Hair Transplant Megasessions

There was a time when the most grafts one could transplant in a single session were 100 four-millimeter plugs. The plugs had to be placed one graft space apart for adequate blood supply and graft survival. This method required a minimum of four surgeries to cover any one area of scalp. When minigrafts and micrografts became available in the mid 1980s, the maximum number of grafts increased to 700-800 grafts transplanted in any one surgery. Since the grafts and recipient sites became smaller, the spacing or gaps between the grafts also became smaller. With the introduction of these improvements, many patients were satisfied after two or three surgeries.

With the advent of follicular unit transplanting, it was very common to transplant 1,000+ grafts per surgery. Over the past ten years, the number of grafts being transplanted per surgery has increased substantially as custom-made blades have become available for achieving the smallest recipient sites. In addition, the use of stereoscopic microscopes has enabled hair technicians to cut very clean, small, follicular unit grafts.

The term “megasession” varies from office to office and from surgeon to surgeon. There is no defined number of grafts transplanted per surgery which is widely accepted among the hair transplant community. Some offices may label 2,000 or more grafts transplanted in one surgery as a megasession, whereas other offices may classify a megasession as 3,000 or more grafts placed in a single surgery.

The important thing to remember is why we perform megasessions:

  1. The more grafts transplanted per surgery, the more  surface coverage provided. Ultimately, that means fewer surgeries are required to fill in the recipient region.
  2. The fewer number of surgeries results in less downtime.
  3. Fewer surgeries results in faster cosmetic coverage of the balding areas. Since the purpose of undergoing hair transplantation is to move hair, the more hair moved, the better the aesthetic result.
  4. Patients who have deferred or postponed undergoing hair transplantation due to the thought of multiple surgeries required to achieve their goals, can now achieve cosmetically acceptable coverage and density in one or two surgeries.

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Megasession Photos

Not all offices can perform megasessions due to a lack of qualified, experienced hair technicians. At Scottsdale Institute, our average surgery is approximately 3,000 follicular unit grafts per surgery, but we have transplanted as many as 5,800 grafts in one surgery. Keep in mind the number of grafts being transplanted in one surgery depends on donor region density, scalp elasticity, and the degree of baldness. No two people are the same; therefore we can only give you an estimate of the number of grafts we can harvest and transplant in one surgery.

Sample of Megasessions
Surgery Number: First
Grafts Transplanted: 4876
Area Transplanted: Frontal, mid-scalp, vertex.
Density Transplanted: Approximately 50-55 follicular units/cm2 within hairline.
Approximately 45 follicular units/cm2 over the frontal
region and mid-scalp regions.
Approximately 30-35 follicular units/cm2 over the vertex.
Sample of Megasessions
Surgery Number: First
Grafts Transplanted: 3948
Area Transplanted: Frontal and mid-scalp regions
Density Transplanted: Approximately 50-55 follicular units/cm2 within hairline.
Approximately 45 follicular units/cm2 over the frontal
region and mid-scalp regions.
Approximately 30-35 follicular units/cm2 over the vertex.

 

See Also:
Understanding Hair Transplants
Follicular Unit Hair Transplants
Follicular Unit Extraction
Typical Procedure in Eight Steps
Frontal Hair Transplants
Crown Hair Transplants
Facial Hair Transplants
Hair Transplants for Women
Eyebrow Hair Restoration
HT Questions & Answers
Patient Reviews
In-Depth Hair Transplant Info

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