What Happens to the Scalp Micro-Pigmentation Once You Turn Gray?

Dr. Rassman

I see that you have recently begun offering micropigmentation. This is something that’s intrigued me for some time but, until you began offering it, there never seemed to be any reliable results posted anywhere. I’ve got a couple of questions off the record as I’m somewhat interested in pursuing this as a complement to my hair transplants.

1. People often raise the question about how this will look as a person ages and their hair becomes gray or white. I’ve always thought that it may look odd as the dark dots are sure to stand out at that time. How do you propose patients will deal with this issue?
2. Over a lifetime, if cared for properly, how often do you expect a patient will have to touch up the work and will this cause it to become less defined over time?
3. Do you publish your fees?

Thanks for your time! Also, thanks for your Balding Blog. I’m a regular reader and you even published two of my questions in the past.

Thank you for your insightful questions. I will answer them as best I can below:

1. The pigmentation ‘dots’ are very small and for a person with hair that is not black (light brown for example) the pigment color can mimic the hair around the fringe, almost a dark gray which will not be a problem with age. We generally make the color match the hair color (shade). Remember that as the hair grows out from the scalp, it is exposed to sunlight (normally) and the hair in almost all people who do not have black hair will see some hair lightening, so we address that up-front as we select the initial color we use.
2. Over time, the pigment may fade and might need a touch-up. Our base charge will cover someone for 3 months to deal with color absorption of the pigment. Everyone is different with regard to the amount of pigment that is absorbed after the initial treatment. For a second treatment and beyond, pigmentation absorption is much slower, but it might fade more after a few years. Touch-ups may be desired.
3. Fees are individually determined at the time of the consultation, but they range from $2000 – $6000 depending upon the amount of work. This will include as many touch-up sessions as is needed to achieve the initial goals. It may take two or more sessions.

We will soon be trying a new pigment that is supposed to be reversible with one laser treatment, so even though we do not recommend that people consider this a reversible process, it possibly is. We plan to make it available after we determine how beneficial this pigment actually is.