Q: Hi! I wanted to ask if after a hair restoration surgery the transplanted hair will eventually fall out? Because the surgery is to restore hair mainly for people with genetic hair loss which results from DHT, won’t the DHT make the new follicles implanted fall out as well? — B.C., Stamford, C.T.
A: Hair loss is due to the action of DHT (a byproduct of testosterone) on hair follicles that cause them to shrink and eventually disappear (the process is called miniaturization). The follicles on the back and sides of the scalp are not sensitive to DHT and therefore don’t bald (miniaturize).
When you transplant hair from the back and sides to the bald area on the front or top of the scalp the hair follicles maintain their original characteristics (their resistance to DHT) and therefore they will continue to grow.
Robert M. Bernstein, MD, has been selected as one of New York Magazine‘s “Best Doctors” for the ninth year in a row. He is the only hair restoration surgeon honored to be included in this list of prominent physicians for nine consecutive years.
