Surgical interventions for androgenetic alopecia

Abstract

Introduction Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is the most common type of progressive hair loss, and current treatments are limited. Consequently, many patients seek nonmedical hair care, including herbal and dietary therapies as well as surgical procedures. Methods Relevant articles on surgical hair restoration procedures were retrieved through a selective search of PubMed. Results Sufficient donor hair supply is an important criterion for undergoing any type of hair restoration surgery. Men are more likely to be candidates for hair restoration surgery than women. One type of surgical intervention is scalp reduction, in which bald patches are excised and hair‐bearing portions of scalp are moved to cover the excision. In recent years, hair transplantation has eclipsed scalp reduction as the surgical hair restoration procedure of choice. The most popular techniques for obtaining donor hair for transplantation are strip harvesting and follicular unit extraction (FUE). FUE produces better aesthetic results, though hair grafts display higher survival rates in strip harvesting Discussion Hair transplantation remains a developing procedure, and no standard recommendations have been put forth yet. Nevertheless, it has become a successful strategy for treating hair loss and is expected to continue to make advances in years to come.