Hair Transplant in Costa Mesa CA
Hair loss is caused by a combination of ageing, hormonal changes and a genetic history of baldness. The earlier hair loss begins, the more severe the baldness. It can also be caused by trauma, or burns, whereas this surgery is considered reconstructive.
Procedure Types
Hair Transplantation - The procedure consists of resurfacing bald areas of scalp with hair. Plugs of bald scalp are removed and then filled with plugs of scalp containing several hair roots taken from hair-bearing areas. Those grafts root themselves into their new locations and hair follicles start to grow eventually.
Depending on the degree of baldness, the number of grafts needed and the length of treatment sessions vary. Several operations may be necessary. The technique may leave many small scars on the site used (donor sites) but are usually not noticeable.
Scalp Flap Transfer – This is done when the sides of the scalp (above the ears) and the back of the scalp is hair-bearing. A long thin "flap" of scalp that is hair-bearing is removed and placed across a bald section to create a band of normal hair growth. As part of the treatment, parts of the bald scalp may be removed. The donor site is closed by stretching the opposite side of the scalp.
This procedure replaces hair across a large area of bald scalp. The hair growth looks normal, and the narrow scars are hidden between the hair follicles.
Scalp Reduction (Serial Excision) – This is the removal of as much of the bald section as possible and done in the first operation. The adjacent hair bearing areas of scalp are pulled in close to the bald section, with the understanding that some bald areas will remain. This technique is repeated one or more times at a later date to eventually reconstruct the bald area.
Tissue Expansion – A device called a tissue expander is placed under a hair growth area situated adjacent to a bald area. After several weeks, the tissue expander causes skin to grow new skin cells. Then another operation is necessary to place the newly expanded skin over the ajoining bald area.
Ideal candidates for hair replacement must have a healthy growth of hair at the back and sides of the head. The hair on the back and sides of the head will be the donor sites where the flaps and grafts will be surgically removed.
The procedure location options may include the surgeon's office-based surgical facility, outpatient surgery center, hospital outpatient, or hospital in patient.
The anesthetic options are either general, or local (combined with a sedative)which allows the patient to remain awake but relaxed.
To achieve desired fullness, several surgical sessions are needed. There is a healing period of several months recommended between each session. The final result with a full transplant series may take up to 2 years.
A month or 2 after surgery, the grafted hair falls out (which is normal and temporary). It takes another month or more before hair growth starts. To create more natural-looking results, a surgical touch-up procedure may be necessary. This may consist of using a combination of mini grafts or slit grafts to fill and blend in the hairline.
More Costa Mesa info...
Costa Mesa Get in Traveling to Costa Mesa is not difficult.
Driving: Home to two Interstate freeways: the 405 and the 55; as well as one California highway: the 73; driving into the city is not hard.
Flying: One can also fly in as John Wayne Airport (SNA) is just on the other side of the Costa Mesa/Santa Ana border.
Costa Mesa Get around OCTA operates a myriad of buses in the city. The most important ones are those that serve South Coast Plaza. Routes 51, 55, 57, 76, 86, 145, 172, 173, 211, 216 and 464 all serve the mall, which basically means that SCP is accesible almost anywhere in the county.
Plastic Surgery News...
- From and for the heart, My Dear Valentine: Broccoli!Wishing your Valentine good heart health on February 14 - and throughout 2008? Then consider the food some people love to hate, and hand over a gift bag of broccoli along with that heart-shaped box of chocolates. Researchers in Connecticut are reporting impressive new evidence that eating broccoli may protect against heart disease.
- According to BioSpace, preliminary results from a Phase III study evaluating Sativex® in the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis (MS)-related pain, show that it failed to meet its primary endpoint.
The double-blind, placebo-controlled study involved 339 patients with central neuropathic pain due to MS, who had achieved inadequate pain relief with existing therapies. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients whose pain was reduced by at least 30% (using 0-10 numerical scale) – although this was achieved by 50% of patients randomised to Sativex, this was not found to be statistically significantly different from placebo due to an unexpectedly large placebo response [the placebo response rate is not stated in the news item].
The BioSpace article notes that patients were able to self-administer the spray at will, and that this ‘may have confounded the overall comparison’ as those in the placebo group took significantly more doses overall. This was however designed to reflect the ‘real world’ use of Sativex as much as possible, whereby patients initially experiment with dosing of Sativex to find their optimum dose level. GW made the decision last year to adopt a fixed target dose approach for the ongoing studies in cancer pain and MS spasticity. Following a comprehensive review of this data, GW intends to carry out a further study in this patient population.