Direction Of Hair Growth Research Articles

Characterization and Classification of Frontal Hairline Contours and Growth Directions in Chinese Women.

Hair transplantation has become a major method for improving upper facial contour. Hairline contour (HC) and hair growth direction (HGD) are the main factors affecting postoperative aesthetic outcomes. However, studies on natural HC and HGD in Chinese women are scarce. To summarize the HC and HGD of hairlines in Chinese female participants. Standard photographs of the forehead were obtained from healthy Chinese volunteers older than 18 years. Hairline contour features were classified into 5 groups: round, bell-shaped, M-shaped, rectangular, and triangular. Hair growth direction was classified into 5 groups: Type ⅠA, Type ⅠB, Type ⅡA, Type ⅡB1, and Type ⅡB2. The authors performed hairline corrections in female participants. A total of 568 women participated in this study. The proportions of participants with different HC features were as follows: round (8.10%), bell-shaped (15.84%), M-shaped (23.24%), rectangular (44.19%), and triangular (8.63%). The proportions of participants with different HGDs were as follows: Type ⅠA (7.75%), Type ⅠB (27.64%), Type ⅡA (30.81%), Type ⅡB1 (28.34%), and Type ⅡB2 (5.46%). Both HC and HGD were categorized into 5 types in Chinese women. Shaping the hairline into a round type along with the preexisting direction was suggested in most instances.

Clinic Analysis and Effective Improvement Tips for Poor Eyebrow Transplantation.

Follicular unit hair transplantation has greatly elevated the results of eyebrow restoration. However, unnatural and unbeautiful-looking results are still often seen after the surgery. This study focused on poor eyebrow transplantation, discussed its possible reasons, and offered refined proposals. A retrospective analysis was performed on 100 patients who were dissatisfied with the results of eyebrow grafting and came to our department from 2011 to 2021. Demographic characteristics, primary disease, and clinical data were objectively summarized and analyzed for these patients. The patients' medical charts and photographs were analyzed and summarized into the following outcomes: Thirty-six patients (36%) had sparse eyebrows. Forty-one patients (41%) had eyebrows with inhomogeneous density and disordered growth direction. Eleven patients (11%) did not have single-hair grafting. Seven reconstructed eyebrows (7%) had a poor connection with the remaining eyebrows. Five new eyebrows (5%) had inconsistent hair characteristics with the original eyebrows. Lower hair survival rates, insufficient understanding of naturally beautiful eyebrows, and inadequate communication with patients were the main reasons for poor outcomes. Good reconstructed eyebrows should have a high hair survival rate, and hair growth direction and characteristics should also be consistent with the natural eyebrow to achieve ideal surgical effects. This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

Post-Hair Transplantation Complication: Kinky or Severely Curly Hair.

To investigate the etiology and preventive measures of posttransplant kinky or curly hair growth after female hairline correction surgery. Hair transplant surgery can be accompanied by various adverse effects, one of which is severely kinky or curly hair after surgery. Posttransplant kinky or curly hair is not well-understood for its cause or prevention. The study was targeted at a total of 980 patients who were confirmed whether they developed kinky or curly hair after female hairline correction surgery. Incidence, surgical method, degree of curliness, predisposed location, characteristics, hair caliber (thin, medium, and thick), and left-right differences were examined. Among the total 980 patients, posttransplant curly hair (PTCH) was manifested in 38(3.9%) patients. None of the patients who underwent surgery at the present clinic developed posttransplant kinky hair; all 38 patients showed PTCH growth. In 36 cases, transplanted hair started to grow in curly patterns around 4 months after surgery. However, the remaining 2 cases showed no curly growth pattern when the transplanted hair was short at postoperative 4 months, but started to grow curly starting at 6 to 8 months after surgery as the hair growth direction was obstructed or compressed by the existing hair. Familiarity with the cause, prevention, and management of posttransplant kinky hair and PTCH will be of great help to hair surgeons.

