Hair Transplant FAQ
1. Why Dr. Robert Jones M.D.?
2. What is a hair transplant exactly?
3. How long does the transplanted hair last?
4. What is "follicular unit extraction"?
5. How many hairs are transplanted per session?
6. Does Dr. Jones create his own graft incisions?
7. Is it going to hurt?
8. Why come to Dr. Jones's clinic?
9. How does your procedure differ from all the others I see advertised?
10. Is there any scarring?
11. Do you offer Rogaine and Propecia? How effective are they?
12. Why don't other hair transplants I've seen look natural?
13. Are there any complications or risks with the hair transplant surgery?
14. How many grafts will it take to cover 1 square inch?
15. Do you use a laser in the hair transplantation procedure
16. Do you do hair transplantation on women?
17. I have a medical condition, Can I still receive a hair transplant?
1. Why Dr. Robert Jones M.D.?
Dr. Robert Glyn Jones' involvement
in the field of hair transplantation is
a natural outgrowth of his pre-eminence
and vast experience in cosmetic surgery,
a field that involves fine expertise aimed
at achieving natural, seamless results.
Dr. Jones provides patients with the defining
standard in hair restoration: an undetectable,
natural look. Dr. Jones is among the first
Doctors in North America to use a new
technique for the transplantation of individual
hair follicles. This new approach takes
hair transplantation to new levels of
precision and artistry, since the pattern
and direction of each new hair can be
controlled.
"Moving hair on someone's head, from one location to another, is not terribly difficult work," comments Rob Jones. "The art - the finely executed expertise - comes from very carefully styling the individual's look according to what is natural for their overall appearance. Regrettably, a number of people offering hair transplantation fail at this, meaning the patient receives unsatisfactory results. But the craft and attention to detail I've perfected, as a physician dedicated to full time hair transplants, provides my hair transplantation patients with a true benchmark of excellence."
Dr. Jones is a member of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery, and has had articles about his practice and new techniques in newspapers and on other hair restoration websites. He has been featured on CBC TV, Canada AM, CTV news and other local television stations to discuss his state-of-the-art approach to hair restoration. See the videos page for hair transplants, interviews and explanations.
Clearly, Dr. Jones is a professional whose dedication to providing value is foremost. Schooled at McMaster University's Department of Medicine, he has been practicing medicine since 1979. He took courses in cosmetic laser surgery at both Harvard and Loyola Universities. His medical milestones include being the first doctor in Canada to use the Argon-pumped tunable dye laser system for treatment of facial veins and PWS, as well as being the first to perform laser- assisted uvulapalatoplasty (he has now carried out over 2,000 procedures). Dr. Jones is also Canada's first doctor to use the double frequency Q-switched YAG laser (with more than 5,000 operations to his credit) and one of the first to use the UltraPulse CO-2 laser for treating wrinkles.
"Advancing to new medical frontiers has always guided my approach in medicine, explains Rob. "I am committed to analyzing optimized procedures and techniques that provide real benefits to my patients. That means a combination of the newest equipment plus adopting innovative techniques from medical seminars and journals. The research never stops."
2. What is a
hair transplant exactly?
Hair transplantation is an artistic redistribution
system that takes donor dominant hair
follicles donor areas such as the chest
or from the very back of the head and
artfully transplants them into thinning
or balding areas. With current microsurgical
technologies, this results in a very natural
appearance. Basically we take hair from
where you have more than you need and
put it where you need it more.
3. How long does
the transplanted hair last?
Since the hair used in hair restoration
surgery comes from the donor area, which
is not sensitive to the balding process,
it will be permanent. This hair will retain
its genetic characteristics even after
relocation, so for the vast majority of
patients, virtually all transplanted hair
lasts a lifetime. In some cases, a small
percentage of transplanted hair may be
lost as the patient ages.
4. What is "follicular
unit extraction"?
This procedure has been called the logical
end point of 30 years of evolution in
hair transplantation, beginning with traditional
larger plugs and culminating in the move
to one, two, three, and four hair follicular
unit hair grafts, which mirror the way
hair grows in nature. Using this advanced
technique, a surgeon can move more hair
in a totally natural way - creating a
natural look at every stage of hair transplantation.
5. How many hairs
are transplanted per session?
Dr. Jones can do up to 2000 microscopically-
created grafts in a session. Each graft
is an individual hair follicle, or can
include up to 4 hairs.
6. Does Dr. Jones
create his own graft incisions?
Yes. Dr. Jones takes great care in determining
the pattern and direction of each transplanted
hair.
7. Is it going
to hurt?
The great majority of my patients are
quite comfortable, both during and after
their hair transplantation procedure;
occasionally, a patient says he had some
pain. As you would expect, local anesthetics
are used during the procedure. We also
supply you with medication which is available
for you to use after the procedure, if
you should need it. Many of our patients
find that they do not need to take any
medication at all after their hair transplantation
procedure.
8. Why come to
Dr. Jones's clinic?
