Localized Telogen Effluvium Following Hair Transplantation
January 2018
in “
Annals of Dermatology
”
TLDR Some people experienced temporary hair loss after hair transplant surgery but recovered fully within 10 months.
The document reports two cases of localized telogen effluvium, a form of nonscarring alopecia characterized by diffuse hair thinning and shedding, following hair transplantation surgery. The first case involved a 51-year-old female who experienced hair loss three weeks after having 2,000 hair follicles transplanted, and the second case involved a 40-year-old male with hair loss starting two weeks after the procedure. Both patients had no significant medical history or medication use that could account for the hair loss. Physical examinations and histopathological analysis of scalp biopsies showed increased numbers of telogen hair follicles without inflammatory cell infiltration, confirming the diagnosis of telogen effluvium. The patients were reassured, not treated, and followed up, with full recovery observed within 10 months. The paper suggests that localized telogen effluvium can be a temporary side effect of hair transplantation due to factors such as surgical stress and advises that surgeons minimize trauma to hair follicles to prevent this condition.