Hair Transplantation by Follicular Unit Extraction in Cicatricial Alopecia in Children

Cicatricial alopecias in children do not contribute to substantial pediatric consultations as they are relatively uncommon. Cicatricial alopecias are often missed in pediatric population as it is diagnostically and therapeutically challenging. No single treatment is usually effective and hence several off label treatments are used in children and adolescents with unknown safety and efficacy. Hair loss due to scarring may thus have a significant impact on the emotional well-being of young patients and diminishes the quality of life which often requires additional treatment. Traditional surgical treatments for cicatricial alopecia include excision, scar reduction, tissue expansion, scalp flap, and follicular unit transplantation. However, these procedures often result in unsightly scarring or unfavorable hair growth direction. Recently, hair grafting by follicular unit extraction (FUE) has now replaced the strip technique as it is minimally invasive, well-tolerated, and effective treatment for use in children and adolescents. However, use of this technique is limited in young patients. The article presents a comprehensive review of an effective surgical technique, i.e., FUE for the management of burnt-out inactive cicatricial alopecia in pediatric population. For the purpose of review, a PubMed search was done using keywords, “cicatricial alopecia,” “hair transplantation,” and “children.” All the articles were retrieved, and the final data were then analyzed and presented in a narrative fashion.

Sideburn Reconstruction Using a Pre-Expanded Island Scalp Flap Based on the Parietal Branch of Superficial Temporal Vessels.

Sideburns are crucial for head and face esthetics. Absence of sideburns is associated with physical and psychological consequences. Many methods have been described for sideburn reconstruction; however, characteristics of the ideal method include optimal vascularization, ideal hair density, natural hair growth, and facial symmetry with minimum donor-site morbidity. In this study, the authors describe a novel method of sideburn reconstruction using a pre-expanded island scalp flap based on the parietal branch of the superficial temporal artery. Between February 2012 and December 2020, 9 patients underwent sideburn reconstruction surgery that involved 2 stages. During the first stage, an appropriately sized tissue expander was inserted underneath the scalp. After sufficient inflation of the expander, at the second stage, an island scalp flap based on the parietal branch of the superficial temporal vessels was elevated to reconstruct the sideburns. The mean size of the defects was 8 × 4.4 cm (range, 6 × 3-12 × 5 cm), whereas the average flap dimension was 10.22 × 5.67 cm (range, 8 × 4-13 × 8 cm). All flaps survived completely without any perfusion-related complications. Patients were followed up after surgery, ranging from 4 to 34 months (mean, 15.67 months). All patients and/or their parents were satisfied with the final appearance in terms of hair density, hair growth direction, and facial symmetry. Although a 2-stage procedure, this novel technique allows the reconstruction of a new sideburn with natural growth and orientation of the hair and minimal morbidity for patients.

Clinical effects of autologous follicular unit extraction transplantation in the treatment of small area secondary cicatricial alopecia after burns

Objective: To explore the clinical effects of autologous follicular unit extraction (FUE) transplantation in the treatment of small area secondary cicatricial alopecia (hereinafter referred to as cicatricial alopecia) after burns. Methods: A retrospective observational study was carried out. According to the adopted treatment methods, 18 patients (12 males and 6 females, aged (29±6) years) who received autologous FUE transplantation for small area cicatricial alopecia after burns from March 2017 to November 2019 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University were included in FUE transplantation group, and 18 patients (13 males and 5 females, aged (33±5) years) who were treated with expanded flap transplantation for small area cicatricial alopecia after burns by the same surgery team during the same period in the same hospital were included in expanded flap transplantation group. All the patients were followed up for more than 1 year. At the last follow-up, the follicular unit density in the transplanted area was measured by Folliscope hair detection system and the hair survival rate was calculated; the visual analogue scale (VAS) method was adopted to evaluate the treatment effect; patients were asked their satisfaction with the treatment effect and the occurrence of complications during follow-up; the hair growth and the scalp thickness, pain, pruritus, pigmentation, and surface roughness of the transplanted area were recorded. Data were statistically analyzed with Fisher's exact probability test and independent sample t test. Results: At the last follow-up, the follicular unit density in the transplanted area of patients in FUE transplantation group was (46.8±2.0)/cm2, which was significantly higher than (42.5±4.3)/cm2 in expanded flap transplantation group (t=3.84, P<0.01); the hair survival rates of patients were similar between the two groups (P>0.05). At the last follow-up, VAS scores evaluating the treatment effect of patients were similar between the two groups (P>0.05); the satisfaction score of patients toward the treatment effect in FUE transplantation group was 8.6±1.1, which was significantly higher than 7.6±0.8 in expanded flap transplantation group (t=2.89, P<0.01). During the follow-up, no inflammation or infection occurred in patients of the two groups, but only 2 patients in expanded flap transplantation group had postoperative pain. At the last follow-up, the transplanted area of patients in the two groups was covered with new hair, and the hair growth direction was basically consistent with the surrounding normal hair; scalp thickness, pain, pruritus, pigmentation, and surface roughness of the transplanted area of patients were similar between the two groups (P>0.05). Conclusions: Autologous FUE transplantation has better long-term follicular unit density and patients' satisfaction than expanded flap transplantation in the treatment of small area cicatricial alopecia after burns, showing better postoperative effect and a good prospect of clinical application.

