In general, we have to make sure there are no underlying health conditions or drug use that may make going through surgery risky. These conditions may include health problems related to vital organ functions such as the heart, lungs, kidneys or liver, bleeding disorders from genetic diseases or continues blood thinning medication usage, active dermatologic diseases that may impair tissue healing or hair growth and psychiatric problems including trichotillomania which is a problem associated with a continuous hair plucking habit. It is worth noting that eyebrow loss as a result of dermatologic diseases or tricotillomania can still be treated with an eyebrow transplant as long as these problems have been sufficiently treated and have not been active for at least 6 months. Once these conditions are ruled out, the decision on surgical candidacy can focus on the local situation at the eyebrow region. But before that, it is worth mentioning that in cases involving the loss of all or most of the patients hairs, it may not be possible to find any donor hairs to use for an eyebrow transplant.

In principle, any healthy person with permanent eyebrow loss could be a candidate for an eyebrow transplant. However, patients with mild eyebrow loss could perhaps avoid having an eyebrow transplant and prefer nonsurgical methods aimed at creating an illusion of a fuller look, like using makeup, eyebrow lamination or microblading, although this would be a subjective decision. In patients with moderate to severe eyebrow loss - roughly 50% or more of the native eyebrows lost - nonsurgical methods would fail to provide with both a natural and fuller look, as nothing could cosmetically replace real hairs. These patients would be perfect candidates for an eyebrow transplant and would benefit greatly from it.

The advantages of eyebrow transplants compared to nonsurgical methods like makeup, lamination and microblading are that they provide new hairs, therefore increasing brow fullness in its real sense and also doing this permanently. One of the disadvantages related to eyebrow transplants is related to the fact that a different type of hair - the scalp hair - is transferred to the eyebrow region. Possible disadvantages related to this are; difference in hair caliber, color and growth speed. Another disadvantage is related to bringing new hairs surgically; these may include a slight divergence of hair angle on the skin which may be more than natural eyebrow angle that is normally very acute. There may be a slight divergence of direction of the hairs compared to natural eyebrows which are usually perfectly aligned. There may be a slight divergence of curvature of hairs which are normally always curved towards the skin surface. These disadvantages related to angle, direction and curvature can be significantly improved later by treating and combing the eyebrows so to ‘teach’ them how they need to ‘behave’. Another relative disadvantage may be the need to trim the rapidly growing hairs frequently, which may be seen as an advantage by some. There may be a possibility that a subsequent procedure is needed for patients who have very spars to no eyebrows to begin with. Eyebrow transplants may cause swelling and bruising of the surrounding tissues which may make it difficult to socialize for up to 2 weeks. Lastly, it may take between 6 to 12 months to see the final result of an eyebrow transplant.

An eyebrow transplant is a surgical hair transplant procedure where follicular unit grafts taken from the scalp are transferred to the eyebrow region instead of the balding areas of a scalp. Since hair can only survive within live skin tissue it has to be transferred with the small skin island it sits on. These units consisting of the hair follicle and surrounding tissue are called grafts. Follicular unit grafts can be obtained by removing a small strip of skin from the back of the head, then preparing individual grafts via microscopic dissection - which is called the FUT method - , or they can be harvested one by one using a surgical punch that helps in removing very small cylindrical pieces of skin - which is called FUE. Once the follicular unit grafts are collected using one of these donor harvesting methods, the second step of the procedure is performed which involves creating recipient site incisions, these are small cuts performed at the eyebrow region so that the grafts can be inserted into these holes. The third and last step is the placement of the grafts into these incisions. Eyebrow transplant procedures are usually carried out by injecting local anesthetic solutions into both the donor and recipient areas so to numb the surgical zones. The procedure usually takes 3 to 5 hours depending on the amount of grafts transferred, the expertise of the surgical team, but also how carefully the procedure is performed.

