Hair Restoration in the Gender-Affirming Patient

January 2025

Jeffrey S. Epstein, Anthony Bared

hair restoration gender-affirming procedures hairline lowering hairline feminization eyebrow transplantation pubic hair transplantation beard transplantation body hair transplantation

TLDR Hair restoration helps transgender patients achieve desired gender appearances.

Hair restoration plays a significant role in gender-affirming procedures for transgender patients, complementing surgeries to create more feminine or masculine appearances and to conceal surgical scars. For male to female (MTF) patients, procedures like hairline lowering, hairline feminization, and eyebrow and pubic hair transplantation are common. Female to male (FTM) patients often seek beard and body hair transplantation. This chapter outlines the various surgical approaches and treatment paradigms for hair restoration surgeons working with transgender patients.

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Research cited in this study

5 / 5 results

research Follicular Unit Excision: A Hair Transplant Technique

12 citations, April 2020 in “Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America”

Follicular Unit Excision (FUE) is a popular, safe hair transplant method that avoids scars and has a quick recovery, but requires precise surgical skill.

research Beard Hair Transplantation

3 citations, April 2020 in “Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America”

Beard hair transplantation is generally satisfying, requires 250-800 grafts, uses FUE to avoid scars, needs careful planning, has some risks, and hair regrowth starts after 4-6 months.

research Hair Transplantation Techniques for the Transgender Patient

14 citations, March 2019 in “Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America”

Hair transplantation can help transgender patients affirm their gender identity.

research Phenotype of Normal Hairline Maturation

19 citations, August 2013 in “Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America”

Children's hairlines change shape as they grow, with women often developing a widow's peak and men's hairlines becoming more convex and possibly balding at the temples, influenced by genetics and hormones.

research Naturally Occurring Female Hairline Patterns

58 citations, April 2009 in “Dermatologic Surgery”

Most women have a widow's peak and specific hairline features useful for designing hair restoration surgery.

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research Gender-Affirming Hair Procedures

January 2023 in “Operative Techniques in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery”

Hair transplants help transgender patients look more like their gender identity, with different procedures for trans women and men.

research Contents

January 2019 in “The Annals of Thoracic Surgery”

The document concludes that careful planning and execution of facial gender affirmation surgery after at least 12 months of hormonal therapy can improve the quality of life for transgender individuals.

research Nonsurgical Management of Facial Masculinization and Feminization

39 citations, October 2018 in “Aesthetic surgery journal”

Injectables can feminize or masculinize a transgender person's face, but more research is needed for best practices.

research Dermatologic Care of Hair in Transgender Patients: A Systematic Review of Literature

4 citations, July 2021 in “Dermatology and therapy”

Hormone therapy increases facial and body hair in transgender men, while hair removal improves well-being in transgender women, but cost is a barrier as insurance often doesn't cover it. Dermatologists can use various treatments for these hair issues.

research Androgenetic Alopecia in Transgender and Gender Diverse Populations: A Review of Therapeutics

1 citations, October 2021 in “Journal of The American Academy of Dermatology”

The document concludes that treatments for hair loss in transgender and gender-diverse individuals include topical solutions, oral medications, laser therapy, and hair restoration procedures, with progress assessed after 6-12 months.

Hair Restoration in the Gender-Affirming Patient

Research cited in this study

research Follicular Unit Excision: A Hair Transplant Technique

research Beard Hair Transplantation

research Hair Transplantation Techniques for the Transgender Patient

research Phenotype of Normal Hairline Maturation

research Naturally Occurring Female Hairline Patterns

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