Effect of Rubbing Application on the Skin Permeation of Active Ingredients from Lotion and Cream.

Effect of rubbing application on the skin permeation of a hydrophilic drug caffeine (CAF) and lipophilic drug rhododendrol (RD) from lotion and cream were investigated. Skin permeation of CAF was markedly increased by rubbing action independent of the formulation type. In addition, the skin penetration-enhancement effect was affected by the rubbing direction: rubbing application against the direction of hair growth showed the highest permeation compared with rubbing applications along the direction of hair growth and in a circular pattern on the skin. On the other hand, no enhancement effect was observed by the rubbing actions on the skin permeation of RD, regardless of formulation type. Change in the infundibula orifice size of hair follicles by the rubbing and following skin stretching may be related to the higher skin permeation for CAF. In contrast, high RD distribution into the stratum corneum may be a reason why no enhancement effect was observed by the rubbing action. These results can be helpful to predict safety and effectiveness of topically applied formulations.

Corrective strategies for poor appearance after tissue expansion for temporal and sideburn cicatricial alopecia.

The expanded scalps are usually used to repair the scalp defects. However, hair growth direction and hair density of the expanded scalps may be inconsistent with those of the defective sites, resulting in unsatisfactory results. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of local flap modification and follicular unit extraction (FUE) on the repair of poor appearance of temporal and sideburn after unsatisfactory tissue expansion. In our study, 19 patients with problems of hair growth direction or hair density after surgery were treated with the following four methods: single local flap modification; removal of hair follicles by FUE to reduce follicle density; removal of disordered hair follicles by FUE and ectopic transplantation simultaneously; and removal of hair follicles by FUE and ectopic transplantation after local flap modification. The follow-up periods of 19 patients varied from 6 to 30months, and natural, standardized aesthetic sideburn for each patient was achieved. All incisions healed by first intention and all flaps survived well. The scars involved in the removal of FUE hair follicles were not obvious. Our results revealed that the ideal and cosmetic results can be obtained by flexible using of local flap modification, single FUE method, and FUE ectopic hair transplantation to repair the dissatisfied postoperative outcomes of temporal and sideburn cicatricial alopecia after tissue expansion.

THERAPEUTIC SIGNIFICANCE OF ABHYANGA IN DINCHARYA: A REVIEW

Ayurvedic massage is also known as Abhyanga. It is an ayurvedic holistic, synchronized massaging of the body towards the movement of arterial blood, basically in the opposite direction of hair growth. This massages is used for healing and detoxifying the body, mind and spirit. This is done to increase the blood flow towards the distant parts of the body and avoid overwhelming the heart with a sudden venous return. Abhyanga may be done using oil, herbal powder, herbal pastes or ghee. The massage strokes are long and flowing to keep the body warm for maximum absorption of the medicinal oil. This helps reduce your body fatigue and knots in the muscles. Here's what one says — Give yourself a full-body oil massage on a daily basis. It is nourishing; pacifies the doshas; relieves fatigue; provides stamina, pleasure and perfect sleep; enhances the complexion and the luster of the skin; promotes longevity; and nourishes all parts of the body.Purpose: The purpose of this study is to establish the importance of Abhyanga (massage) in Dincharya.