In most cases, scalp hairs are used when performing an eyebrow transplant. Scalp hairs grow at a much higher pace compared to eyebrow hairs, which usually don’t grow much unless trimmed. New eyebrow hairs will need to be trimmed every couple of days to keep a normal length. This may sound strange at first, but also can be an advantage in making it possible to modify eyebrows in the desired way, more frequently.

The most frequent complication related to eyebrow transplants is an ‘unnatural’ appearance due to problems in design, hair angle, direction, curvature, the use of multi-haired units instead of single-hair units and lack of density. These complications are mostly related to lack of experience and skills by the surgical team and could be mostly avoided by choosing a professional clinic. Unfortunately, there aren’t many of these skilled surgical teams in the world. Please note that it is not possible to undo an eyebrow transplant procedure and that it is very important that it is performed professionally. The second most important complication is poor growth. Most poor growth cases are related to improper handling by the surgical team, especially when there is little to no growth. However, mild poor growth cases with only some of the hairs not growing can occur even when the procedure is professionally performed and the exact cause may be unidentified. Poor growth is an unfortunate complication but is much better than an unnatural result, because it can be fixed by adding more hairs. Temporary swelling and bruising for up to 2-3 weeks are frequently seen and resolve without needing treatment. There is a list of complications that are almost never seen in professional practice but are worth mentioning. These include; excessive bleeding, nerve damage, infection and scarring. There may be local or systemic complications especially if there is a misdiagnosed underlying health condition or medications used by patient which was not mentioned.

Eyebrow transplants are usually performed under local anesthetics, but can sometimes be done with sedation or even general anesthetics. A few injections will be felt when done under local, but the pain due to these is usually tolerable. Once the local anesthetics set in, the procedure is painless. Pain after the procedure is usually nonexistent or mild.

It is best to avoid driving immediately after having an eyebrow transplant, because of the swelling that can occur around the eyes. Physical exercises may be restricted for between 1 to 2 weeks after the procedure depending on the method chosen. Medication will usually be prescribed for up to a week, such as antibiotics, pain killers and anti-inflammatories. Mild pain after the procedure is expected to be manageable by painkillers. Washing instructions will be given. It is possible to work immediately after a hair transplant provided that the swollen and bruised appearance around the eyes does not prevent socializing for the type of work. If appearance is important then taking a week off work may be needed.

The initial impact of an eyebrow transplant is causing a scabby appearance which is due to the clotting around the wounds and drying of skin grafts. The process of getting rid of these scabs should be a gradual procedure assisted by gentle washing during the first days and then gradually washing the eyebrow region more rigorously, which should be completed within 10-14 days. The other thing seen immediately after the procedure is swelling and bruising of the upper eyelids and eyebrow region which may increase during first 3 to 4 days. This should also resolve mostly within 2 weeks. Using sunglasses with a large frame and a light color may be useful while socializing indoors and outdoors during the first 2 weeks. The donor area will usually not need any special treatment during this period but may change slightly depending on the method chosen for donor harvesting. In most eyebrow transplant procedures grafts are prepared from a shaven donor skin, therefore providing grafts without a hair shaft on it. The early appearance of the eyebrow region may be significantly improved if a long hair transplant procedure is performed. This involves transferring grafts with the hair shafts on them, which will not only provide with a preview of the result but also give a camouflage advantage. Whether it be long hair grafts or grafts with shaven hair, these hair shafts will come off starting 2-3 weeks after the procedure. New hairs won’t be evident until a couple of months after the procedure, and will gradually grow between 3 to 9 months.

An eyebrow transplant is basically a tissue transfer procedure that moves hair follicles to the brow region permanently.

Microblading a semipermanent type of tattoo for creating the illusion of a fuller look. It can be performed by tattoo artists. It may be suitable for mild to moderate eyebrow loss cases. However, it can not provide the three dimensional fullness of real hairs. On the other hand, an eyebrow transplant is a surgical procedure that must be performed by a surgical team and at a surgical facility. An eyebrow transplant involves transferring live hairs to the brow region and therefore provides with a three dimensional improvement of fullness, and is a permanent solution to eyebrow loss.

