My No Downtime Hair Transplant Journey with Clifford Aesthetics Clinic

I’m sure all men want to have thicker, fuller and healthier hair. However, more often than not, it is not within our control, and male pattern hair loss is something that we fear!

I am currently in my 30s and have noticed that my hairline is receding and my hair is thinning. I went online and did some research and found out that receding hairline can occur in both men and women as early as in their 20s, though it is more common in men.

Apart from affecting your appearance, hair loss can also take a huge toll on your confidence. Whenever my friends ask to take a wefie or a group photo together, I will look in the mirror to adjust my hair first to make sure it does not look too “empty” in front.

Well, it can be frustrating and demoralising when the photo did not come out well just because your hair looked empty in front.

A couple of months ago, I was introduced to Clifford Clinic for a hair assessment. After checking my hair condition, Dr. Chow Yuen Ho recommended a hairline hair transplant for me. The first thought that came to my mind was whether there will be a very long down-time because my work requires me to meet people all the time and I am pretty worried that I will scare them during the recovery period.

Fortunately for me, Clifford Clinic has a No Downtime Hair Transplant treatment which is perfect for me.

Dr. Chow Yuen Ho is very friendly and assuring, and he even showed me his hair transplant which looked really nice and natural. Dr Chow patiently explained the whole process of my hair transplant to me and I feel safe and well taken care of with him.

What is the No Downtime Hair Transplant?

No Downtime Hair Transplant is a groundbreaking way to restore hair for mild to moderate hair loss. This involves extracting healthy donor hair from the back of the head and placing it on the front of the head to the balding areas. The treatment is done within a day with no downtime so that the patient can return to work immediately. This is possible thanks to the doctor’s experience in performing hair transplants, along with knowledge of robotics, technology and styling,

However, this technique is not for those with huge shiny spot on the top of their head, as they will need a proper, full hair transplant, which will involve some downtime.

Therefore, if you are like me, suffering from an M-shaped hairline with hair loss at the temples area, or if your hair is thinning at the top of your head, this technique is great for you. If you are not sure, it is best to visit the clinic and let the doctor assess your hair condition.

How is the No Downtime Hair Transplant done?

Stage 1

Have you ever seen gardeners move plants by uprooting it from the ground and planting it at the new location with the roots buried in the soil? Simplistically-speaking, the No Downtime Hair Transplant follows the same principle. The treatment involves highly strategic extraction of donor hair follicles (ie, roots of the hair). Using the FUE (follicular unit extraction) technique, hair follicles are extracted one by one, without excessive shaving of the hair on the back of the head.

These hairs are harvested from the back of the head, where the hairs are more resistant to falling. This technique ensures that there is minimal shaving of the hair on the back of the head, and that means that the donor site will be concealed.

Stage 2

In the second stage of the procedure, hairs are planted into the front of the hairline  New grafts are concealed by the existing hairstyle. Using this technique, the appearance of the new grafts is minimized.

Local anesthesia will be applied to numb the areas of surgery, so while you can expect slight discomfort, the process of extraction and implantation is generally painless.

My procedure took about 8 hours but the same doesn’t apply to all as the duration depends on the number of grafts you require. After the surgery, I went back home to rest. The next day, I went back to work as per normal and no one realized that I’ve gotten a hair transplant done.

How I felt after my Hair Transplant?

Initially, I thought that there will be swelling but there wasn't much for me. I was given pain killers and antibiotic to alleviate the condition.

I was also given saline to spray on the donor area to keep the area hydrated which would help ensure the survival of the transplanted grafts. To encourage new tissues growth, I was also given a Stem Cell Serum to apply on my donor area.

During the healing process, you may feel some itchiness at the donor area. Don’t worry if you see some crust forming too as they will fall off by the second week. During the first 2 weeks, it is best to avoid sports and stay away from the sun.

I was also given Johnson’s® Baby Shampoo | Gentle & Mild Baby Shampoo‎ to wash my hair.

The donor area needs to be treated with care when washing. I used a sponge to squeeze the foam onto the donor area and no rubbing or scratching the area were allowed.

Here are some photos showing the progress of my hair transplant (Disclaimer: It may be a little scary to some of you.)

 

13th Mar This was taken on the 2nd day after my hair transplant.

13th Mar

This was taken on the 2nd day after my hair transplant.

15th Mar

It is normal to see some crust forming on the surgery area.

16th Mar

17th Mar 

25 Mar ( 2 weeks later)

Most of the crust have fallen off naturally.

30th Mar 

30th Mar 

17th Apr (1 month later)

Some of the hair started to fall off. But don't worry too much as Dr. Chow told me that this was normal and they will grow back after this shedding period.

24th Apr

My hair is slowly growing back.

15^th July

My hair is growing out really well.

15 Nov (About 9 months)

This is still not the final result. According to the doctor, this is  only about 70% of the final result.  another 30% density will be coming in 4 months.

 

I'm very impressed and satisfied with my hair transplant result. Now, I’m only hoping that my hair can grow longer soon so that I can start styling it!

 

Below is a comparison of my hair before and after. It is quite obvious that my hair is now fuller and more manageable.

 

If you are looking for a pain-free hair transplant with no downtime, do check out the No Downtime Hair Transplant, or fix an appointment with Dr Gerard Ee or Dr Chow Yuen Ho at The Clifford Clinic to find out what kind of treatment is suitable for you!   

The Clifford Clinic 

24 Raffles Place, 

#01-03, Clifford Centre, 

Singapore 048621 

 

Tel: 6532 2048 

More on FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction)

 

Follicular Unit Extraction is the latest technique for hair transplant graft harvesting. Hair grafts are harvested one by one, in a very precise manner to extract the roots of the hairs from the donor site. Each follicular unit consists of an average of 2-2.5 hairs. So a 1000 graft case moving 1000 follicular units will yield on average about 2000-2500 new hairs in the new area.