Hair Transplants: 3000 Grafts vs 3000 Hairs

Hair Transplants: 3000 Grafts vs 3000 Hairs

Patients considering hair transplant should be clear on the difference between hairs and grafts. A graft could consist of 1, 2, 3 or sometimes 4 hairs. At Dermatology & Hair Restoration Specialists we charge per graft. Patients should be clear on how many grafts they are getting and how many hairs they are getting. We provide this information for every patient and allow patients to view graft/hair count documentation from previous patients in the consultation. Depending on the size of each individual hair, there are a limited number of grafts that will fit in a square centimeter. Grafts must be properly spaced to ensure the adequate amount of blood flow for healing. Too many grafts per square centimeter results in low graft survival.

For patients who have thick hair strands, 25 to 35 grafts per square centimeter. For patients who have have fine hair, 30 to 40 grafts per square centimeter. Each graft has to have a bit of tissue around it so it takes up more space than just a hair growing out of your scalp. That is why it is very difficult for hair transplant to achieve the density that one has when they are in their teens before any hair loss.

When patients come in for a consultation with Dr. Sean Behnam, he measures how many square centimeters need hair. Then based on the thickness of the patient’s hair strands, he calculates how many grafts are needed.

Unfortunately, we often see patients who only need 1200 to 1500 grafts and have been told by another clinic that they need 3000 grafts, when our measurements indicate that 3000 grafts would not physically fit in the area that the patient wants filled. This is often the case with clinics that offer low prices for high number of grafts. Buyer beware, if you are being quoted $3. per graft but a high number for a small area, you are actually being charged per hair.

So 1200 grafts at 35 grafts per square centimeter would cover a little over 34 square centimeters.

Let’s say that 1200 graft composition is 300 1-hair grafts, 400 2-hair grafts 300 3-hair grafts and 200 4-hair grafts for a total of 2800 hairs.

For those considering an F.U.E. transplant, when having a consultation, it is advised to ask the doctor what are the goals when extracting the grafts. When filling in or creating a hairline, the doctor should be targeting the one hair grafts only to create a natural look. Once the hairline is created, the multi-hair grafts should be placed to achieve maximum density.
We have found that patients who are the most educated, are the happiest. That is why we want every patient who is considering a transplant to be clear on the number of grafts verses the number of hairs that can be transplanted.

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