This is a minimally invasive procedure. It is performed as a day case with the person walking into the operating room and walking out after the surgery with minimal down time. It is done not only for male pattern baldness but also for females, scars due to cleft lip surgeries, trauma, burns etc. The modern hair transplantation technique grafts are harvested two different ways: strip harvesting or Follicular unit transplantation (FUT) and follicular unit extraction (FUE).

Before surgery a thorough discussion between the Surgeon and the client take place. An assessment of the expectation and the donor site quality is made. Pre operatively all medications and diet supplements that are likely to cause bleeding are stopped for two weeks prior to surgery. Minoxidil should be stopped 3 days before surgery. Smoking should be discontinued for some time. The procedure is done under local anesthesia and mild sedation.

Follicular unit extraction (FUE) is another method of obtaining grafts, for hair transplantation. In FUE, individual follicular units are extracted directly from the donor area, using a motor driven device, with the surgeon selecting grafts under magnified vision. It generally has a quicker patient recovery and significantly lower post-operative discomfort. FUE provides an alternative when the scalp is too tight for a strip excision and enables a hair transplant surgeon to harvest finer hair from other body parts.

Drugs like Fenastride or topical Minoxidil are optional; when started in the immediate postoperative period they seem to promote early hair regrowth. During the first ten days, virtually all of the transplanted hairs will fall out. This is referred to as "shock loss". After two to three months new hair will begin to grow from the moved follicles. The patient's hair will grow normally, and continue to thicken through the next six to nine months. Appreciable hair regrowth occurs only after 6 to 9 months.

Some persons who undergo HT may develop pain at the donor site for up to one week which responds well to medications. The swelling around the eye and forehead regions lasting for a few days is very common, which reduces in a few days. Shock loss of the hair in the surrounding areas (Telogen effluvium) can also occur which usually recovers in 2 - 3 weeks time. Numbness at the donor site lasting for several months is also seen in some which recovers spontaneously. Hair Transplantation has evolved over the years and has come to stay as a safe and effective method for hair restoration when performed by a well experienced team.