Hello, I’m Kim Jin-Oh, the director of NHI(New Hair Institute) I’ll answer an inquiry that I got through YouTube comments. Youtube Q:Is quitting smoking before getting a hair transplant more important than quitting smoking after surgery? Both are important. Since smoking affects our flow and dispersion of blood to our organs, it is recommended to (quit smoking) to improve and maintain the passages.

However, if one had to choose, it is more important to quit smoking after the surgery. This is because at the beginning after the surgery, the hairs are nourished through diffusion until connected to the blood vessels, and so if you smoke at that time, the diffusion function decreases. The transplanted hair barely survives at the beginning after the surgery.

In addition, this decrease in diffusion can affect the survival rates of the graft. Moreover, because transplanted hairs are connected by blood vessel thinner than strings, the oxygen provision may be severely reduced. Thus, it is recommended that one quits smoking after the surgery if possible.

Moreso, it is even more important during the 3 to 5 days after surgery because that is when the blood flow starts to recover. The period between 6 to 12 days post surgery, which is when the survival of graft is more-or-less decided, is the second most important period. As of the third most important period, the post 1 month matters. This is because this is when approximately 80% of the recorvey takes place.

If it’s too hard, quit smoking for (the first) 4 days after surgery. If you can stand it, try it for 10 to 12 days after surgery, and if you can still endure it, continue to quit smoking for up to a month after the surgery. I think it would be good to think about the 3 steps mentioned above.

It’s better to improve blood flow on the scalp through quitting smoking before surgery because in this way you can get surgery in good condition. If you ask me again next time about other topics, I will answer your questions thoughtfully. Thank you for watching. If you have any questions, please leave a comment on my blog and I’ll answer them through a blog or YouTube.

(ENG/JPN)모발이식 수술 전후, 언제 금연해야 할까? - 뉴헤어 I [모발이식]