Facial hair transplantation has gained more popularity in recent years with beard hair transplantation seeing the biggest gains. There are several different kinds of facial hair transplant surgery available.

When patients are seeking beard, mustache and sideburn hair transplant surgery they are generally looking to thicken their existing facial hair or to construct a completely new beard, mustache or sideburns from scratch when they cannot be grown naturally. Beard and mustache hair transplantation in particular have seen an explosion in popularity since around 2014 due to the growing acceptability of strong, thick beards as seen in fashion trends. The process is simple; it involves one or both types of surgical hair restoration currently available known as FUSS or FUE. Hair is taken from the donor scalp of the patient and transplanted to predetermined areas of the face. The patient is usually given a mild sedative as their face is injected with painkillers and tumescence throughout the day. Once the procedure is completed the patient is free to leave as this, and all hair transplant procedures, are considered to be outpatient surgeries with no need for overnight stay. Beard and facial hair transplant procedures usually require more than one pass to achieve a desired density.

Eyebrow hair transplant surgery has also been experiencing strong growth particularly among female patients. This procedure also can be performed using FUSS or FUE but the argument for using FUE by some clinics is that finer single hairs can be “cherry picked” as is necessary for the more delicate nature of eyebrow reconstruction. While the need is legitimate the practice of cherry picking is questionable as some would argue that if a finer single follicular unit may be harvested there is no way to tell if this finer hair will become thicker due to it being in a transitional growth cycle at the time of harvest. Regardless, eyebrow reconstruction is a stark contrast to previous eyebrow trends that found women plucking their eyebrows for a thinner, more refined framing of the eyes. The popularity of eyebrow transplantation will depend on how long the fad of thick eyebrows continues but there will always be a need for such work due to other circumstances that can cause eyebrow hair loss. All eyebrow transplant results must be trimmed on a regular basis as the donor hair that is transplanted will continue to grow at a pace that is faster than normal eyebrow growth.

Eyelash hair restoration is not as common as eyebrow reconstruction but it too is growing in popularity. Logically, the delicate nature of eyelash restoration requires a steady and experienced hand but the principle is the same as all other forms of hair transplant surgery. Donor hair is harvested to restore hair in an area now devoid of hair. In the case of eyelashes this can be necessary if the patient wore eyelash extensions too much or had some sort of trauma such as chemotherapy or severe burns. The procedure require very few actual hairs to be transplanted with a quick overall recovery time and little to no downtime.

All hair transplant surgery has risks and the same precautions for scalp hair transplant surgery should be taken for facial hair transplant surgery. This includes researching your doctor, meeting former patients face to face and understanding the realities and limitations that any and all surgical hair restoration procedures present.