Eyelash implant or transplant surgery is a cosmetic, elective procedure that is performed to add eyelashes to the upper eyelid. The patient receives a local anesthetic. To perform eyelash implants or transplantation, the surgeon obtains a graft of hair from the nape of the neck. The graft is divided into single-hair grafts, and any excess fat, dermis, and epidermis are trimmed in order to make each graft very fine.
After anesthetizing the eyelid and protecting the cornea with an eyeshield, the surgeon uses a very fine transplanting needle to implant about 50 – 60 hairs into the eyelids. Each hair is implanted one at a time. The procedure takes about an hour. After transplantation, the new lashes grow longer than natural lashes and therefore must be trimmed regularly.
Eyelash implant or transplant surgery yields very positive results, with patients experiencing few complications. Bleeding is minimal, there is no visible scarring or tufting, and overall the results appear quite natural.