Celebrity Hair Transplant: Virender Sehwag on the Spot

Hair loss affects a lot of men yearly, with a large chunk of that population consisting of aging men who are in their 50’s to 60’s.

When this happens to men around this age, we often attribute it to aging. But 20% of the total number consists of the guys who are still in their twenties to early thirties and are already losing a significant amount of hair.

Virender Sehwag is among these unfortunate individuals and had to be placed in a position where his condition is uncomfortably discussed in public.

There are a number of ways to treat this problem and it includes medications, laser, hair pieces and even the tacky comb-overs. But hair transplant is the treatment option most widely known to be an aggressive approach which is able to create a dramatic improvement.

This surgical method entails having to remove donor hairs at the back of the scalp which are then implanted to the bald or recipient area. Two known approach for removing hair donors are the FUT (Follicular Unit Transplantation) or the strip method and FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction).

Unlike the other well-publicized hair transplant of Bollywood’s Salman Khan, the one that Sehwag had is different than the popular methods used.

"You sell good when you look good", says Virender Sehwag concerning his hair transplant result in 2010. Sehwag is battling androgenetic alopecia.

For his case, DHI or Direct Hair Implantation method is used. DHI is known as the “no touch” technique which utilizes a small pen-like instrument which is able to implant hair follicles without having to resort to force or excessive handling from the surgeon. Therefore it limits the chances of follicular damage. Furthermore, it also allows the surgeon to control the placement, direction and depth of the hair grafts.

This procedure is able to create a natural-looking hairline, widow’s peak and crown swirls. It also eliminates the need for scalpels, holes and excessive pain because it is done on the topmost layer of the skin. With that only a small amount of local anesthetic is even required.

Today Virender Sehwag is most definitely impressed with his hair transplant results. This can also be evidenced by the improvement of his facial profile.

However this procedure can cost you more than the usual FUT and FUE method of hair transplantation. If budget is a concern but quality is top priority, the usual procedures are just as good when creating a natural-looking outcome. The secret here is that whether if it is FUT, FUE or DHI, it is best to choose a certified and highly skilled hair transplant surgeon.

Like Virender Sehwag, you can have a successful hair transplant of your own when you trust the right people to do it. Photo credit: public.resource.org via Small Kitchen / CC BY

A Look into Salman Khan Hair Transplant

One of Bollywood’s biggest actor and bad boy, Salman Khan was one of the few celebrities who are open about his battle with hair loss and his hair transplant.

As a person whose career is hinged largely on his looks, he certainly used the aggressive approach to relieve the problem. And today, his results became one of those that people look on to as a perfect example of a successful hair transplant.

Hair loss is a condition that is suffered by men, usually those who are aging. But unfortunately for 20% of these men, experience hair loss during their twenties. Salman Khan who is still in his early thirties was already showing signs of a receding hair line. And for someone who had a good volume of hair and whose image was defined by it, a hair transplant is a good option.

Compared to other treatments, hair transplant is considered to be the best viable choice because it gives good coverage and permanent results.

Unfortunately not all hair transplant services result to success, and Khan found this out in his first procedure back in 2003. He had another work done in Dubai back in 2007 to correct the botched results. It was said that it was an American doctor who performed the procedure, but no name was revealed to the public.

To Khan’s advantage, the results were highly favorable as evidenced by the excellent hair coverage. But what approach was used on Salman Khan?

As a public figure, it is important that the outcome provided good aesthetic results. This means that as much as possible it should be natural-looking and free from scars. That is why he opted for FUE or the Follicular Unit Extraction technique.

In hair transplant there are two approaches used to remove the follicular units or the donor hair grafts, and these are FUT (Follicular Unit Transplant) and FUE. FUT is the traditional technique which removes a strip of the scalp containing the hair grafts. Each donor graft is then extracted by hair technicians using a high-powered microscope before it is implanted back to the head.

But the major drawback with FUT is that it causes a large scar at the back of the head, which is exactly what Khan was most certain to avoid. This led him to choose the more lengthy and expensive but aesthetically pleasing FUE.

FUE was developed in order to answer to the aesthetic drawback with FUT. Using a special tool; individual grafts are removed using a punch technique. As a result this leads to less detectable scars that also heal faster.

Reports claim that Khan’s donor grafts were taken from his body hair. This was to maintain the number of hairs in his head. And this is also possible and has been the method used by some patients. Body hair is also a viable option to treat baldness.

Some reports also claimed that due to the scarcity of donor hairs, some synthetic hair was also used to improve volume.

Today Salman Khan graces the screen with a head full of hair and an image crisis is fully averted with a good hair transplant.

Photo credit: ilovebolly.com via RemodelBlog / CC BY-ND

Did Lebron James Get a Hair Transplant?

There have been speculations whether NBA’s most valuable player Lebron James joined the pool of celebrities who have gotten hair transplants. This spurred when a Nike Diamond Collection Apparel catalogue for the Holiday season came out with him sporting a much rather fuller head of hair. 

James, who garnered a remarkable streak during last basketball season have impressed a lot of fans and even critics. However, no matter how much he shines on the court, he can’t veer away from the locker room jokes and comments from reporters about his receding hair line. 

Has Lebron James finally had enough? 

 If the rumors were true, James is not the first famous athlete who had some hair transplant done.  The English striker for Manchester United, Wayne Rooney was also candid about his surgical hair restoration procedure. At the ripe age of 26 Rooney’s battle with hair loss have also been catching media attention. James, who is now 27, is also observed to have a slowly progressing hair loss, which he conveniently conceals with a headband while on the court. 

But some have started to suspect that his hair loss could be progressing as he was seen wearing two headbands during games. Unfortunately for him, he cannot wear it off the court without looking silly, leaving him with no choice but to brazenly sport his receding hairline. With a 14 million dollar paycheck, it comes as no surprise if he had some work done. 

People are suspecting that he had the work done a little over two months ago, which is why we should be expecting the headband to go down a bit more to conceal those growing hair plugs. But we’ll just have to wait and see soon. 

Hair loss and men in their 20's 

The number of men who are starting to lose hair in their twenties is increasing every year. Back in the day, we only equate this with aging but we see younger males experiencing receding hairlines. Genetic predisposition, diet, stress, medications, and lifestyle are the factors that could be shifting the demographic affected to those who are much younger. 

There are different ways to manage hair loss, from medications, laser treatment and the more invasive and expensive hair transplant surgery. Surgical hair restoration seems to be the best resort, but some bow out of it because of its hefty price tag. 

These are well suited for those, like Lebron James who have more than enough to cash out on a very good procedure. But if you have the means and determined to get the kind of coverage a hair transplant is able to produce, the first important step is to find you a certified and reputable hair transplant surgeon. You could end up with something like Wayne Rooney’s impressively natural-looking results. 

 Another ingenious method to conceal the hair loss problem is to shave it off. Studies even show that those with shaved heads are considered to be appear more dominant, masculine, taller, and strong and even exuding leadership potential. This is much more preferable compared to the ingenious comb over and less appealing toupees.

Photo credit: Keith Allison via Foter.com / CC BY-SA