Turkey
Eyebrow Transplant
An eyebrow transplant involves extracting hair from the scalp, or elsewhere on the body, and then implanting it in the eyebrow to replace lost hair. It is simply the best way you can choose to restore thinning (or lost) eyebrow hair. Eyebrow transplantation is the solution for any kind of eyebrow hair loss, regardless of the cause. It is even possible to restore hair growth on scarred eyebrows.
Your eyebrows are one of the more important factors that determine how you look. However, we often underappreciate the extent to which our eyebrows define our features and help express our facial expressions. Their significance is only realised when we lose our eyebrows. A person without eyebrows attacts more unwanted attention than someone with extensive baldness.

eyebrow transplant post-op
While the application of make-up and other similar cosmetic treatments are useful in the short-term, they don’t actually address the root of the problem. Eyebrow transplants are a permanent solution that work to reconstruct your eyebrows. Therefore, it makes sense that eyebrow transplants are increasingly popular treatment option.
This procedure is a long-term treatment option that actively solves the issue of missing eyebrow hair, without resorting to makeshift measures such make-up or medication. The implanted hair grows normally, regrowing just like native eyebrow hair. It even behaves like native eyebrow hair, regrowing when it sheds off. It is also a simple, minimally-invasive procedure that surgeons can perform on an outpatient basis. There is no significant pain or discomfort, and the recovery period is very quick.
An eyebrow transplant procedure
In an eyebrow transplant the surgeon usually extracts the donor hair from the back of the scalp. This is the same in a normal hair transplant procedure. The donor hair can also come from an eyebrow, if only one eyebrow has been affected by hair loss. The surgeon can also use donor hair from other parts of the body. This is dependent on the thickness of the eyebrow hair.
An eyebrow transplant requires the donor site to be partially shaved and then harvested for the appropriate follicular units. The technique used to harvest the follicular units will depend on a number of factors such as your willingness to have short hair, the density of hair growth on your head, financial constraints, the number of grafts required. Your surgeon can discuss other concerns with you.
FUE – Follicular Unit Extraction
Hair is extracted from the back of the head using Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE). Less advanced methods, such as FUT or ‘strip method,’ is when the surgeon cuts a strip of skin, containing the desired hair follicles, from the donor site. This strip is then dissected microscopically to extract individual follicular units for transplantation. The surgeon then closes up the donor site using sutures.
Eyebrow hair grows differently in comparison to hair found on the scalp. Hair in the scalp grows in follicular units which contain 1-4 hair strands. Eyebrows have hair that only grow as individual hair strands. This means that hair harvested from the donor site has to be prepared before it can be implanted into the eyebrows. A specialized team divides the follicular units into single hair grafts using a high-powered microscope.
The number of grafts needed depends on the degree of eyebrow hair loss and natural hair density. For the restoration of partial eyebrow hair loss that may be due to a scar, as little as 50-100 hair grafts are needed.
The complete restoration of an eyebrow may require as many as 400-600 hair grafts to ensure an acceptable outcome. The surgeon implants each of these hair grafts into predetermined recipient sites. These recipient sites are marked in accordance with the aesthetic described by the patient, guaranteeing a natural-looking result.
Single grafts are inserted into each recipient site of the eyebrow. This procedure is painless as the patient is usually sedated. The surgeon will also apply a local anaesthetic to the eyebrow area. The surgeons implanting the hair grafts have to account for the angle and direction of growth. Compared to the hair on the scalp, eyebrow hair tends to grow at a more acute angle compared to the skin surface.
Single grafts are inserted into each recipient site of the eyebrow. This procedure is painless as the patient is usually sedated. The surgeon will also apply a local anaesthetic to the eyebrow area. The surgeons implanting the hair grafts have to account for the angle and direction of growth. Compared to the hair on the scalp, eyebrow hair tends to grow at a more acute angle compared to the skin surface.
The surgeon requires a lot of skill and expertise to ensure the implanted hair looks natural. They will implant hair grafts that follow the natural curve of the eyebrows. To imitate the appearance of a natural eyebrow the surgeon will arrange the implanted eyebrow hair grafts in a way that will allow them to grow in an overlapping manner. This is particularly true for the medial and central portions of the eyebrows.
Taking these considerations into account, it is important that you agree to an eyebrow transplant once you are completely certain that the surgeon’s skill and experience can’t be called into question. Keep in mind that poorly done eyebrow transplants can be ineffective and a complete waste of your money.
Length of the procedure
The eyebrow transplant procedure can go on for a long time. This is due to the care taken when arranging individual hair grafts into the recipient area. The expertise, and the number, of surgeons involved in your operation will also affect the length of your procedure. Finally, the number of hair grafts being transplated will also play a factor. Eyebrow transplants to remedy partial eyebrow hair loss may require up to 3 hours to complete. For an elaborate procedure, like a full eyebrow restoration, then the procedure may last for around 6 hours or more.
After the procedure
Eyebrow transplantation is minimally invasive and has a quick recovery period. If the donor hair extraction was accomplished through FUE, then you can resume normal activities in as little as 48 hours. However, you are advised to wait for a week for the obvious signs of the procedure to fade. After about three weeks, the transplanted hair on the eyebrows will start falling off. This is a normal part of the process and they will start regrowing after four months. In six months your eyebrow hair will start getting more noticeably dense. This is because the transplanted eyebrows will continue to grow to the length of scalp hair. You may need to trim your eyebrows regularly every two weeks to maintain your eyebrows. The final results of the eyebrow transplant will be evident after 9-10 months. You can then know just how successful the hair transplant was.
