Surgery Day Explained

Phase TWO:

Pre-op appointment

Two weeks before your procedure we will see you at the clinic for your pre-operation appointment. This will be your chance to discuss the treatment area with Dr. Sharma and go over any last questions before surgery. This will also be your last chance to change the amount of grafts for your surgery. Some patients choose to increase the amount of grafts to help give greater coverage and/or density.

We will then take your vitals and give you a blood work requisition. You will be required to have blood work completed to confirm you are suitable for surgery. This helps us to ensure your safety throughout the procedure.

Phase THREE:

Starting your surgery

To make sure you’re comfortable during surgery, we use a local anaesthetic. This means you’ll be awake but won’t feel any pain. We numb the area with injections, but first apply a cream to minimize the needle prick.

The first part involves carefully removing hair follicles from the donor area (usually the back of the scalp). You’ll be lying on your stomach for this step, which can be tedious. Don’t worry, many patients fall asleep during this time! The collected follicles are then stored in a special solution to keep them healthy.

Phase FOUR:

Excision

The amount of time required for the excision period depends on the number of grafts required for surgery. Small sections of 800 or 1,000 grafts may only take 2-3 hours. Large sections reaching the 3,000+ mark can often take over 4 hours. At Sharma Skin & Hair Surgery we understand that this is not a comfortable position to remain in for long periods. Patients can take occasional breaks and stretch but limiting these interruptions will speed up your surgery.

Phase FIVE:

Lunch Break

Despite laying prone for the majority of the morning, patients often work up quite an appetite. Lunch is provided by the clinic with a large variety of local restaurants to select from. We insist that each patient orders an appetizer, main course, and dessert. It’s a great time to relax and enjoy a delicious meal before the second half of the day.

Phase SIX:

Incisions

Dr. Sharma uses multiple different tools to make the incisions which will then be the placement area for each individual graft. This is an integral part of the procedure and the placement location and angle will determine how and where the hair will grow. We use an injected anaesthetic to eliminate any pain during this portion of the procedure. It is important to allow Dr. Sharma and his team to focus as they count each incision to ensure we have enough to match the final graft count. 

Phase SEVEN:

Placement

Graft placement is a painless but tedious part of your day at our clinic. Our nurses will be placing the grafts one by one into the incisions made by Dr. Sharma. Before this happens, we carefully select and clean the excised grafts to ensure we are only placing healthy and intact follicles. During this part of the procedure, you can watch television or listen to music to help pass the time.

Phase EIGHT:

Clean up & education

Once the placement is complete you are nearly done. Dr Sharma assesses the graft placement, checks the donor site, and inspects your vitals.

Once we have the all-clear, we begin the cleanup and securely bandage the surgery site. During this phase, we will also go over the post-care instructions with you in depth. This includes teaching you about graft care, sanitization, and how to properly wash your new hair. You will then be supplied with a care package that includes all of the post-care materials you may need.

Phase NINE:

After surgery

Patients are required to return the next day for a check-up and bandage change. This takes roughly 45 minutes.

With the transplanted hair follicles placed in position, you can now see the new hairline. At this point, the scalp needs time to heal. You will see scabbing in two locations on the scalp: on the donor site (where the hair follicles were harvested), and on the placement site. These scabs are small, so they heal quickly. You might also experience local swelling which usually goes away in a few days.