Hair Coloring After Transplant

Hi Dr. Rassman.
First I would like to thank you and Dr. McClellan, for doing such a great job. It has only been a week since my surgery 1,700 grafts. 5 Years ago I had 1,100 grafts. Healing is occurring quite rapidly, and I feel the positive results around the corner.

I have somewhat fine, and curly hair age 38. Auburn brownish is my natural color. Redhead when I was younger. My father grayed heavily in his thirties, as did my brothers & I. I use either “Grecian Formula”, or “Just for Men” 5 minute hair coloring. (Light Brown to get as close to my natural color as possible). About a month prior to surgery, I had my hair highlighted bleach blonde, and the results were fantastic. I looked a lot less bald, with wonderful full blonde curls, and my brown underneath. It looks so natural and subtle that everyone thinks I have just been in the sun for a week. I am very pleased with this coloring. Because I only highlighted, the brown color treated area remains, its brown status.

The main question becomes at this point, is when can I use the “Grecian Formula”, or the “Just for Men 5 Minute Hair Coloring again as my base?

And, when can I “bleach” highlight again?
A) My regular area.
B) Donor, and Transplanted area.

Thanks again to Dr. McClellan for doing such a great job last week.

Thank you for your kind words! I am hesitant to post this for fear that readers may think this is a ‘planted’ question, but you do raise some issues that have not been addressed in this blog. You can begin to color or bleach your hair once there is no more scabbing present and the skin is smooth. This usually happens within the first after surgery (in some people in days). I generally advise people to dye their hair immediately prior to the surgery so that there is no significant disruption to their schedules.

You also bring up an important point on the value of hair coloring. Lightening the hair always adds the look of fullness. In a question posed to me on April 21st (see: Platinum Blonde Patients), the question of blonde hair came up in a different context. That question has bothered me since it came in and as I looked through hundreds and hundreds of patient photos, fewer blondes were in my hair transplant group than non-blondes. Then I realized that the lack of blondes in my database of photos came about for two reasons:

1. There are fewer blondes in the population (estimated at less than 10%). We are led to believe that the actual number is higher because there are many, many blonde women. Could it be that because ‘Blondes have more fun” women are becoming blonde far more frequently than men are?
2. A platinum blonde man can lose 85% of the hair on the front, top and crown without knowing that he is going bald. This is because of the low color contrast between hair and skin color and that the shiny hair platinum blondes have makes balding less prominent.

In conclusion, men who are balding should think more like you and consider taking charge of coloring like some of the women out there are doing regularly. Maybe, just maybe, coloring can solve the hair thinning problem without a hair transplant for those who are not quite bald yet.