FTM HAIR RESTORATION
The temples have crept back since you started testosterone. The crown shows under bright light. The beard came in patchy, or barely came in at all.
Trans men considering a hair transplant tend to ask three things. Will transplanted hair survive ongoing testosterone therapy? Will the result look like it simply grew there? And who will actually hold the instruments on the day?
Dr Epameinondas Bonaros plans and performs every FtM hair transplant himself at his clinic on Clyde Street, Glasgow. At your consultation, you meet the surgeon, not a salesperson.
The basics
An FtM hair transplant moves your own follicles from the back and sides of the scalp into the hairline, crown, beard or body. Each is moved one by one, using follicular unit excision (FUE). The older strip method removes a band of scalp and leaves a linear scar. FUE leaves tiny dot marks that fade into the surrounding hair. No procedure is scarless, and we would rather tell you that plainly.
Results last because of where the hair comes from. Testosterone therapy raises dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which shrinks follicles across the front and crown in the familiar pattern of male pattern baldness. Yet hair at the nape and sides largely resists DHT and maintains that resistance after transfer. No clinic can honestly promise a fixed outcome. Growth varies between people.
Good candidates have a healthy donor area, realistic goals and a settling loss pattern. If your shedding is still evolving early in hormone therapy, or your donor supply cannot meet your goals, Dr Bonaros will say so. He will help you plan rather than operate.
OUR APPROACH
A masculine hairline sits higher and squarer at the temples than a feminine one, with an irregular, single-hair leading edge. Beard grafts change angle across the cheek, jaw and lip. Dr Bonaros draws the design with you, then sets the angle, depth and direction of every graft himself. The person who plans the result should be the person who builds it. He restores density and definition where testosterone has thinned it. He will not promise to convert a feminine hairline into a masculine one.
Your donor area is finite, and many trans men want hairline, beard and body work over several years. Procedures are sequenced to protect that reserve, and grafts are handled with the WAW Duo FUE system. You are quoted for the grafts your plan needs, not the most that can be billed.
WHY PATIENTS CHOOSE FUE
The procedure runs under local anaesthetic with no stitches and no linear scar. You go home the same day and can wear your hair short later without a tell-tale line.
Most patients are back at a desk job within three to five days. The small donor marks crust and shed within 10 to 14 days.
Donor follicles keep their resistance to DHT after transfer, and each graft is placed individually to match how your hair grows. Individual results vary.
Every stage is performed by a surgeon registered with the General Medical Council (GMC). He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS). He is also a full member of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS). Your reviews happen at the Glasgow clinic, not by email from abroad.
THE PROCEDURE
Your consultation covers a scalp and beard examination and an honest reading of your donor area. It also covers where you are in your transition, including how settled your hormone regimen feels. The design is drawn with you, and a realistic graft estimate is agreed upon. You then receive a fixed written quote stating exactly what it includes, so nothing changes on the day. Never stop prescribed medicines, including testosterone, without your prescriber's advice.
1. Your design is confirmed, photographed and marked.
2. Local anaesthetic goes in: a brief sting, then numbness.
3. Dr Bonaros extracts follicles from the donor area one by one.
4. Recipient sites are made at the planned angle and depth.
5. Each graft is placed by hand into its site.
6. Most sessions take four to eight hours, depending on the number of grafts, and are completed the same day.
Crusts lift within 10 to 14 days. Between weeks two and six, some transplanted and nearby hairs shed. This shock loss can look alarming, but it is a normal, temporary stage. New growth appears from month three or four, with hairlines and beards maturing over 12 months, as our month-by-month hair transplant timeline shows.
Swelling, numbness and itching settle within days to weeks. You leave with stage-by-stage washing, exercise and sun-care instructions. Serious problems are uncommon, and every risk is discussed with you before consent. You are then reviewed at set intervals at the Glasgow clinic.
1. Redness or swelling is spreading, or a wound is weeping.
2. You develop a fever or feel generally unwell.
3. Pain is not settling with the pain relief we advise.
General information only: advice becomes personal at your consultation.
Patient stories
Results
Frequently Asked Questions
The anaesthetic injections sting briefly, then the area goes numb, and most patients feel pressure rather than pain during the procedure. Expect some tenderness for a few days afterwards, which can be managed with the simple pain relief we advise.
Transplanted follicles come from the nape and sides of the scalp, where hair largely resists DHT, and they keep that character after transfer. Your native, non-transplanted hair can continue to thin on testosterone, which is why your plan accounts for future loss as well as today's.
Most sessions run four to eight hours in a single day, depending on the number of grafts. Smaller beard or temple sessions sit at the shorter end, and larger combined plans are sometimes staged across separate days to protect graft quality.
FUE leaves tiny dot marks scattered through the donor area rather than a linear strip scar. They fade as they heal, and most people can wear their hair short without them being obvious. No hair transplant is completely scarless.
Cost depends on the number of grafts and the areas treated, typically around £4 per graft, though case complexity can affect the final total. It is confirmed after your examination. You receive a fixed written quote stating exactly what it includes: the procedure, aftercare medicines and every follow-up review. Nothing changes on the day.
Dr Epameinondas Bonaros personally performs every stage of every procedure, from the anaesthetic to the final graft. He is a GMC-registered doctor (GMC number 7566786), a Diplomate of the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS) and a full ISHRS member.
There is no fixed rule. What matters is that your loss pattern is settled enough to plan around and that the timing suits your wider transition. Some men have surgery before starting hormones at all. If operating now would waste grafts, Dr Bonaros will advise waiting and explain why.
Sometimes. Minoxidil suits many people, and prescription treatment to lower DHT can slow male pattern loss. Whether that fits your goals on masculinising hormone therapy is a decision for you and your prescriber. Nothing should be started or stopped without that advice.
Yes. Beard grafts come from scalp donor hair, so patchy or absent growth on hormone therapy does not rule you out. Design focuses on direction and distribution first, then density, so the result looks grown rather than placed.
Yes. The chest, abdomen and pubic area are the most requested areas. Body work draws on the same finite scalp donor supply as hairline and beard work. So it is planned as part of your overall graft budget rather than in isolation.
Be careful. Wherever you go, check the surgeon on the GMC register or its national equivalent, and ask who performs each stage. Ask to see healed 12-month results, and confirm how reviews and any problems will be handled once you are home. Healthcare Improvement Scotland regulates independent clinics in Scotland.
No referral is needed. A consultation is a private, confidential conversation about your goals, your hair and your realistic options. It carries no obligation, and nothing is shared with anyone without your consent.
More common than many people expect. Around 2.8% of hair transplants performed worldwide in 2024 supported transition-related goals, according to the ISHRS 2025 Practice Census. The planning principles are well established. You will not be an unusual case at this clinic.
About the Medical Reviewer
Dr Bonaros is a GMC-registered doctor, an ABHRS Diplomate and a full member of the ISHRS. He has dedicated his career to surgical hair restoration and personally performs every stage of each procedure, from hairline design to graft placement. This page has been written and reviewed to ensure it is accurate, balanced and patient-focused.
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