Hair Transplantation For Cleft Lip Scarring
According to the CDC, “Each year in the United States, about 2,650 babies are born with a cleft palate and 4,440 babies are born with a cleft lip or a cleft palate.”
A cleft lip is classified as a congenital disorder that results in a physical split or gap in the upper lip. Since the formation of a cleft lip can cause a variety of health problems, children are usually treated early in life with surgery. The cleft lip surgery can successfully restore the continuity of the lips and improve their function. However, the surgery typically leaves unpleasant scars and results in the patient not being able to regrow hair.
I recently had the pleasure of helping a patient restore hair on his upper lip that stopped growing due to scarring from a cleft lip surgery. In this particular case, we were able to successfully restore hair to the scarred area by taking hair grafts from his chin for the donor hair. This patient had undergone multiple scar revision procedures in the past hoping to eliminate the visibility of the scar. He had not enjoyed any success in the past.
Here is a video showing the procedure:
Although there are several available methods to revise and minimize the appearance of the scar, the final results of these procedures almost never completely camouflage the scar. Hair transplant into the upper lip is a proven method to restore hair in the area with the upper lip scar. We use facial hair to restore scalp baldness and the same hair follicles can be used to repair any hair loss or scars in the hair bearing area of the face.
If it is performed using facial hair, the results could completely eliminate the visibility of the cleft lip scars. It should be noted that some patients may need more than one procedure to achieve their optimal results.
If you are considering hair transplantation as an option to hide the scarring from a cleft lip surgery, contact us today to schedule a consultation appointment.