No, hair transplant is not a painful procedure. With the help of local anaesthesia and post-operative pain medicines, hair transplant procedures are now less painful. No surgery can be entirely painless; there may be some form of pain and discomfort during and after the surgery. The discomfort and pain post-surgery may last for about 48 to 72 hours. You may also feel a tightness in your scalp.

Hair transplant surgery may take anywhere between 4 to 8 hours. Depending on the amount of hair being transplanted, you may need to undergo the procedure for a longer time or on two different days. You will be awake during the entire procedure, and only a local anaesthesia will be administered to make the scalp numb.

After undergoing a hair transplant surgery, you will observe 10 to 20% hair growth in the next 3-4 months and about 50% of hair growth after 6 months. Within 8-9 months, you will be able to see 80% of hair growth. You must also know that the transplanted hair will fall out between 2 to 8 weeks after the hair transplant surgery. In some cases, you may observe results 12 months after the hair transplant procedure.

The different phases of a hair transplant procedure are as follows:
1. Preparation
The hair follicles are harvested and removed from the back of the head. These follicles are relocated to the bald spots.
2. Donor area
The donor area is trimmed and prepped before the hair transplant surgery. The tissue from the donor area is removed surgically. This area is then sutured and covered with the patient’s hair over them. The sutures are removed after 10 days.
3. Graft preservation
The donor graft is preserved for implantation. The donor tissue and the hair are submerged into an active plasma solution and kept refrigerated until implantation.
4. Bald area implantation
The donor tissue is prepared, and the grafts are implanted into the recipient’s bald areas.
5. Post-operative care
Follow correct aftercare post your surgery. Wash your graft areas carefully, protect them from sunlight, and avoid excessive rubbing.

Neograft transplant procedure is the most advanced hair transplant technique.