What questions should you ask when choosing a hair transplant clinic?

What questions should you ask when choosing a clinic?

When choosing a clinic for a hair transplant, we recommend asking the following: who will examine you and plan your procedure, who will carry out each stage of the procedure, whether the procedure will take place in a licensed healthcare facility, what the price includes, which risks are most relevant to you, how follow-up will work, and whether you will be given written aftercare instructions. Getting clear answers to these questions lets you compare your options by the same criteria.

A hair transplant is a surgical procedure performed under local anesthesia, and it takes months for the result to become clear. That is why you need to ask not only about the day of the procedure but also about what comes before and after it. These questions do not determine the result, but they let you know in advance who is responsible for each step and what to do if a problem arises.

Write down your questions before you talk to a clinic, take notes on the answers, and give yourself time to decide. You can ask us these questions too.

Who will examine you and plan your procedure?

Photos and an initial call give you an idea, but whether you are suitable for a hair transplant, and what your plan will be, become clear when a doctor examines you. You can ask the following about the examination:

• Will a doctor examine me in person before the procedure?
• Will you look at the cause of my hair loss and how it may progress in the future?
• Who will decide on the hairline, the recipient area and the method? Is the doctor who examines me the same person as the doctor who will perform the procedure?
• How do you determine how many grafts I need? (Grafts are small pieces of tissue taken from the donor area, each carrying one or a few hairs.)
• If I am not suitable for a transplant, or if another treatment should be tried first, will you tell me so clearly?

Any number of grafts given before an examination can only be approximate; the number needed depends on the size of the recipient area, the density of your donor area and the density being aimed for. We explain how this is worked out in our article on how many grafts are needed, and the situations in which a transplant may not be suitable in our article on who should not have a hair transplant.

With us, the doctor who examines you decides whether you are suitable. The initial call is for answering your questions and explaining the process.

Who will carry out each stage of the procedure?

A hair transplant is not a single step. The main stages are planning and marking, local anesthesia, harvesting the grafts, opening the channels (making the small incisions the grafts will sit in) and placing the grafts. When an implanter pen (a pen-like tool the graft is loaded into) is used, the last two steps can be combined into a single movement.

Besides the doctor, other healthcare staff usually take part in these stages. That is why asking “who performs the procedure?” stage by stage gives you a clearer picture. Under current regulations in Turkey, the channel-opening step is performed by an authorized physician. Healthcare staff who hold an assistant practitioner certificate work under the supervision and responsibility of the authorized physician.

We explain how the methods differ on our hair transplant methods page; which one suits you becomes clear during the examination.

Will the procedure take place in a licensed healthcare facility?

Under current regulations in Turkey, a hair transplant unit cannot open or operate without an operating permit. That is why you should ask the following before the procedure:

• Which healthcare facility will the procedure take place in? What are the facility’s name and address?
• Does the facility have a license, and does its hair transplant unit have an operating permit? Can I see this information?
• If I had my initial call with someone other than the facility where the procedure will take place, who is responsible for the procedure and the follow-up?
• If an unexpected health problem arises during the procedure, how is it handled?

These are normal questions to ask before a surgical procedure. We explain our working principles on our About us page.

What does the price include?

When comparing prices, compare like with like; an item charged separately in one place may be included in the price somewhere else. Ask about the following items one by one:

• Are the examination and any tests that may be needed before the procedure included in the price?
• Are the medicines and care products I will use after the procedure included?
• Are the first wash and the follow-up appointments included? How long does follow-up last?
• What happens if the procedure is postponed or canceled?

The price often depends on the number of grafts needed, the method and the scope of the procedure, which is why information given before an examination may only be approximate. Ask for the agreed scope in writing. We do not publish prices on our site; we share cost information tailored to you after the initial call and planning.

How will the risks be explained to you?

Like any surgical procedure, a hair transplant has risks. In the first few days, redness, swelling, scabbing, tenderness and numbness are common; in most cases, these are temporary. In the following weeks, some of the transplanted hair or the hair around it may fall out (shock loss). For transplanted hair, this shedding is usually temporary; however, some of your own hair that had already thinned may not grow back.

Some people may develop inflammation around the hair follicles (folliculitis); infection and a more noticeable scar than expected are less common. If more grafts are taken from the donor area than it can spare, this area may look sparse. How much of the transplanted hair grows, and the density achieved, also vary from person to person.

During the examination, you can also discuss the following:

• Which risks are most relevant given my health and my hair type?
• How many grafts can be taken from my donor area, and how will this area be protected?
• Will I be able to read the informed consent form (a written document that explains the procedure, its possible risks and the options) before the procedure and ask questions about it?

Be sure to mention during the examination any medicines you take, any known medical conditions or allergies, and any wounds that have left raised scars in the past.

How will follow-up work, and who will you contact if there is a problem?

With a hair transplant, the process does not end on the day of the procedure: healing takes weeks, and new hair takes months to grow. That is why you should ask the following in advance:

• If I have a question or a problem, who do I contact, how, and at what times? What should I do outside those hours?
• When will the follow-up appointments take place? If I live in another city or abroad, how will follow-up work?
• Who will decide whether a problem needs to be seen in person?
• Will I be given written aftercare instructions? Will they cover the first wash, sleeping position, the medicines and products I will use, and returning to exercise?

You may come across different timelines and advice online; go by the written instructions you are given. We, too, give you written aftercare instructions after the procedure and plan the timing of your follow-up appointments together with you. You can find general information on the hair transplant aftercare page.

If you notice increasing pain, redness or swelling, discharge, fever or bleeding that does not stop, contact the place where you had the procedure without waiting for your follow-up appointment; in an emergency, go to the nearest healthcare facility.

Whether you are suitable for a hair transplant is determined during the examination; results also vary from person to person.