Questions people ask before they fly
Straight answers about the procedure, results, recovery, travel, price and safety.
28 answers in plain words
Not here? Ask your coordinator on WhatsApp, in English or Arabic.
The procedure
Does a hair transplant hurt?
The first 5–10 minutes, while the local anaesthetic goes in, can be uncomfortable; how much varies from person to person. Once the area is numb, most people feel pressure, not pain. You may feel tight and swollen for a few days afterwards. The painkillers and other medicines you need after surgery are included in every package.
Who actually performs my surgery?
Your surgeon leads your whole procedure: they design your hairline with you, plan your grafts, take out grafts themselves, open the channels themselves (sapphire FUE) or place the grafts with the DHI pen themselves (DHI), and check every stage of the day, with an experienced technician team working under their direction. Those are the steps that matter most. Our lead surgeon plans every procedure, with both surgeons on complex cases. We are a boutique clinic with two surgeons, and we usually treat two to three patients a day, so your surgeon is not beside you every minute but comes back in at every stage. Ask any clinic you’re considering who will actually do each step of your procedure.
How long does the procedure take?
Most of one day. Your blood tests and consultation are in the morning, then the procedure, with a break for lunch, which is included, and you are back at your hotel in the evening. A second day is needed only in a few cases, for example when chest hair is used, and your surgeon tells you in advance.
What is the difference between FUE and DHI?
Both take grafts out one by one. They differ in how grafts go back in. With sapphire FUE, tiny channels are first opened with a sapphire blade, at the angle and direction your surgeon plans, which lets grafts sit very close together, so we use it for bald areas and some hairlines. With DHI each graft goes in with a pen-like implanter, which suits adding grafts between existing hair, women, and many hairlines. Some plans use both. Your surgeon decides, and the price is the same.
Do I have to shave my head?
For most plans, yes. Shaving lets your surgeon see the whole area, and it is usually the safer choice for your result. An unshaven procedure is possible, usually with DHI, but it costs more and takes longer: a receding hairline usually takes a day, and larger areas can take two. Our surgeons usually advise against it, especially for diffuse thinning, where long hair can stick to the crusts and pull grafts out, which raises the risk of infection and complications. Your surgeon makes the final call.
Will I need more than one session?
Most people need one. Advanced hair loss (Norwood 6 and 7, and some Norwood 5 cases) always takes two sessions: the hairline and front first, then the crown at least 8 to 9 months later. We never take more than 5,000 grafts in one session, to protect your donor area from over-harvesting.
Can I talk to the surgeon before I book?
Yes. If you would like to speak to our lead surgeon before you book, or after your surgery, we set up a free video call. Ask on WhatsApp: tell us which days and times suit you, and your time zone, and your coordinator arranges it.
Results
Will the result look natural?
A natural look depends on three things: the hairline design, single-hair grafts in the first 2–3 rows of the hairline, and the angle each graft goes in at. Your surgeon designs the hairline with you, plans the grafts and their angles, and checks the work at every stage.
Is the result permanent?
Hair taken from the back and sides usually keeps growing for life, because it resists the hormone that causes pattern hair loss. Your other hair can keep thinning, so we plan for the future and may suggest medicine alongside surgery.
When will I see results?
New hair starts at around 3 to 4 months. Most people see about half the result at 6 months and most of it at 12 months. The crown can take up to 18 months.
How many grafts do I need?
It depends on how much hair you have lost and how strong your donor area is. Use the graft calculator for a first estimate. Our lead surgeon confirms the number from your photos.
Can I see before-and-after photos?
Yes. Dr. Grafts is a new name, but not a new team: we have more than 10 years of hair transplant experience. There is no gallery under the new name yet, so your coordinator sends you real, consented cases privately, ideally similar to your own hair loss.
What if my hair doesn’t grow as planned?
Your surgeon reviews your photos at every check-up, at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. New hair grows slowly: most people see about half the result at 6 months and most of it at 12, and the crown can take up to 18 months. If growth is less than planned, your surgeon talks you through the options on WhatsApp and decides with you, case by case. We cannot promise how every graft will grow: genetics and other factors outside anyone’s control play a large part.
Recovery
When can I go back to work?
Desk work is usually fine after 7 to 10 days, once the crusts have mostly gone and the redness is fading; redness fades over about 10 to 14 days. If your job is physical, plan for about two weeks.
