INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY OF HAIR RESTORATION SURGERY
HOSTS FIRST “WORLD HAIR TRANSPLANT REPAIR DAY”, NOVEMBER 11, 2021
Victims of botched hair transplant surgeries from fraudulent, illicit clinics eligible for free corrective surgeries from participating ISHRS physician members
CHICAGO – Sept. 14, 2021. As part of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery’s (ISHRS) Fight the FIGHT global consumer awareness campaign against fraudulent, illicit hair transplants, the Society announced its first “World Hair Transplant Repair Day” — designed to help people who have been victims of botched hair transplant surgeries from fraudulent, illicit clinics — will be held on November 11, 2021. Those interested in participating can apply for free reparative surgery through the campaign’s website at HairRepairDay.org.
Launched by the ISHRS in 2019 in response to concern about the growing risk to patients of unlicensed technicians around the world illegally performing substantial aspects of hair restoration surgery, Fight the FIGHT is an acronym for Fight the Fraudulent, Illicit, and Global Hair Transplants. When performed by a qualified physician, a hair transplant is an excellent procedure for treating hair loss safely and effectively. The ISHRS is committed to patient safety and continually strives for the best outcomes for all patients, offering members superior education and training to improve their techniques.
“Clinics using technicians to perform hair restoration surgery pose a severe health risk with serious side effects for patients — including permanent scarring, infection, and depletion from over-harvested donor areas,” said Paul McAndrews, MD, FISHRS, president of the ISHRS. “World Hair Transplant Repair Day was created to raise awareness of this illegal worldwide practice and offer affected patients a means to work with a qualified hair restoration physician to try to correct their poor outcomes.”
The ISHRS explains that many clinics around the world promote themselves as hair restoration experts — luring vulnerable patients with cheap prices and false advertising presented with misleading information — but are operating illegally and fraudulently and without the proper knowledge or training. In many cases, physicians do not perform the surgery and delegate the procedures to unlicensed technicians. The results of this illegal, black-market practice are often devastating.
“The number of hair transplant surgeries has increased in recent years, but, unfortunately, this also brought about many inexperienced and illegal people to take a role in the industry,” said Dr. Ozgur Oztan, MD, member of the ISHRS Fight the FIGHT Subcommittee. “Poor planning, bad judgment, and sloppy techniques in hair transplantation will result in an unnatural look, cosmetic defects, and poor hair growth. Due to this fact, a lot of patients have endured unsuccessful and unnatural results, and this still goes on.”
In an effort to help victims of botched hair transplants, those affected can learn more by visiting the campaign website and may have a chance to receive a pro bono restorative hair procedure with an expert member of the ISHRS or a member of a Global Council Society.
“Our members are reporting an increasing number of patients coming to their clinics who have been victims of these botched hair transplant surgeries and are desperate for correction,” said Ricardo Mejia, MD, chair of the ISHRS Communications and Public Education Committee. “The ISHRS’s World Hair Transplant Repair Day is our way of raising awareness of this growing problem and helping people find solutions with qualified physicians of the ISHRS who have the education and training in the art and science of hair transplantation.”
For more information or to take part in this worldwide educational campaign and event, contact [email protected] and visit www.HairRepairDay.org.
HairTransplantRepairDay
About the ISHRS
The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) is a global non-profit medical association and the leading authority on hair loss treatment and restoration with 1,000 members throughout 70 countries worldwide. Above all, the ISHRS is dedicated to achieving excellence in patient outcomes by promoting the highest standards of medical practice, medical ethics, and research in the medical hair restoration industry. The ISHRS also provides continuing medical education to physicians specializing in hair transplant surgery and is committed to delivering the latest information on medical and surgical treatments to consumers suffering from hair loss, and most commonly from androgenetic alopecia – male pattern baldness and female pattern hair loss. It was founded in 1993 as the first international society to promote continuing quality improvement and education for professionals in the field of hair restoration surgery. For more information and to locate a physician, visit www.ishrs.org.