Eyebrow Transplant

An eyebrow transplant is a surgical hair restoration procedure used to treat thinning eyebrows or eyebrows with no hair by transplanting individual hair follicles into the specific eyebrow region that has hair loss. At our Glasgow hair transplant clinic, eyebrow transplants are performed using the Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) method, with careful attention to hair direction, angle, and density to achieve naturally looking results for our patients.

An eyebrow transplant is classed as facial hair restoration and it involves transporting single hair follicles from the donor area of the patient’s scalp (the back and sides) to the eyebrow area. The aim is to restore eyebrow hair growth in areas affected by thinning, scarring, or hair loss due to a variety of reasons, with the main one being over-plucking.

One of the keys to a successful and natural eyebrow transplant involves incision angulation to mimic the distinct directional pattern that eyebrow hairs grow at. Along with that, implantation of single hair follicles that follow the correct angle of growth is important.

Eyebrow restoration differs significantly from scalp hair transplantation. Eyebrow hairs grow almost parallel to the skin surface and change direction along the length of the brow. Each follicle must be placed individually at a controlled depth, angle, and orientation.

Errors in placement can result in visible irregularities or unnatural growth patterns. For this reason, eyebrow transplantation is considered a technically demanding form of facial hair restoration.

An eyebrow transplant may be considered in patients with eyebrow hair loss due to:

• Over-plucking or cosmetic damage
• Scarring from trauma, burns, or surgical procedures
• Alopecia affecting the eyebrows
• Hair loss following chemotherapy or medical treatment
• Congenitally sparse or asymmetrical eyebrows

Suitability is determined during consultation based on donor hair characteristics, skin type, and clinical expectations.

The procedure works in a similar way to a hair or beard transplant procedure. The main difference is that the extracted hairs are transplanted onto the patient’s eyebrows. The following occurs during surgery:

1. Consultation and planning on the day. The surgeon will plan, draw and discuss with the patient the areas of the eyebrows to be implanted and the donor area sections to be used for extraction.
2. Shaving and local anaesthetic administration. The donor area is typically shaven in a layered manner for women meaning that the existing hair from above and under the shaven area can be used to hide it. The local anaesthetic is then administered.
3. Donor area selection and extraction. This is where a small punch machine is used to extract as many single grafts containing 1 follicular unit to be used later on.
4. Break for lunch.
5. Incisions and local anaesthetic. The recipient area (eyebrows) have local anaesthetic administered and incisions start to match the direction and angle of how eyebrow hairs grow
6. Implantation. Once the incisions are complete, the extracted hairs are then implanted into the eyebrow incisions very carefully to make sure the direction and angle are mimicking the natural eyebrow hair growth.
7. Aftercare explanation and discharge. The surgeon will go through the aftercare advice and give the aftercare kit to the patient and discharge them.

After the procedure, mild redness or swelling around the eyebrows is normal and typically settles within a few days. The transplanted hairs usually shed within the first few weeks. This is a normal part of the hair growth cycle and does not affect the final outcome.

New hair generally begins to grow at around 3 to 4 months, with gradual improvement in thickness and density. Full results can take up to 12 months. Because transplanted eyebrow hair grows like scalp hair, occasional trimming is needed to maintain the desired length.

Eyebrow transplants usually require fewer grafts than scalp procedures, but they are highly detailed and time-intensive. The overall cost depends on:

• The number of grafts required
• The complexity of the eyebrow design
• Donor hair characteristics

Typically the cost of an eyebrow transplant in Glasgow ranges from £3,000 to £5,500 with the average cost being £4,500 – £5,000.

An eyebrow hair transplant is a permanent solution to achieving fuller, denser eyebrows. This is because it uses your own native hairs that have been harvested from your donor area to then be “relocated” from there to the eyebrow region. The downside is that the transplanted hair will continue to behave as if it was growing out of the back of your head, so you will need to trim it every few months.

Microblading on the other hand is a very good temporary solution to perceived eyebrow density. If you already have some existing eyebrow hair and want to make it look fuller and denser, microblading achieves this via a small eyebrow shaped tattoo in the eyebrow region. The downside is that this tatto fades over time and so top ups are required every few months.