Determination of follicular direction and preparation of micrograft holes for hair transplantation

Introduction/Objective. Hair transplantation is one of the fastest evolving procedures in aesthetic surgery and is accompanied by continuous improvement of new techniques. Hairline planning is one of the most important steps in hair transplantation. The shape of the hair also varies depending on the variation of facial shape so it is very important when determining hair direction and making holes for future grafts. Methods. We used ordinary 18 gauge injection needles whose number was the same as the number of micrographs we planned for transplantation. Needles are administered in pile growth direction and angle, starting from the first row, and then proceeding to the second one and so on, until we insert all prepared needles. We insert them one in front of the other with a precision ease for future follicles. Results. In all 56 patients, we obtained natural hair growth. Inserting the needles reduced bleeding and the average time of the operation was three hours. The success of grafting was 95%. We only had one infection in one patient. Hair growth corresponded to the needle insertion. After a year of transplantation at the last control, the patient?s satisfaction was 100%. Conclusion. By using the same number of needles as the number of grafts we reduced operating time, we had a better determination of the direction of hair growth, we can prevent follicular extraction that can be caused by new needle insertion, and this technique achieved a good aesthetic result.

Clinical efficacy of expansion of scalp flap and hair transplantation for hair loss at the temples

Objective To explore the effects of the expansion of scalp flap and hair transplantation on hair loss at the temples. Methods Clinical data of patients with hair loss at the temples who were treated with hair transplantation (n=69) and tissue expansion (n=48) between Aug. 2004 and July 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. The hair grafting technique was carried out by harvesting a scalp strip from the back of head, then dividing it into a series of 1-3 hair grafts and finally implanting them into the prepared recipient holes of lesion with a desired hair direction. Tissue expansion was performed by firstly positioning a tissue expander in the subgaleal pocket of scalp and subsequently inflating it with normal saline. Therefore, an expanded scalp flap was designed, with the combination of advancement and rotation flap transplantation principles, to be transferred to the recipient site after lesion removal. Results Over 8-month to 3-year of follow-up, the hair transplanted grew well. The direction was satisfied. The folliculitis was found in seven burn patients and cured after embrocating 75% alcohol. Fifteen patients experienced encryption transplantation for feeling a sparse hair. Forty-eight patients with tissue expansion achieved very satisfactory results. Hair transplantation with intact follicle was conducted in 6 patients for smaller coverage area and worse appearance. Eleven patients dissatisfied with the direction of hair growth. The hematoma was found in 2 patients but did not impact on treatment effects. Conclusions Hair transplantation may be applied in the treatment of simple hair loss at the temples. Therefore, the tissue expansion could be an optimal choice for hair loss at the temples combined with adjacent scale defect and unstable scar. Key words: Expand flap; Transplantation; Temple

AutoHair

We introduce AutoHair , the first fully automatic method for 3D hair modeling from a single portrait image, with no user interaction or parameter tuning. Our method efficiently generates complete and high-quality hair geometries, which are comparable to those generated by the state-of-the-art methods, where user interaction is required. The core components of our method are: a novel hierarchical deep neural network for automatic hair segmentation and hair growth direction estimation, trained over an annotated hair image database; and an efficient and automatic data-driven hair matching and modeling algorithm, based on a large set of 3D hair exemplars. We demonstrate the efficacy and robustness of our method on Internet photos, resulting in a database of around 50K 3D hair models and a corresponding hairstyle space that covers a wide variety of real-world hairstyles. We also show novel applications enabled by our method, including 3D hairstyle space navigation and hair-aware image retrieval.

