Chronic Diseases Increase Risks in Hair Transplant Procedure

Dr. Gökay Bilgin, co-founder of Smile Hair Clinic and member of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS), provided information about the complications that chronic diseases may cause during and after hair transplantation. Dr. Bilgin drew attention to the fact that hair transplantation in patients with chronic diseases carries risks that may cause the patient to be in intensive care, and therefore the procedure must be performed by specialist physicians. He said, “We can call hair transplantation a small organ transplant. For this reason, it must be performed under the supervision of a physician and in a health institution. We hear that hair transplantation is performed in places that are not health institutions, so stay away from these places.”

Dr. Gökay Bilgin, a hair transplant specialist and founder of Smile Hair Clinic, made evaluations about the complications and risks that chronic diseases may cause during and after hair transplantation.

“UNDESIRABLE CONSEQUENCES MAY OCCUR”

Speaking about the conditions that hair transplantation may cause in patients with chronic diseases, Dr. Bilgin stated that hair transplantation is a surgical operation and therefore, as in all other operations, the patient should be evaluated beforehand, and said, “Let’s say you have hypertension, your blood pressure has increased that day, there may be excessive bleeding or you may experience discomfort during the procedure. Or if you have any heart disease, you may experience cardiac distress and completely undesirable results. There is a possibility that the medications we use due to some enzyme deficiencies may reduce the amount of oxygen in the patient’s blood. If the patient is not aware of this or does not know or has not informed the doctor about this, they may need to spend a few days in intensive care, receive treatment, or have a blood transfusion.”

Dr. Bilgin stated that diseases such as hypothyroidism, which are caused by a deficiency in thyroid hormone, pose a general threat to hair health, and said, “If you perform a hair transplant and the patient has hypothyroidism, there is a high probability that the hair transplant will fail or that the transplanted hair will later disappear or fall out. For this reason, it is very important for us to develop treatments for these afterwards.”

“THE PATIENT MUST BE EVALUATED BY A PHYSICIAN”

Stating that patients with chronic diseases should definitely consult a physician before hair transplantation, Dr. Bilgin said, “First of all, this must definitely be evaluated by a physician, apart from chronic diseases. The physician must decide on the suitability of the patient, evaluate him/her in advance, understand his/her expectations, know whether he/she can achieve them or not, and inform the patient about this. If a dangerous situation will occur due to the drugs to be used during the operation, these must be eliminated by the team performing the operation during the hair transplantation procedure or measures must be taken for their treatment when they develop.”

“IT MUST BE CARRIED OUT WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF A PHYSICIAN”

Speaking about choosing the right clinic and doctor for hair transplantation, Dr. Bilgin said, “Some people see hair transplantation as something very simple, like getting nails done or a tattoo. For this reason, they do not care much. Therefore, they should not forget that this is ultimately a tissue transplant. We can call it a small organ transplant. For this reason, it must be performed with the supervision of a physician and in a health institution. We hear that hair transplantation is performed in places that are not health institutions, these places should be avoided. Hair transplantation must be performed with the supervision of a physician and the physician must be involved in every stage of the procedure.”

CHRONIC DISEASES SUCH AS BLOOD PRESSURE, ANEMIA, DIABETES SHOULD BE OBSERVED

Dr. Bilgin also provided information about the follow-up of the process in patients with chronic diseases after the hair transplantation procedure, “Chronic diseases such as blood pressure should be monitored for a few days. Because the medications we give can sometimes increase blood pressure, this should be checked. For example, if the patient has anemia, the treatment for anemia should have already been done before the transplant. If the patient has a heart condition, they should listen to themselves carefully. In some cases, such as diabetes, the blood sugar can increase for a few days. They should monitor these and if they experience any negative situations, they should definitely contact both the doctor who performed the operation and the doctor who follows the chronic disease,” he said.