There are at least four good reasons why
we believe you might be well-advised to
have your hair restoration performed at
Dr. Jones's clinic
Reason 1 - All transplants are performed personally by Dr. Jones. Many other commercial operations have sales people and several doctors that come in on a part time basis to perform your procedure. At my clinic, I will be involved in every transplant, from beginning to end.
Reason 2 - Dr. Jones is among the first physicians in North America to use a new technique. This technique allows the transplantations of individual hairs, which can even be taken from the chest. The technique is micro follicular unit extraction, - scalpel-free hair transplants.
Reason 3 - Value. Without sales people and other levels to pay, the cost of a state-of-the-art transplant is less than you may think.
9. How does
your procedure differ from all the others
I see advertised?
I can't fully account for the techniques
of others, because I don't know, exactly,
the protocols and variations they use
in processing the results they achieve.
We can talk to you about my own techniques,
which include follicular unit micrografting.
This is the most natural way to transplant
hair, as it is how it appears in nature.
Hairs can be transplanted one by one,
with attention given to the exact placement
and direction of each hair.
10. Is there
any scarring?
Whenever human skin is cut, it always
heals by the process called "fibrosis".
This fibrosis (commonly known as scarring)
is the skin's way of healing. The
healing sites in the transplanted areas
are usually so small that the fibrosis
is virtually undetectable. At my clinic,
hair transplantation procedures are designed
to produce a very natural look. In the
great majority of cases the microtechnologies
currently used at my clinic make the restored
hairline virtually undetectable.
11. Do you offer
Rogaine and Propecia? How effective are
they?
The manufacturers of both Rogaine and
Propecia tell you that their product is
not effective in the frontal area, which
is the area of most concern to most patients,
especially the frontal hairline. With
Rogaine, the manufacturer (Upjohn) claims
that approximately 8-10% get cosmetically-
effective growth, and another 20% get vellus
or peach fuzz growth. The manufacturer
of Propecia (Merck) claims slightly better
results.
12. Why don't
other hair transplants I've seen look
natural?
Today, if you see a recently-completed
hair transplant that does not look natural,
that's because it is usually simply
a bad hair transplant. My hair transplants
go unnoticed by you and everyone else,
in the great majority of cases, because
they are so natural looking. Modern research
in hair growth has discovered that natural
scalp hairs actually grow in small groupings
(called follicular units) of 1, 2, 3 or
occasionally, 4 hairs per unit. So, it
is my strong emphasis not just to imitate
nature, but to try to duplicate nature.
We employ micro-technologies that use
closely-placed and randomly dispersed
1, 2, 3, and 4 hair units. I have refined
these micro-technologies to the point
where often, other medical doctors, even
on close inspection, have a difficult
time telling which natural hairs are original
(non-transplanted) and which natural hairs
have been restored (transplanted). That's
why today, the state-of-the-art is follicular
unit extraction.
13. Are there
any complications or risks with the hair
transplant surgery?
Occurrences of infection after the procedure
are rare. In the few cases where infection
does occur, it is often due to the patient's
failure to fully follow post-operative
instructions. Even when infection occurs,
it generally is easily treatable with
antibiotics, which can be prescribed by
the physician.
14. How many
grafts will it take to cover 1 square
inch?
That is very difficult to answer without
seeing you. This is because the amount
of grafts required will ultimately be
dependant upon the texture and quality
of your hair (i.e. darker, coarser hair
may require less grafts to cover the same
area, as compared to lighter colored, fine
hair). It will also be dependent upon
your density goals.
15. Do you use
a laser in the hair transplantation procedure?
No. I do not feel that the laser benefits
the patient. It can damage healthy hair
follicles, have a negative impact on scalp
elasticity, and in general, slow down
the healing process. The use of lasers
in hair restoration has diminished greatly
in the last few years.
16. Do you do
hair transplantation on women?
Yes. Female hair loss is quite common.
In fact, studies indicate more than 20
million American women are experiencing
some degrees of female pattern hair loss.
"The great majority of women with
typical female pattern hair loss can be
helped significantly, Women usually have
a similar donor area to men. This means
they have enough supply to fulfill the
demand, so the results are usually very
good".
17. I have a
medical condition, can I still receive
a hair transplant?
Pre-existing medical conditions are always
a concern of mine. If you have a pre-existing
medical condition, please tell me at the
time of your consultation. For your convenience,
we have listed responses from some of
the most frequently asked medical questions:
COUMADIN- If you are taking Coumadin, you will need to be off Coumadin for a week prior to your hair restoration procedure.
DIABETES- I have performed a lot of successful hair restoration procedures for patients with diabetes.
INTRAVENOUS SEDATION- Intravenous sedation is virtually never used for hair restoration procedures. Instead, patients are gently administered local anesthesia and are able to relax and stretch, or use the restroom at any time during the procedure. If you would like additional sedation or relaxation, you may request it
KIDNEY TRANSPLANT- For various medical reasons, a hair restoration procedure cannot be done prior to a pending kidney transplant. However, once a kidney transplant procedure is completed and has healed, I can determine if it is feasible to have a hair restoration procedure.
