Is There a Best Time for a Hair Transplant?

It seems like with each passing year, the hair on your head becomes increasingly thinner, and you’re wondering when you should act.

This is a question that many of the millions of men and women in the United States ponder (85% of men and 33% of women will experience some form of hair loss).

You've certainly come to the right place to explore this subject. Our team of experts at Vivida Dermatology specializes in hair restoration and hair transplants, including the highly effective follicular unit excision, or FUE, hair restoration procedure. In the following, we briefly describe what we accomplish with FUE and what timeline you should consider.

FUE at a glance

As the name suggests, this hair restoration technique involves removing units of follicles from a donor area (usually around the back of your head) and transplanting them to where your hair is thinning.

These transplanted follicles then take up residence in a new neighborhood — on your head — and start to grow hair where the previous follicles have fallen short.

This procedure is becoming increasingly popular. Nearly 150,000 FUE procedures were done in 2021 in North America, and these numbers have only grown since. In fact, they’re expected to hit more than 230,000 in 2027 in the US alone.

Points to consider on FUE timing

FUE is not an overnight process. In most cases, patients follow this recovery timeline, more or less:

Weeks 1-2

After your series of FUE treatments, you should count on about a two-week period during which you might experience some redness, swelling, and scabbing around your scalp. This is the early recovery stage, so we’re going to suggest you take it easy. You’ll have to follow certain instructions, especially when it comes to wearing hats and washing your scalp.

Weeks 2-4

During this time, you will likely experience a shedding out of the newly transplanted follicles, which is normal as they set up for future growth in their new home.

Weeks 4-12

This is the time when the follicles begin their rest phase, so don’t expect any growth during this period.

Weeks 12-13

Some fine hairs start to appear in the transplant area.

Months 6-9

This is the period when your newly transplanted follicles start to take off and grow hair in earnest.

Months 9-18

During these months, your hair should continue to grow and become thicker, blending in more with your existing hair.

As you can see, the results timeline is long, but these results are built to last. Once we transplant a follicle, it should remain active and healthy for the foreseeable future and continue to produce great hair.

So, the main thing you should plug into your hair restoration equation is the fact that FUE is a lengthy, but highly effective process that will require some patience on your part.

There’s no better time than the present for FUE

Many of our patients ask whether there’s an ideal time for FUE, and our response is this: The sooner we can perform the FUE procedure, the better.

Hair loss is progressive, so acting quickly can make a big difference. While your hair is thinning, your scalp still has the resources necessary to support follicular health. Once you cross over into shiny baldness, hair restoration becomes more challenging.

If you’re wondering whether there’s a good time of year to do this, that’s a question only you can answer. If you have a big event, such as a wedding, you might try to plan around that, for example. 

When it comes to seasonal considerations, if you live near our offices, you’re in a region that’s fairly temperate, so that’s not a big deciding factor.

Talk to us about FUE

The best way to figure out the right timing for your FUE hair restoration is to sit down with one of our specialists to go over your unique needs and goals. 

To set that in motion, please contact one of our offices in Las Vegas or Henderson, Nevada, and St. George, Utah, to schedule an appointment.