What is shock loss?
Between weeks 2 and 8, most transplanted hairs fall out. This is normal. The root stays under the skin, rests, and starts growing new hair from about month 3–4.
When can I exercise, swim or wear a cap?
No hat or cap until after the wash that clears the scabs, usually 10–14 days after surgery; after that, only a loose, clean cap. Walking is fine from day 1, but no gym, running, weights or anything that makes you sweat or strain for 1 month, and no pool, sea, sauna, steam room or hammam for 1 month. Your written aftercare plan comes first.
Will people notice I have had a hair transplant?
Many people would rather nobody knows, so plan your procedure around time off. In the first days there is redness and there are small scabs. The scabs come off at the wash, usually 10–14 days after surgery, and redness usually fades in about the same time; after that, a loose, clean cap is fine.
Travel
How many days do I need in Istanbul?
Three days is usual. You arrive the day before surgery. On day 2 you have your blood tests, consultation and procedure. On day 3 you have a check-up and your first wash, then fly home.
Is everything arranged for me?
With the Essential, Signature and Prestige packages, yes. A private car meets you at either Istanbul airport, the hotel is booked, and your coordinator looks after you until you fly home. Express covers the procedure, your first wash and the medicines you need, with no hotel, airport pick-up or transport, so you arrange your own stay and travel. In every package, our lead surgeon and your coordinator speak English and Arabic, and we can arrange an interpreter for other languages.
Can I bring someone with me?
Yes, a companion is very welcome. They share your hotel room for a small extra your coordinator confirms, can stay with you through the whole process and eat with you on procedure day at no charge. Companions must be adults; children cannot come to the clinic.
Price and booking
What does the price include?
Every package includes your consultation, blood tests and the procedure, with the technique your surgeon chooses, plus lunch on surgery day, your first wash at the clinic the day after, the prescription medicines you need after surgery and 12 months of follow-up. Essential, Signature and Prestige add hotel nights, airport pick-up and transfers, PRP and an aftercare kit. Signature and Prestige also include hyperbaric oxygen sessions. Express has no hotel, pick-up or transport. Flights and personal travel insurance are not included.
Why do hair transplant prices differ between countries?
Prices depend on local costs and on what a quote includes. Wherever you go, compare what the written price covers, who does each step and how many grafts will be taken in one session.
Do I need to pay a deposit?
Yes: 10% of the package price, paid once your surgeon has approved your plan and your dates are agreed. If you cancel 8 weeks or more before your date, the deposit is refunded in full. From 8 weeks before your date it is not refunded, and that includes the day itself, because the operating room, the equipment and the team are booked for you; you can still move your date once, up to 2 weeks before, and keep it. Your surgeon plans with you before you fly, so surgery is very rarely called off on the day; if you are unwell that morning, for example with a fever or a stomach bug, your surgeon moves it by a day or two instead. Your coordinator explains how to pay on WhatsApp.
Do you charge per graft?
No. Each package has one fixed price. Your surgeon plans the number of grafts your hair needs and your donor area can safely give, up to 5,000 in one session, and the package price stays the same, with all taxes included. It changes only if your plan does: a second procedure day, an unshaven procedure, a companion in your hotel room, a second session, or beard hair used as extra donor when your surgeon’s plan needs it.
Safety
Am I a good candidate?
We treat adults only (18 and over). Even then, you may not be a good candidate, and we will say so. If you are young and still losing hair, or if your hair loss has another cause, medicine or a dermatologist may be the better first step.
What are the risks?
Hair transplantation is surgery. Risks include infection, bleeding, scarring, numbness, shock loss and grafts that do not grow well. Your surgeon explains them before you agree to anything.
Why would I not have a hair transplant?
If your loss is still changing quickly, if your donor area is weak, or if your expectations do not match what your donor hair can do. In those cases medicine first, or no surgery at all, is the honest answer.
Where does surgery take place?
Surgery takes place in the operating rooms of licensed hospitals in Istanbul. Your coordinator sends the details of your procedure day, including where to go, once your dates are agreed. With every package except Express, your driver takes you there.
Your own question, answered in writing
Send four photos with your question. Our lead surgeon replies with your plan, graft estimate and full price, usually within 24 hours. Free, and you are not committing to anything.
Like any surgery, a hair transplant has risks. They include infection, scarring, shock loss and grafts that grow poorly. Read about the risks