A trial on subcutaneous pedicle island flap for eyebrow reconstruction

Introduction Severe burn is a common problem affecting victim's eyebrows. This study aims to assess the effectiveness, complications and patients’ satisfaction in two eyebrow reconstruction surgical methods. Up to now, many reconstruction methods, their specific advantages and complications have been introduced. This study compares a new method (subcutaneous pedicle island flap), which is scarcely discussed, with a standard method (superficial temporal artery island flap). Method This is a clinical trial conducted during 2003–2005 at the Al’ Zahra’ Hospital. Forty patients with eyebrow defect due to burn injuries were selected by convenience sampling. They were allocated to two groups randomly. The control group underwent a surgery for ‘superficial temporal artery island flap’ and the case group for ‘subcutaneous pedicle island flap’. Data were gathered using two questionnaires. The first one included demographic data, patient history and condition of the eyebrows prior to surgery, effectiveness of surgery and complications. The second was a smiley face visual scale for patient's satisfaction. Data analysis was done using SPSS software (version 12; SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Result Findings showed that in the control group, 80% were female of a mean age of 22 years (SD = 6/30) and in the case group 75% were female, of a mean age of 21/80 years (SD = 8/28). Fisher's exact test showed a significant difference between the type of surgery and hair-growth direction ( p = 0.003). In addition, Mann–Whitney U test showed a significant difference between the type of surgery and patient satisfaction ( p = 0.002). Analysis showed that there is no significant difference between the type of surgery and bleeding, congestion, flap necrosis, temporary hair loss in flap and donor-site alopecia ( p > 0.05). Surgeon's experience shows that surgery time and learning curve in the case group is lower than that in the control group. Discussion Subcutaneous pedicle island flap is an appropriate and easy method with good efficacy, lower complication and more reasonable and acceptable patient's satisfaction. Therefore, this method is recommended for burn patients with eyebrow defects.

The Expanded “Flying-Wings” Scalp Flap for Aesthetic Hemiscalp Alopecia Reconstruction in Children

For a large lesion of the scalp (e.g., up to 50% scalp loss), restoration of the scalp with a hair-bearing scalp flap to achieve a pleasing aesthetic outcome and hair growth matched to the direction of the lesion, especially for a hemiscalp defect in children, often becomes very difficult and challenging for plastic surgeons. Treatment was performed for 18 children with severe hemiscalp losses after burns. The technique was carried out by initially positioning a tissue expander in the subgaleal pocket of the scalp and serially inflating it with normal saline in 5- to 7-day intervals for about 3 months. Thereafter, a "flying-wings" expanded scalp flap was designed by combining advancement and rotation flap transplantation principles. This design was based on at least one nominated vascular system of the scalp used as the pedicle, with the wings often working to correct the distant part of the lesion in which the hair direction is greatly changed. After the lesion was excised, the expanded hair-bearing flap was advanced and rotated to the recipient site when the expander was removed. For the 18 patients, the flap used for hemiscalp reconstruction could be transferred to repair the hemiscalp loss totally (for 17 patients) or mostly (for 1 patient) in a single-tissue expansion process without flap necrosis. The patient with a remaining lesion was treated completely with a secondary tissue expansion in the postauricular area. All the patients showed good aesthetic results, with the hair growth direction matching the recipient site well. The described technique strongly indicates that tissue expansion is a simple, safe, and efficient technique for large scalp restoration. The "flying-wings" design of the expanded scalp flap can properly distribute the expanded hair-bearing scalp in the recipient site.

Perturbed desmosomal cadherin expression in grainy head-like 1-null mice

In Drosophila, the grainy head (grh) gene plays a range of key developmental roles through the regulation of members of the cadherin gene family. We now report that mice lacking the grh homologue grainy head-like 1 (Grhl1) exhibit hair and skin phenotypes consistent with a reduction in expression of the genes encoding the desmosomal cadherin, desmoglein 1 (Dsg1). Grhl1-null mice show an initial delay in coat growth, and older mice exhibit hair loss as a result of poor anchoring of the hair shaft in the follicle. The mice also develop palmoplantar keratoderma, analogous to humans with DSG1 mutations. Sequence analysis, DNA binding, and chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrate that the human and mouse Dsg1 promoters are direct targets of GRHL1. Ultrastructural analysis reveals reduced numbers of abnormal desmosomes in the interfollicular epidermis. These findings establish GRHL1 as an important regulator of the Dsg1 genes in the context of hair anchorage and epidermal differentiation, and suggest that cadherin family genes are key targets of the grainy head-like genes across 700 million years of evolution.

