Eyebrow
transplantation
Eyebrows are situated just above the eyes on the ridge and give
the face a certain definition. Apart from defining the beauty
of a face, it also acts as a protective barrier against dandruff,
water or any other material from entering into the eye. Its
presence also keeps the eye alert to insects and other materials
hovering close to the eye. Just like the scalp, hairs in the
eyebrows can also be lost. Hence hair transplantation has
been extended to restoring lost eyebrows.
Some of the causes of hair loss in the eyebrows are:-
1. burn injuries due to fire or chemical accidents
2. infection of the brows and subsequent hair loss
3. stab wounds or other mechanical injury that can damage
the brows
4. surgical procedures such a tumor removal
5. excessive plucking of brows as cosmetic enhancer
6. local alopecia due to hereditary conditions
7. leprosy
8. after effects of tattooing.
Cosmetics can be used to fill up and enhance the beauty
of eyebrows to a certain extent, but the effects are only
temporary. For
obtaining permanent results, surgical procedures such as
free composite
strip grafts, hand bearing pedicled flaps and follicular
unit transplantation are being used of which the follicular
unit
transplantation has been the most competitive and superior
in achieving final
results.
Follicular unit transplant is carried out very similar to
the scalp transplants with a few modifications according
to its
anatomical position. For the reconstruction of eyebrows,
the region for transplant
is marked. Donor hair is harvested from the nape of the
neck. The hair follicles are teased out to get fine single
hair
grafts. The follicles are then transplanted in the brow
area according
to requirement.
This procedure was tried on two female patients one of
whom had a stab wound and the other had a tumor removed
surgically
in the
brow area. According to Dr. Ergun and colleagues, both
the patients had no transplant related complications
before or after the
procedure. They could trim their brow hair and keep
it in
proper shape after
about a year of transplantation.
Earlier procedures such as the pedicled flap were used
on men since they have bushy and thicker brows. But
follicular unit
transplant has been very effective in both sexes since
the
hair density in
the eyebrow differs within the area. The density is
greater in the center of the brow with very fine hair
in the periphery.
Because
of this difference in thickness and density, donor
hair from the nape of the neck is preferred.
Another major factor is with reference to the angle
in which the hair grows in the brow. The hairs are
always in a very
acute angle
of growth and hence the transplant must also be
in the natural angle of orientation. This makes the procedure
require experts
for reconstruction. A single sitting of this procedure
is enough to achieve the desired results and the
degree
of
infection is
also minimal. Within a year of transplant, the brows
are
back to normal in both growth and looks.
Eyebrow
transplantation references
- Ergun SS, Sahinoglu K.
Eyebrow transplantation.
Ann Plast Surg. 2003 Dec;51(6):584-6.
PMID: 14646654
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