Anxiety and Hair Restoration Surgery

Abstract

The objective of this study is to compare the anxiety scores before and after hair transplant surgery in bald patients. This prospective, comparative study was conducted in a private setup after obtaining the informed consent. The Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) was used. Only those patients who filled the pro forma before surgery and underwent first hair transplant were included. All the details of the patients such as age, time elapsed since surgery, score before and after the surgery and so on were noted. All the data were analyzed using analysis of variance test. A total of 50 patients were included, with mean age of 30.9 years. The average HAM-A anxiety score was 33.16 before the surgery and 19.62 after the surgery. The average time interval (before and after surgery) was 12.7 months. The average anxiety score in patients less than 30 years of age was 33.46 before surgery and 18.5 after the surgery. Similarly, the average score in patients above 30 years of age was found to be 32.89 before surgery and 20.65 after the surgery ( P < .01). The results indicated a significant improvement on the anxiety score after the surgery ( P < .01). The hair transplant definitely improves the anxiety in the balding patients.