A hair transplant surgery can be performed on a man or woman of any hair type and any hair color. Anyone who desires more hair can benefit from hair transplant surgery, provided the individual has an adequate donor area. This can be evaluated and discussed during a private consultation.
The first step is to meet with Dr. Rawnsley for a private consultation and discuss your personal needs. An appointment for your surgery can readily be obtained for you. The entire surgery can take anywhere from three to six hours. We start by injecting local anesthetic into the donor area at the back of the scalp. Dr. Rawnsley will carefully remove your donor hair as a strip. This process takes about ten minutes. The area is closed with meticulous suture placement, which is immediately hidden by the surrounding hair. Dr. Rawnsley’s “trichophyllic” closure technique actually encourages hair to grow through the scar, making it nearly undetectable. Next, Dr. Rawnsley will artfully create the receptor sites while the experienced surgical staff prepares the hair grafts from the strip. Finally, the surgical staff will delicately place the grafts into the receptor sites under Dr. Rawnsley’s supervision. Throughout the procedure, the Dr. Rawnsley will check to see that the grafts are positioned correctly. The entire procedure should be a comfortable experience, during which you will be able to eat lunch, fall asleep, talk with our surgical staff, watch a movie, listen to music, or just relax.
The procedure is performed under local anesthesia. We minimize the pain by slowly injecting local anesthetic so that the patient only feels two small pinches. We maintain depth-control of the incision by allowing no greater than 4-mm in depth, minimizing the possibility of damage to the nerves and arteries. Immediately after the surgery, the patient might need pain medication. The next day there is usually no discomfort.
The day after surgery you will be able to resume your daily activities with only a few limitations. These limitations will last for four or five days and include restrictions from strenuous exercise and heavy lifting. In ten days you will come back to our office to have the sutures removed from the back of your scalp. In approximately three months the new hair will start to grow and after six months, you can expect full growth from your transplanted hair. Most people will not realize that you are growing new hair, as the new growth is gradual and will continue to produce hair for a lifetime.
Many of the surgeries we perform are corrective in nature. We do corrective surgery for burn and trauma patients, and for hair transplants that were performed with older techniques. We also perform transplants for the eyebrows and eyelashes. Our dedication to accept challenging cases has given our center a whole new dimension to hair transplant surgery.
Many patients report positive results in their lives with the new hair growth gained from a transplant. Some enhancements include more confidence, regained self-esteem, pride in their new image, and the ability to look younger than their age.
If you are interested in learning more about hair transplants, or wish to set up a private consultation with Dr. Jeffrey Rawnsley, please call his office at 310.208.8888.
© 2025 Jeffrey Rawnsley, M.D., board certified facial plastic surgeon