Planning and designing the capillary graft
Design and Planning
The doctor’s experience and the aesthetic point of view are the most important aspects in order to properly plan the intervention.
The cosmetic surgeon plans the details of the procedure, such as the optimal number of grafts to be collected, the density and how to transplant them.
Important points in the planning of the capillary graft
- Calculation of the optimal number of grafts in a single operation, according to the needs of the patient.
- Study of the donor area.
- Design and elaboration of the frontal line for a natural result.
- Calculation of the density of micro-grafts to implant.
The planning of the optimum number of grafts depends on
- The donor area’s size.
- The hair’s density in the donor area.
- The receiving area’s size.
- Hair loss or total decrease in the receiving area.
An adult man has approximately 100,000 hair follicles (between 80,000 and 120,000). The total area with hair is 500 square cm on average and there are 200 hair follicles in each square cm.
If the hair follicles are long and thick, a human eye can perceive hair density at 30% as well as 100%. So this means that in order to have a natural-looking result, approximately 60-80 hair follicles are sufficient for 1 square cm.
For an area with total hair loss, 25-30 micro-grafts are sufficient for the desired density of 1 square cm.
Even in situations of severe hair loss such as type 6 and 7, approximately 6,000 grafts can be removed in 2 or 3 sessions. This way, you would get a sufficient amount for the result to be natural.
Designing and planning the front line
The design of the front line is one of the most important points to get result that looks natural.
Patients’ photos taken before hair loss can be very useful to re-design your front line the same as it was before.
Points to consider when designing the front line: (for more severe cases)
- There are differences between the skin where the hair grows and the skin of the forehead in terms of colour and thickness.
- While the skin on the forehead moves when the eyebrows move, the front line does not move.
- The front implantation line can be designed as a triangle, oval or straight, according to the patient’s request and the aesthetic surgeon’s criteria.
For severe cases, such as type 6 and 7 in which the donor area is limited, the recipient area can be reduced in order to have a more dense and natural appearance. The front implantation line can thus be placed a little higher than usual.
The front implantation line should never be designed in an artificial way.
For a natural look, the front hairline should have a good graft density. Grafts containing 1 strand of hair are reserved for the first line as it makes the result more natural-looking.
