Beyond the Hairline

As National Hair Loss Awareness Month comes to a close, I thought I would touch on a procedure that is getting some additional attention in the media—eyebrow transplants. While 92.9% of all hair restoration procedures in 2006 were performed on the scalp, hair restoration to other areas of the body, such as eyebrows, are becoming more common. I’ve performed a few eyebrow transplants during the last couple of months and what I can tell you is that much like the hair on our head, eyebrows, or the lack thereof, can wreak havoc on person’s self esteem and confidence. Our eyebrows play a critical role in framing our face; without them, we lack the facial symmetry that our eyes and eyebrows provide.

The most common cause of eyebrow loss is over-plucking, as the fashion trend for rather thin brows has been replaced with shapely, more thick and natural ones. Other reasons can include simple genetics, physical trauma such as burn injuries or accidents or the medical condition of alopecia areata (a genetic autoimmune condition that can affect hair anywhere on the body.)

The same state-of-the art technology that we use in scalp hair restoration is used in eyebrow transplantation. This follicular unit technique enables me to transplant single and double hairs, carefully and expertly placing them with the correct angulation and direction to re-create natural-looking eyebrows. It’s important to keep in mind that since scalp hairs are used for eyebrow transplantation, they will need to be trimmed in the short term. Interestingly, it is commonly observed that the transplanted hairs eventually may assume some of the characteristics of typical eyebrow hair follicles—and not grow to the typical long length of the donor hairs. Isn’t the human body amazing?

I anticipate that eyebrow restoration will continue to gain popularity and interest and I look forward to helping more men and women restore their eyebrows—and their self esteem!

-Doc