Hair transplant surgery has never been so popular. The hair transplant industry has improved a lot in the last twenty years. When done right, a hair transplant is entirely indistinguishable from your natural hair, but the results can be disastrous when done wrong. This article will give you the top three mistakes that hair transplant patients make before getting a procedure.
Mistake #1 Selecting a Surgeon or Clinic Based on Cost
Hair transplants have historically never been cheaper. Surgeons used to charge $20-30 per graft in the 80s and 90s, and back then, surgeons could only transplant a few hundred grafts at a time. Today, all of that has changed. Surgeons are a lot more reasonable in how much they charge per graft, and now they're able to transplant thousands and thousands of grafts in one sitting.
Unfortunately, many opportunistic clinics have opened up around the world , preying on 'bargain' patients whose sole focus is getting the cheapest hair transplant, not the best. These clinics rely heavily on advertisements and marketing, and the allure of a hair transplant for pennies is enough to get thousands of patients to their clinic every year.
There's an old saying, 'good work isn't cheap, and cheap work isn't good.' There's some truth to that. While you don't have to spend a fortune to get a quality hair transplant, basing your decision solely on cost is a huge mistake. There will always be someone cheaper, but the lower the price, the more you risk quality. If a clinic is charging less than a dollar per graft, that is a huge red flag. Good quality affordable clinics in developing countries charge around $2 per graft.
In countries like Turkey, thousands of clinics offer 'unlimited grafts' for a set low price. Do not fall for that marketing ploy. You're likely to end up with a depleted donor site and no growth from the hair transplant. The worst part is you have no options after a failed result at one of these clinics.
Mistake #2 Rushing without Research
Hair loss can be very emotional. It can cause severe depression and isolation. But acting on emotion and getting a hair transplant as a quick fix is a big mistake. I'm speaking from personal experience. I did very little research before getting my first hair transplant, and the results were less than stellar. Once I joined the Hair Restoration Network hair loss forum, I researched hair transplant surgeons based on actual reviews properly. Research first based on quality, then weed out surgeons who are out of your budget, and lastly, look at the clinics' location and the convenience in selecting them.
Mistake #3 Falling for Fake Reviews
The internet has been a game-changer. Never in human history has there been a way for people worldwide to communicate instantly or gather in one place simultaneously. The exchange of information is vital to learn the truth about various topics. Vetting a particular surgeon through reviews is crucial. Unfortunately, most people go to the wrong place to look up hair transplant reviews. Never put your trust in Google reviews, Yelp, Trustpilot, etc. These sites may be good to find reviews about a restaurant or product, but not a surgical procedure. A legitimate review number one has before and after images. But beyond just a before and after photo, you need to see the progression of the result.
Any clinic can hire someone to post a '5-star' review. But how do you know that image is their results? How do you know the person writing the review is even a patient? The only way to tell whether someone is legitimate is by seeing their progress month-to-month. For one, actual patients share their results each month because hair transplants do not grow overnight. It can take up to 18 months for some hair transplants to finish growing, and during this time, the growth will go through various stages. As a prospective patient, you need to see these stages to prepare yourself mentally. Do not fall for a slick advertisement on social media or some random 5-star review from some random clinic. Learn by speaking to other hair transplant patients and by seeing their journies with quality hair transplant surgeons.