Hair restoration procedures targeting face, chest, eyelashes increased 95 percent worldwide
GENEVA, IL. – September 23, 2015 The latest trend in hair restoration surgery is proving to be anything but a passing fad. In fact, a new member survey conducted by the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) shows that more people are seeking non-scalp hair restoration procedures to enhance everything from eyebrows and eyelashes to chest and facial hair.
From 2012 to 2014, the ISHRS survey found that the total number of hair restoration procedures targeting recipient areas of the body other than the scalp increased 95 percent. In 2014, 89.1 percent of hair transplant procedures targeted the scalp area and 10.9 percent targeted non-scalp areas of the body—including eyebrow (5.5 percent), face/moustache/beard (3.7 percent) and eyelash (0.6 percent) areas.
“Continual refinements in hair restoration surgery have now made it possible to permanently enhance one’s hair in virtually any area of the body,” said Kuniyoshi Yagyu, MD (Tokyo, Japan), president of the ISHRS. “For some people, a non-scalp hair restoration procedure may help with an aesthetic improvement—such as a woman seeking to add fullness to over-plucked eyebrows. But for others, the desire to add hair to areas such as the chest or face may stem from cultural expectations that men have ample hair in these areas.”
From 2012 to 2014, hair restoration procedures performed on non-scalp areas jumped in every category worldwide, including:
- Facial (moustache/beard) procedures increased 196 percent
- Chest procedures increased 170 percent
- Eyelash procedures increased 90 percent
- Pubic procedures increased 62 percent
- Eyebrow procedures increased 52 percent
Non-scalp hair restoration procedures are performed using the same type of proven techniques that hair restoration surgeons use to restore scalp hair. For example, in the case of eyebrow hair transplantation, tiny single hair follicular units from a donor area where hair has a similar texture as eyebrow hair—such as at the back of the head—are transplanted to the eyebrow area in one outpatient procedure. Transplanted hair grows slowly over the course of several months following an eyebrow transplant, typically reaching full growth within six months.
Of the 397,048 hair restoration surgical procedures performed worldwide in 2014, Asia conducted the largest number of eyelash (1,256), eyebrow (7,515), face/moustache/beard (4,199), chest (491) and pubic (706) hair restoration procedures. The largest number of “other” (2,604) hair restoration procedures—including sideburns, scar areas or facelift scar areas—were performed in the United States.
When ISHRS members were asked which non-scalp hair restoration procedure sites men and women were most interested in discussing, the majority of members reported women were most interested in discussing eyebrow procedures (92.2 percent). Men were most interested in discussing facial (63.8 percent) or eyebrow (31.5 percent) procedures.
To help patients understand the causes and available treatments for hair loss, the ISHRS has produced a series of videos available on its website (www.ishrs.org) entitled “Why Do Women Lose Their Hair?”and “Why Do Guys Lose Their Hair?”
About the ISHRS
The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) is a global non-profit medical association and a leading authority on hair loss treatment and restoration with more than 1,200 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.
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