In this article, you will learn about when it is the best age to undergo a hair transplant or whether there is a specific age to have a hair transplant.
Is There Any Age Limit to Have a Hair Transplant?
When we talk about the best age to have a hair transplant there are many generic answers. Most of the time, doctors give an age range of 18-65 for patients that can have hair surgery, but it is difficult to put an age ‘cut-off’ on hair transplantation. For some young patients below 20, the hair loss pattern is not determined yet. However, in rare cases, youngsters may already present a clear and visible hair loss, and they can start their hair restoration process.
At the Dr. Serkan Aygın clinic, we consider the minimum legal age for undergoing hair surgery 18. However, for a beard transplant, the minimum age can rise to 20 ( the beard keeps growing till mid-twenty).
With this article, we want to explain that the best hair transplant result is not linked to a specific age but rather to specific genetic and medical factors that can affect your hair restoration process.
What is the Best Age to Undergo a Hair Transplant?
Many patients during the consultation ask when they should have the operation or what is the best age to undergo a hair restoration procedure. To answer these questions we should, first of all, refer to why people lose hair.
Why Do People Lose Hair?
There are different reasons why people lose their hair, sometimes an intense period of stress and lack of sleep can temporarily affect the strength of the hair, or sometimes a wrong diet poor in vitamins and minerals can slow the hair growth process.
However, one of the main causes of diffuse hair loss in males and females is linked to genetic predisposition such as androgenetic alopecia. Let’s look at the different symptoms and causes of hair loss.
Androgenic Alopecia
* This hereditary condition is caused by Dihydrotestosterone or DHT
The DHI is a derivate of the male hormone that can cause the miniaturization of the hair follicles. This hormone can also affect other parts of the hair body.
Hair transplantation should be planned according to personal needs. Hair loss in men and women is different, and for this, they need implantation in diverse areas of the head.
Once their hair loss pattern and cause are determined, they can start planning their hair restoration process.
High Level of Stress
* Stress and anxiety have an impact on hair growth
It is demonstrated that high levels of stress harm our bodies and lead to hair loss and hair thinning. Luckily, this is just a permanent side effect. In fact, when the level of stress will diminish the hair growth will restart stronger than ever a few months later.
In case of a frequent high level of stress and anxiety, we recommend you consult with your doctor to get it under control.
Diabetes, Thyroid, or Blood pressure
* These medical conditions and the medication prescribed can cause hair loss
Patients suffering from these conditions should consult their physicians to assess if are eligible for hair transplantation. Also, patients who suffer from chronic diseases such as liver or kidney failure or are under chemotherapy are not eligible for a hair procedure.
Eligibility: Does Age Matter for Hair Transplant?
There is no specific age range that will make your hair last longer.
Sometimes people decide to wait before undergoing hair surgery because they think that their transplanted hair will eventually fall out later in the years. However, this assumption is wrong because hair transplant results are permanent.
Therefore, waiting years before deciding to have a hair restoration treatment can decrease your chance of being eligible for the treatment.
Your age will not yeast the final hair transplant result. Nonetheless, as said above, there are conditions that affect people’s eligibility for a hair transplant ( alopecia androgenic, lifestyle, other medical conditions).
Is it Ever Too Late to Have a Hair Transplant?
During the consultation, the doctor looks at the patient scalp to assess her/his level of baldness. The system that measures baldness patterns is the Hamilton-Norwood scale.
The scale has a different number for each stage, and the highest one is the 6-7 on the Norwood scale.
Sometimes people do not realize that losing massive hair and having a poor donor area can compromise their eligibility for a hair transplant.
For this reason, as of Dr. Serkan Aygın clinic, we recommend starting your hair restoration treatment from the beginning of your hair loss (Norwood 3).
Who Gets Better Hair Transplant Results: Young patients or Older patients?
As we already discussed, for achieving better hair results, age is not important.
The elderly with no particular health or genetic condition can still obtain good results as young people. Thanks to the latest transplantation method such as FUE Sapphire or DHI, hair transplantation operations became minimally invasive. For this reason, hair surgery does not have a bigger impact on older people. Once hair follicles are implanted into the scalp, (with no distinction between an old or young scalp), they will grow.
The key to success for your hair transplant is to choose the most qualified and experienced clinic.
To conclude, It does not matter if patients get surgery in their mid-40s o in their 20s, what is important is that, based on each situation, patients start their recovery process at the right time, without waiting for massive hair loss.
So, if you think you may need a hair restoration process, get in touch with our team, we will be happy to respond to all your questions and doubts.