Risks or side effects
Eyebrow transplants have minimal risks, so bleeding, scarring or infection are very rare. With the use of FUE, there’s practically no scarring to speak of. Taking antibiotics after the procedure will prevent infection. Suboptimal results constitute most of the risks associated with eyebrow transplantation. A poor angle of implantation by the surgeon will cause the eyebrow hair to grow in obscure directions, causing an unnatural appearance. The hair grafts could be damaged before they have had a chance to work, if they have been transplanted poorly. There may also be some ingrown hairs, or mismatch of hair color and texture. Such risks may ruin the outcome of a procedure and necessitate corrective measures which will be more costly. A sure-fire way of avoiding such outcomes is by selecting a qualified surgeon to perform the eyebrow transplant.
Eyebrow transplant cost
The time and level of expertise required to perform a successful eyebrow transplant means that it can be very expensive, even though the number of hair grafts used is minimal when compared to normal hair transplants. The number of hair grafts transplanted during the course of the procedure is the determining factor for the cost of your transplant. The cost of the procedure may range from €2,000 to €6,000.
Causes of eyebrow loss
Eyebrow transplants help with the long term problem of hair loss. It is also important to understand the reasons why you may be experiencing hair loss in the first place. This will ensure that your eyebrow transplant has the greatest chance for success.
The most common cause of eyebrow loss is over-plucking. It happens when you obsessively groom your eyebrows. Shaping your eyebrows through plucking is a relatively safe and common way to keep your eyebrows symmetrical. It’s a favored method since the results last longer than shaving. Unfortunately, repeated plucking of the same areas of hair within the eyebrows leads to weakening and damage of the hair follicles. This can lead to a permanent loss of hair in isolated regions.

Plucking your eyebrow hair can also lead to infection as it leaves open pores in the skin. An infection can subsequently cause further hair loss. It is considered important to disinfect your tweezers before plucking. Excessive tweezing of eyebrow hair can also lead to problems if the hair breaks off beneath the skin as you pull it out. In such cases, the skin may grow over the pore and prevent visible hair growth. This creates ingrown hairs. You should take care before undertaking cosmetic eyebrow shaping, as it takes up to 6 weeks to regrow each eyebrow hair after it is plucked. Any mistake you make during tweezing is one you will have to live with for a long time.
Chemotherapy
Many chemotherapy drugs used in cancer treatments cause loss of hair. This hair loss involves body hair, scalp hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes. The hair loss occurs a few weeks after the start of chemotherapy. Fortunately, the hair loss is temporary, and hair growth will resume in the weeks to months after stopping the treatment.
Facial injury
Injuries affecting the face are another common cause of eyebrow loss. Burns, chemical trauma, or physical injuries can lead to the formation of scars over the eyebrow. These scars will prevent any hair from growing, leading to loss of eyebrow hair.
Nutritional deficiency
Your hair needs nutrients for growth and nourishment, just like any other organ or body part. A lack of necessary nutrients, leads to adverse changes in hair growth and appearance. Hair will become thin and brittle without the correct nourishment. These effects may extend to the eyebrows, leading to a thinning or lost eyebrows. The following nutrients affect hair in significant ways:
- Iron – This mineral is instrumental in the transport of oxygen in the blood. Oxygen, in turn, plays a part in many metabolic processes in our body, including the growth of hair. Iron, therefore, plays a major role in the maintenance of hair growth. Examples of food sources of iron are spinach, liver and red meat. A diet which is poor in iron leads to a decreased ability in the body to maintain a healthy supply of hair.
- Zinc – Another mineral that plays a major role in essential processes like cell division, regulation of hormone levels, absorption of other minerals and protein synthesis. Virtually all these processes occur during hair growth, and hair loss is a common symptom of zinc deficiency. You can find zinc in poultry, red meat, liver and eggs.
- Omega-3 – these compounds are fatty acids that are essential to hydrating hair, giving your hair strands a luscious shine. Omega-3 oils help to keep hair healthy and prevent damage. You can find omega-3 in fatty fish, like salmon.
Telogen effluvium
This is a temporary form of hair loss that occurs due to a disruption in the normal hair growth cycle. A stressful physical or emotional event can trigger telogen effluvium. Certain medications or health conditions can also cause telogen effluvium. The hair loss occurs relatively quickly and can involve the eyebrows in serious or chronic cases. Normal hairgrowth often resumes once the stressful situation has diminished.
Hypothyroidism
A deficiency of a thyroid hormone may also cause a loss of eyebrow hair. The thyroid gland controls the metabolic rate, and regulates energy sources or protein synthesis in the body. If this gland is not working effectively it can cause many symptoms, of which hair loss is one.
Alopecia areata
This is a chronic autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks the hair follicles. It causes hair loss accompanied by inflammation. It usually appears on the scalp at first but can affect any region with hair, including the eyebrows. Corticosteroid medication is used to treat alopecia areata.