one Turkey hair transplant. We want the surgery to be a success and for you to be satisfied with the results on the first try! In most instances, this is the case and we explain why below:

Hair transplants are permanent

Once you have had one hair transplant, providing it was successful and the hair took properly, this is a permanent solution. You shouldn’t need a “top-up” or a second hair transplant and your grafted hair will simply grow naturally like your other hair.

Procedures like FUE and DHI can transplant large amounts of hair in one session

The nature of modern hair transplant surgeries also means that in most instances multiple surgeries are not needed.

Techniques like FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) and DHI (Direct Hair Implantation) can implant thousands of hairs in a single session. The number of implants should be discussed beforehand, but unless you have severe hair loss, you should hopefully only need one hair transplant.

Read Next: How Does Stress Affect Your Hair Health?

The Aim is Always to Have One Procedure

Hopefully, you never have to have a second hair transplant and the first one is a roaring success. For most patients, this is the case, and modern hair transplant surgeries like FUE and DHI have excellent success rates of 90%+. In the rare case that you do not get the desired results or your transplant fails, it is possible to have multiple procedures until you are happy with your hairline.