Hair transplant surgery is a well-known treatment for those suffering from male or female pattern baldness but it also has another important purpose. Those who have suffered permanent injury or disfigurement, because of an accident, surgery, congenital birth defect or fire for example, can also benefit from advances in hair transplant technology.
At HRBR, we have a large team of skilled surgeons, which includes three consultant plastic surgeons. These surgeons are highly skilled in the treatment of scars through hair transplantation.
To treat patients with scars the patient will first attend a consultation with our surgeon where a plan will be prepared.
Depending on the type of scarring two techniques can be used to reduce and camouflage the scar;
Scar Reduction
If the scar covers a large area it may be possible for our surgeons to reduce the size of the scarred area by excising part of it.
Transplantation
Hair can grow successfully in scarred skin tissue. Hair is taken from unaffected parts of the scalp, where hair is still plentiful, to where the hair has been damaged by scarring.
This transplanted hair will then grow in the scarred area and help to camouflage it. Blood supply in scarred tissue may be less than that in healthy skin and for this reason, for best results, the doctors may recommend completing the treatment in stages to ensure the grafts grow successfully in the scar.
Hair transplantation can offer patients a less invasive and more successful technique for treating scars on the head. Many patients are referred to us from consultant plastic surgeons who have performed previous reconstructive surgeries on the patient. The hair transplant is often the finishing touch for these patients.
HRBR have looked after many patients suffering from scars on the scalp and are one of the few clinics anywhere in the world with the expertise to treat these patients.
When transplanting hair into scars it is again important to take into account the patients future hair loss and the team at HRBR are experts in this. Hair is carefully selected from areas of the scalp that will ensure that hair transplanted into the scar will be totally undetectable as the patient ages.
The transplantation of scars at HRBR is quoted on a case by case basis following a consultation with one of our consultant surgeons.
About the Author
DR Maurice Collins
Consultant Surgeon
MB, B.Ch, BAO, DLO, FRCSI, FRCS, FRCSEd.
Registered with the Medical Council of Ireland
Dr Collins is Medical Director and Team Principal of Hair Restoration Blackrock. He was educated at Belvedere College Dublin and did his undergraduate medical studies at University College Dublin. After graduating as a doctor he trained in General Surgery and received his Fellowship (FRCSI) in this specialty from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
Find out more about DR Maurice Collins and our team of doctors and surgeons.
