Hair Transplantation: State of the Art

BACKGROUND Hair transplantation is a minimally invasive procedure for treating hair loss in men and women, based on the principle of donor dominance, where transplanted hair retains its genetic characteristics in new locations. It is primarily used for androgenetic alopecia but also can be used in end-stage cicatricial alopecia and as a corrective procedure post-trauma or surgery. OBJECTIVE This review provides an overview of the current status of hair transplant surgery in the last 5 years, as well as a guide for patient selection, technical considerations, instrumentation, and postoperative care. METHODS/MATERIALS A review was conducted of the PubMed database between 2019 and 2024 and included 1,030 study abstracts. RESULTS Follicular unit extraction and (linear strip) excision are both state of the art methods for hair transplantation. New devices have been developed for extraction and insertion of follicular units. Thoughtful hairline design and concurrent medical management have improved aesthetic results. CONCLUSION Hair transplantation has experienced a surge in popularity due to advances in devices, techniques, and medical therapies to maintain hair density, leading to long-lasting, natural results and high patient satisfaction. Future directions include improvements in instrumentation, artificial intelligence, hair follicle cloning, and enhanced adjuvant medical management.