An eyebrow transplants is considered ‘nonmedical’ procedure and isn’t covered by health insurance. The cost of an eyebrow transplant procedure may depend on geographic location, quality of the clinic and extent of the eyebrow procedure, but the first two factors contribute to the cost much more than the last one. Labour costs vary significantly between countries. In the UK, USA, Canada, Australia the price can range between $3,000 to $10,000, whereas in Turkey it can range between $500 to $3,000. The other important determinant of price is quality. As you can see from the price ranges mentioned for each location in the world, the price can vary significantly, and this is mostly due to quality. Unfortunately, there are very few clinics in the world that are experienced and skilled at the top level. The extent of the eyebrow transplant - namely the amount of grafts transferred - could contribute to the price, but this would be least important from the three factors that determine the cost of an eyebrow transplant procedure.

The most important thing to focus on when deciding where to have an eyebrow transplant done is ‘quality’. The cost of the procedure should not be the determining factor. An eyebrow transplant is a surgical procedure that will lead to the permanent change of ones facial appearance, and these changes are mostly irreversible. Unfortunately, there are very few surgeons in the world that have the experience and skills to perform an eyebrow transplant at the highest level. In addition, a high level of precision is required to achieve natural results from an eyebrow transplant. In other words, an average level of skills will not be enough to achieve a cosmetically acceptable result. In the case of not having sufficient funds for having a high quality eyebrow transplant, it would be much better to continue saving up until one can afford it, instead of just picking a cheaper option. Spending some time in finding a reputable plastic surgeon who is experienced and especially focused on performing hair restoration procedures, even eyebrow transplant procedures specifically if possible, would be a good investment. One could consider traveling overseas for having an eyebrow transplant performed by an expert in the field, which would be well worth the extra effort and costs associated with it.

An eyebrow transplant procedure usually takes 3 to 5 hours depending on the amount of grafts transferred, the expertise of the surgical team, but also how carefully the procedure is performed.

The design and planning of an eyebrow transplant involves both the patient’s requests and the surgeons recommendations. The patient’s goals are most important, but the surgeons contributions can also be helpful in educating the patient regarding, aesthetic standards, technical limitations of the procedure, and what to expect as a result of each surgical option. Patients usual have a picture in mind of what they hope to achieve, but they lack the knowledge of what can be achieved from the surgical options available. A healthy discussion between patient and surgeon would help finding the optimal plan.

Eyebrow transplants transfer scalp hair to the brow region. Therefore, the newly transplanted hairs will behave like other scalp hairs, not like the usual eyebrow hairs. Scalp hairs may be different that eyebrow hairs in their growth speed, caliber, color and curliness. Although slight differences between these hairs may be cosmetically acceptable, this may become a problem if the two types of hair are significantly different. Afro-hair is known to be very kinky depending on genetic characteristics. Candidacy of afro-hair patients for having an eyebrow transplant should be evaluated on a case by case bases and pros and cons associated with this hair type should be considered before deciding to proceed with the treatment.

Excluding situations where a minor procedure is needed, and considering the surface area of an average eyebrow, about 300 grafts are needed for each eyebrow. In cases with little to no eyebrows present, another procedure of a similar amount may be needed. Please note that there are safety limits regarding the number of wounds that can be created per area in a single session, so even when the need for new hairs is extensive, it is necessary to transplant these extra amounts in a separate session about 1 year after the first one.

It is normal that the new eyebrow hairs will tend to slightly ‘misbehave’ in their angle, direction and curvature, especially in the first year after the procedure. Styling the new eyebrows a bit more frequently and aggressively than usual in the first year may help ‘train’ the new hairs, hence giving a more natural look. Combing the eyebrows, applying gel and even an eyebrow lamination procedure may be useful for this purpose.

Eyebrow lamination is a chemical process for perming the eyebrows in the direction we want in order give them a fuller and better look. It can be used alone or after an eyebrow transplant in order to ‘train’ the new eyebrows.