Before the introduction of modern hair transplant techniques, more primitive ‘plug’ restoration methods were used. Many examples of bad hair transplants from years ago are published online, often resembling a dolls hair appearance where instead of separating each graft before implantation, the hair has been transplanted into the scalp in large clusters.
The resulting scars in the donor site from this type of surgery can be significant, and are usually referred to as plug scars. Furthermore, excess trauma or improper implantation technique in the recipient site can cause another problem known as cobblestone scarring.
Recipients of surgery that resulted in plug scars are typically older men who had their procedure a long time ago. Often this led to a lifetime of anxiety, leading many to seek modern solutions to fix the problem.
How to hide plug transplant scars
Realistically the only viable options are temporary concealers, fraxel laser or scalp micropigmentation. Of course some people turn to hair systems, but this option comes with its own set of drawbacks.
One of the most useful applications for scalp micropigmentation is the concealment of hair transplant scars. Even challenging scars like those resulting from gruesome scalp reduction procedures can be well hidden by a skilled technician.
Plug scars are the result of historic hair transplant procedures, performed before more advanced FUT and FUE surgery became the norm.
Synonymous with the classic ‘dolls hair’ appearance often used to describe bad hair transplants, plug scars produce a ‘pitted’ effect on the skin and can cause the bearer a considerable amount of anxiety.
Plug scars are not the easiest of scars to camouflage. That said, remarkable results can be achieved by a skilled technician. The video above shows some of the amazing work being done by HIS Hair Clinic.
Blending any kind of scars with the surrounding hair is challenging and requires an experienced technician. It may be worth looking into Fraxel or Vbeam laser treatments to prepare the scarred area first.
Even so, plug scars are among the hardest to work on. This makes technician selection even more critical. Make sure you choose a technician with a proven track record in this specialist area.