Recurrent Pilo-Nidal Sinus: Secret Of Recurrence

INTRODUCTION Pilonidal sinus is a disease of easy handling and difficult healing. It is a common problem in primary care due to recurrence following surgery and the need for frequent and timeconsuming wound care. This article covers the pathology, clinical presentations and appropriate management of pilonidal sinus disease.1 The patient was treated here had been operated three times before coming to the author. He was operated in his country twice and in Kuala Lumpur once. His sinus was in the natal cleft. REVIEW OF LITERATURE How does it develop? Theory 1: A minor congenital or hereditary abnormality in the skin of the natal cleft as it tends to run in some families. Part of the abnormality in this part of the skin may be that the hairs grow into the skin rather than outwards. Theory 2: abnormal hair growth direction. Hair is forced to grow in abnormal direction.2,3 Author theory 3: Lack of cleaning of this moist area with development of a small boil or furuncle which will open with long hairs around will come in and keep growing inside making a long track of granulation tissue. (A similar condition occurs between the fingers of hairdressers caused by customers' hair entering moist, damaged skin.) RECURRENT DISEASE Recurrence can be divided into two groups: early and late. Early recurrence is usually due to failure to identify one or more sinuses at incision and drainage, which was not followed by a second-look procedure. Late recurrence is usually due to secondary infection caused by residual hair or debris that was not removed at operation, inadequate wound care or insufficient attention to depilation.4 CASE DATA 29 years old male was presented to the author with the recurrent pilonidal sinus after three previous operations. All operations failed to achieve proper healing. METHODS Patient was operated by a closed method where the track was excised with an elliptical incision and excision of bad part of skin. The track had two openings one above and one below in the natal cleft. After excision of the track the two edges were approximated and closed. Simple closure of the two edges of the wound with vicreyl 1, and skin was closed by Nylon 3/0. The wound was left partially open in its upper part to heal spontaneously. Post operatively: patient was instructed to sleep prone position for few days. Hyperbaric oxygen was used in 5 sessions to accelerate healing. Bovidone iodine was used frequently for cleaning during dressing. Suture removal was done one week after surgery. RESULTS It was very promising where the sinus was healed after one month from surgery. At the beginning the surrounding hairs tended to cause recurrence by being imbedded into the lower part of the incision of the natal cleft. Fig 3 The author immediately shaved the hairs around the natal cleft and one week after the wound was completely healed. Fig 4 Recurrent Pilo-Nidal Sinus: Secret Of Recurrence 2 of 4 Figure 1 Figure 1 upper end of the track is shown by the arrow Figure 2 Figure 2: The track has another opening in the lower part of the cleft Figure 3 Figure 3: Post operative a new opening lower down helped by hairs around Figure 4 Figure 4: Complete healing one week after hair shaving DISCUSSION Treating this recurrent problem may appear difficult. We excised the main track of the sinus which appeared here as a fistula with two openings one above and one below in the natal cleft. It measured 10 cm long between the two openings. Elliptical skin part is removed containing the upper opening and the scarred skin around. Healing was not perfect when hairs were around the natal cleft and tended to come in the wound at the lower pole of the natal cleft incision line. Shaving of hairs around the natal cleft affected the healing very well and in a week time the wound was completely closed. Recurrent Pilo-Nidal Sinus: Secret Of Recurrence 3 of 4 CONCLUSION Cleaning is mandatory for effective closure of the sinus. Excision of the track is the main item of treating the sinus. Hair removal is a complementary step to ensure cure. Open or close techniques are of the same result where the closed technique tend to heal faster.

Comparison of four surgical methods for eyebrow reconstruction

ABSTRACT Background: The eyebrow plays an important role in facial harmony and eye protection. eyebrows can be injured by burn, trauma, tumour, tattooing and alopecia. eyebrow reconstructions have been done via several techniques. here, our experience with a fairly new method for eyebrow reconstruction is presented.Materials and methods: this is a descriptive-analytical study which was done on 76 patients at the al-zahra and imam mousa kazem hospitals at isfahan university of medical university, isfahan, iran, from 1994 to 2004. totally 86 eyebrows were reconstructed. all patients were examined before and after the operation. methods which are commonly applied in eyebrow reconstruction are as follows: 1. superficial temporal artery flap (island), 2. interpolitation scalp flap, 3. graft. our method which is named forehead facial island flap with inferior pedicle provides an easier approach for the surgeon and more ideal hair growth direction for the patient.Results: significantly lower rates of complication along with greater patient satisfaction were obtained with forehead facial island flap.Conclusions: according to the acquired results, this method seems to be more technically practical and aesthetically favourable when compared to others.

