Hair Restoration After Facial Feminization Surgery

How Hair Restoration Refine the Hairline after FFS

Your forehead makes up 35% to 40% of the surface area of your face, so it isn’t surprising that the forehead and hairline contribute strongly to the masculine or feminine appearance of your face.

A masculine forehead is typically longer, with the hairline sitting further back on the skull than in cisgender females. A receding hairline can make the face appear even more masculine.

Rather than having facial feminization surgery (FFS) first, some people might be tempted to try hair restoration to quickly reduce the height of their foreheads and feminize the hairline.

Hair restoration used to lower the central area of the hairline are not our preferred option because they:

  • Are not sufficiently dense to give you a natural-looking central hairline
  • Can significantly impact future options for FFS
  • Waste scalp hair that could be used for future restortation
  • Can be subject to “shock hair loss” and take months to regrow, impacting future FFS

Hair Restoration can Perfect the Hairline after FFS

We strongly recommend you have hairline lowering (scalp advancement) first as part of your FFS. Hairline lowering offers major advantages for FFS such as:

  • Decreasing the height of your forehead
  • Providing naturally thicker hair in the central area of your hairline

If needed, hair restoration have a better survival rate when performed months after hairline lowering. At this time, hair restoration are an excellent option to:

  • Camouflage an incision scar from an earlier hairline lowering procedure
  • Put the finishing touches to the overall feminine aesthetics of your hairline and forehead after FFS

Many people do not realize that cisgender women tend to have thinner hair at the temple. Hair restoration are typically less dense and are therefore an excellent option to give a naturally feminine result by filling in temples or receding hairlines.

Hair Restoration Options after FFS

Two hair restoration methods are available, each with its own advantages. Speak with your surgeon to clarify which option will best suit your needs. The two hair restoration methods are:

  • Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) – thin strips of hair are taken from the back and sides of your head
  • Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) – individual hair follicles are removed from the back and sides of your head using a device. FUE is more painstaking than FUT and typically requires more surgical sessions to gather enough follicles for transplantation.

FUT is more efficient for people with more significant hair loss and a good option for people who prefer hair restoration surgery in a single session. Other advantages of FUT:

  • The surgeon can collect a larger number of grafts in a session
  • The surgeon can restoration the maximum amount of hair with the minimum amount of hair-free skin
  • The wounds and scars are small and the surrounding hair will conceal them, with some hair growing through the scar
  • The restoration can also be used for eyebrows and eyelashes

FUE is a good option for people with only moderate hair loss and who want the ability to shave their heads or have a buzz cut after the procedure. Other advantages of FUE:

  • Single follicles are extracted with a punch device that creates only pinpoint scarring
  • The surgeon can choose the hairs to extract so you will not have any noticeable thinning or scarring
  • Recovery only takes three to five days
  • The tiny dots remaining at the sides and back of your head after extraction will heal quickly and become nearly invisible so you can shave or buzz cut the area

Hair Restoration at Our Clinic

Please note that we do not perform hair restoration at the Deschamps-Braly Clinic. However, we insource the skills and expertise of Sara Wasserbauer, M.D., F.I.S.H.R.S, a Diplomate of the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery, and a Fellow of the International Society Of Hair Restoration Surgery. Find out more about Sara on her website: https://californiahairsurgeon.com/.

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References – for those who like to dig deeper

Dr. Deschamps-Braly
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Dr. Deschamps-Braly is a board-certified plastic and craniofacial surgeon specializing in facial plastic surgery, orthognathic (jaw) surgery, and craniofacial surgery for adults and children. He is also one of the world’s foremost leaders and innovators in facial gender confirmation surgery.

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