Eyebrows are a critical facial feature that helps to define the way we look. In many ways, eyebrows are more important to one’s appearance than Scalp hair, as eyebrows are in a more central position on the face and serve to frame the eyes (the single most important facial element). Unlike the loss of Scalp hair, the loss of one’s eyebrows is not viewed as a natural process and is, therefore, not cosmetically acceptable. Eyebrows may be lost for a variety of reasons including thyroid and other systemic diseases, alopecia areata, burns, tattoos, infections, repeated plucking, congenital inability to grow eyebrows and a genetic tendency for eyebrows to thin, or disappear, over time.
Eyebrow Restoration is similar to other hair transplant procedures performed on the Scalp, in that, for appropriate candidates, the transplanted hair is permanent. However, because eyebrows have their own unique attributes, eyebrow transplants differ from hair transplants in a number of important ways.
Although Eyebrow Hair Transplantation is a safe and cosmetically elegant procedure, there are a number of things to consider before undergoing this type of hair restoration. As with hair transplants to the Scalp, the hair transplanted to eyebrows will continue to grow and must therefore be periodically cut. Besides being a minor nuisance, trimming the hair leaves a cut-end that is not as delicate as the fine-tipped end of an untouched hair. In the process of healing, all wounds contract. As the recipient sites contract, they may slightly change their flat orientation and sometimes result in eyebrow hair that is slightly more elevated than one would like. In contrast to hair transplants, where the donor hair is taken from another part of the Scalp and matches perfectly, with eyebrow transplants the hair is taken from a part of the body other than the eyebrows and will thus have slightly different characteristics with regard to both growth rate and appearance. If they are different, then over time, the transplanted scalp hair will slowly begin to approximate the growth pattern and characteristics of the existing eyebrow hair – but it may never totally match it. The appearance of an eyebrow transplant will mature over the course of a year. At that time, an additional eyebrow hair transplant procedure may be considered. During this interval, the eyebrow can be tweezed and shaped as needed.