Comparison of four surgical methods for eyebrow reconstruction

Background: The eyebrow plays an important role in facial harmony and eye protection. Eyebrows can be injured by burn, trauma, tumour, tattooing and alopecia. Eyebrow reconstructions have been done via several techniques. Here, our experience with a fairly new method for eyebrow reconstruction is presented. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive-analytical study which was done on 76 patients at the Al-Zahra and Imam Mousa Kazem hospitals at Isfahan University of Medical University, Isfahan, Iran, from 1994 to 2004. Totally 86 eyebrows were reconstructed. All patients were examined before and after the operation. Methods which are commonly applied in eyebrow reconstruction are as follows: 1. Superficial Temporal Artery Flap (Island), 2. Interpolitation Scalp Flap, 3. Graft. Our method which is named Forehead Facial Island Flap with inferior pedicle provides an easier approach for the surgeon and more ideal hair growth direction for the patient. Results: Significantly lower rates of complication along with greater patient satisfaction were obtained with Forehead Facial Island Flap. Conclusions: According to the acquired results, this method seems to be more technically practical and aesthetically favourable when compared to others.

A generative sketch model for human hair analysis and synthesis

In this paper, we present a generative sketch model for human hair analysis and synthesis. We treat hair images as 2D piecewise smooth vector (flow) fields and, thus, our representation is view-based in contrast to the physically-based 3D hair models in graphics. The generative model has three levels. The bottom level is the high-frequency band of the hair image. The middle level is a piecewise smooth vector field for the hair orientation, gradient strength, and growth directions. The top level is an attribute sketch graph for representing the discontinuities in the vector field. A sketch graph typically has a number of sketch curves which are divided into 11 types of directed primitives. Each primitive is a small window (say 5 x 7 pixels) where the orientations and growth directions are defined in parametric forms, for example, hair boundaries, occluding lines between hair strands, dividing lines on top of the hair, etc. In addition to the three level representation, we model the shading effects, i.e., the low-frequency band of the hair image, by a linear superposition of some Gaussian image bases and we encode the hair color by a color map. The inference algorithm is divided into two stages: 1) We compute the undirected orientation field and sketch graph from an input image and 2) we compute the hair growth direction forthe sketch curves and the orientation field using a Swendsen-Wang cut algorithm. Both steps maximize a joint Bayesian posterior probability. The generative model provides a straightforward way for synthesizing realistic hair images and stylistic drawings (rendering) from a sketch graph and a few Gaussian bases. The latter can be either inferred from a real hair image or input (edited) manually using a simple sketching interface. We test our algorithm on a large data set of hair images with diverse hair styles. Analysis, synthesis, and rendering results are reported in the experiments.

Follicular unit transplantation for male-pattern hair loss: Evaluation of 120 patients

The main aim in surgical hair restoration is to restore hair, making the scalp look natural. Interviews with earlier patients who received hair transplants revealed that their complaints were - a straight anterior hairline that looked unnatural, and hair that looked like 'sprouted grass'. The use of follicular unit transplantation (FUT) technique, where hair roots are harvested under magnification, is becoming widespread. In this technique, hair roots are harvested into natural follicular units that contain 1-4 hair roots. In this article, we present our results related to hair transplantation by FUT technique, performed on 120 patients between the ages of 21 and 75 years with male-pattern hair loss. We made simple yet useful interventions to avoid the occurrence of the above-mentioned problems. Initially, drawings based on the middle line and the two temporal regression points were made for a natural-looking anterior hairline. Following this, irregular seeding was done instead of seeding in rows, to obtain a natural hairline. To avoid the 'sprouted grass' look, single hair roots were placed on the anterior hairline taking into consideration the direction of hair growth. However, the FUT technique is not adequate on its own for natural-looking hair restoration. Good planning and creation of an anterior hairline suited to the individual's forehead structure is fundamental for successful results. In addition, we believe that hair texture is very important in hair transplantation and additional care should be given particularly to patients with dark-coloured and hard hair.