Hair loss is a universal issue that affects millions of individuals all over the globe, and most of them seek hair transplant services. Hair restoration surgery has gained popularity in Islamabad, Pakistan's capital, and a very large number of individuals seek consultancy services for hair transplants. The consultancy is essential as it assists in determining if the individual is fit for the procedure or not and also making realistic expectations. The consultation process for a Hair Transplant in Islamabad is comprehensive, personalized, and involves a few important steps toward a successful procedure.
The initial process of the hair transplant consultation is to choose a good clinic. There are some clinics in Islamabad who offer hair transplant, and it is very essential to choose that clinic with experienced surgeons and satisfactory success rate. Patients tend to begin with online browsing for clinics, reviews, or referrals by family members, friends, or previous patients of the procedure.
After selecting a clinic, the second step is to phone them and book an appointment for a consultation. Physical and virtual consultation are both provided in most Islamabad clinics for the ease of a vast majority of clients, including foreign patients.
The consultation itself is typically the most significant portion of the hair transplantation procedure. During the initial consultation, a consultation with a hair restoration physician or specialist, the patient will undergo an examination of his or her baldness status. This is where the patient has the opportunity to ask about the procedure, recovery time, risks, and price.
The consultation begins with careful history taking of the patient, any disease that is amenable to transplant, e.g., chronic diseases, skin diseases, or medicines. The doctor will also query the patient regarding the baldness history, family baldness history, and daily habits that influence the quality of the hair, e.g., smoking or stress.
The scalp is mapped in detail so that the pattern of the balding is viewed and the donor site selected. The doctor will consider the hairline, the general density of the hair, and the hair follicles' health. Donor site, which is often at the nape of the head, is an important consideration since it is where the donor hairs to be transplanted are obtained. The professional will examine the thickness and quality of hair in this region to ensure that good follicles are present in sufficient quantity to transplant.
Sometimes the physician is able to make use of latest technology like dermatoscopy in order to better monitor the scalp and follicles. This will help identify miniaturized or of poor quality and non-transplantable follicles.
After inspecting the scalp, the physician will develop a tailored treatment plan according to the patient's requirement. The treatment plan would be the most suitable hair transplant surgery for the patient, the grafts, and the expectations.
Two of the most popular hair transplant surgeries employed in Islamabad are:
Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT): During this procedure, the donor skin strip is removed and divided into very fine follicular units, which are implanted. FUT can be carried out in patients who require many grafts.
Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE): The hair follicles are individually extracted from the donor area using a small punch instrument directly. FUE is less invasive and scarring, and hence most of the patients prefer it.
The doctor should also illustrate the outcome, i.e., after how many months hair regrows after treatment, usually a few months prior to this effect being noticeable. The patients need to be followed up, expectations made realistic, as the outcome depends on one's age, genes, and hair type.
There has to be a clear explanation to the patient regarding the cost of treatment prior to its undertaking. There are flexible payment options by most clinics, and there are even some clinics that provide overseas patients with an option of financing.
After consultation, the patient would be asked to undergo a series of pre-operative tests such as blood tests to make sure that they would be healthy enough to undergo the procedure. If the patient would consent to undergoing the transplant, the clinic would arrange to have the operation performed on the patient's discretion and the physicians.